Protecting Confidentiality

Abstract

Confidentiality is a cornerstone of the counseling process. Confidentiality refers to the ethical principle that compels mental health professionals to hold secret all information about a client and to keep private any information revealed by a client in confidence. This holds true unless the client consents to disclose the information to a third party or the law authorizes the release of information without the client's consent. Confidentiality is the keystone of effective counseling and psychotherapy because it allows clients to freely share their thoughts and experiences without fear of unwarranted disclosure to others. Ethical standards dictate that a client is able to seek mental health services and disclose information without public knowledge of those activities. Such standards often work in cooperation with legal statutes, which help prevent mental health professionals from having to reveal material disclosed in therapy to the justice system.