In short, the counselor in this situation has no choice but to step in and say/do something.
To make a final decision, it would normally be wise to do some information gathering and to truly find out for sure whether or not this man has offended or not. However, the only real way to do that is to prod the priest even more and/or to ask the children and/or parents what is going on, if anything, and that would probably not be the best idea, at least in the latter case. Any querying of children would have to be done with the full knowledge and consent of the parents, and this is true both ethically and legally, and even if such permission was not garnered it would get back to them eventually. It is a certainty that when (not if) that happens, the parents will immediately figure out why the children are being questioned and that will unleash a firestorm. However, telling the parents in some form and at some point should probably happen because not only should this man be removed immediately it has to be known for sure whether anything did happen, when it happened and how many children were affected. The problem is that while it is not known for sure if something did indeed happen, it would be fairly impossible to be discrete about figuring out whether it happened. If this broke in the local (or national) media and it is found that nothing really did happen, then a lot of damage would still be caused.
Given the above, there is really no other choice here but to notify the church of what is going on. Going straight to the police would probably be the safer step but the fact that there is not a complaining witness (yet) probably precludes that from being a safe option. However, the notification of the church would need to have more "stick" than "carrot." Basically, the counselor should go to the church and tell them that the priest has divulged his urges to the counselor and that he needs to be removed for the safety of the children. If it is clear, or it otherwise comes to pass, that the priest does ANY more services or work with children, it should be stated in no unclear terms that the police will be notified immediately and the church not only will be forced to comply with their orders, the likelihood of this immediately blowing up into full-blown scandal goes without saying.
If the church dawdles or refuses to comply, the police and child protective services need to be notified. The latter might not be able to do much given that is not a child/parent relationship, but this can obviously vary by city and county and the definition "best interest of the children" certainly comes into play. The next step is to make sure that no victims are present. However, the church needs to be careful to not stain the potentially offending priest unless he actually acted on his urges. The way to favor both sides of the argument would be to have a program and class whereby children are told what "good touch" is and what "bad touch" is and that no one, not even parents or priests, are allowed to violate those rules and that the children should tell someone if/when it happens to them.
As for the priest that is to be removed, he obviously cannot be charged criminally unless he actually broke the law. His office and other non-home areas, however, should be searched heavily to ensure that no pornographic materials are present. If there are indeed materials that are illegal in nature (i.e. that have kids in any sexual context), then those materials should be given to the police and the priest should be charged to the fullest extent of the law. if, however, nothing is found then the priest should be summarily dismissed. He should NOT simply be shuffled to another parish or even within the church in any other way. He should be trespassed off the church and he should be told quietly plainly why this is. However, it should be done discreetly as doing otherwise can lead to a lawsuit.
The police should be discreetly notified about what was discovered in the counseling session so that they can investigate...
Mental Health Providing patients with mental health problems with the proper care can be a difficult task. There are also many ethical issues that often arise in caring for patients who are mentally ill. The case of Rocky Bennett is a prime example of the ethical dilemmas that can arise when arriving for this particular population. These dilemmas can also be compounded when racial discrimination is involved. The purpose of this
When left untreated, mental health conditions can lead to school failure, family conflicts, drug abuse, violence, and even suicide. Untreated mental health disorders can be very expensive for families, communities, and the health care system. Teens in rural areas in particular face many challenges for which there are not enough resources available. They face problems such as: isolation, loneliness, and poor access to transportation, increased economic conflict, unemployment, poor
The outcome of post-combat rehabilitation counseling is directly dependent on the development of specific techniques and approaches conducive to their needs. Conceptual Relevance to Mental Health Counseling and Professional Practice: Antiquated or outdated conceptual approaches to rehabilitation counseling are less effective than those that correspond more closely to the actual needs of patients. As a professional counselor, it is important to understand the specific needs of patients to best assist them
However, more empirical studies have been published in recent years which have both reported outcomes but also have acknowledged the complexity of the interaction of the number of variables involved in predicting outcome effects on children whose parents are substance abusers (Dworkin & Hirsch, 2004). This literature is particularly important because of the large number of children affected by substance abuse of various kinds and the social policy directed
This creates a nerve with the client that their private information is going to be unprotected and confidentiality is going to be broken . There is no safe way to keep all information private. However, all mental health professionals must take all necessary precautions to keep client information private . Conclusion As you look around the mall, classroom, church, family history, friend's family, or place of employment, you're sure to know
Ethics of Group Therapy Ethical Concepts Guiding Group Psychiatric Therapy Practice Ethically inclined group psychotherapists use moral codes produced from their professions and from associations dedicated to the furtherance of group psychiatric therapy like a modality. Good examples from the former would be the Ethical Concepts of Psychologists and Code of Conduct (American Psychological Association [APA], 2002) and also the NASW Code of Ethics (National Association of Social Workers [NASW], 1999). The
Our semester plans gives you unlimited, unrestricted access to our entire library of resources —writing tools, guides, example essays, tutorials, class notes, and more.
Get Started Now