Standards 5-10

Soliciting Client Testimonials

-CANNOT solicit testimonials from vulnerable individuals (e.g., current pts)

e.g., vulnerable individual = a recently terminated pt (maybe can from pt seen for brief therapy 5 yrs ago, likely not returning)

‘In-Person’ Solicitation of Business

-CAN’T engage in uninvited solicitation w/ ppl vulnerable to undue influence (i.e., your pts, people in crisis)

• e.g., someone in crisis on FB → CAN’T message them that you can see them

• you CAN send a flyer out to 1000 homes in community about your practice

-Exceptions for soliciting business:

• disaster relief

• community outreach services

• encouraging family members to start therapy that would benefit pt

Credentials for their mental health services can only be claimed from degrees that...

-were from regionally-accredited educational institutions (accredited or nonaccredited but approved by state)

-or, degrees that were the basis for their psychology licensure

i.e., can’t put UofI (where you’re a professor) on your therapy business card

When withdrawing from practice (even if it’s an unplanned withdrawal)

-MUST have plan for transferring pt records + maintaining confidentiality:

• have professional will

• arrangement with colleague/professional association to manage the records

• instructions for spouse/executor

Minimum duration for maintaining professional records:

-unless there’s superseding legal/institutional req:

-consider keeping full records for:

• 7 yrs post-last service date (adult pt)

• OR until 21 yo (i.e., 3 yrs after age of maturity, for minor pts) (whichever is later)

• e.g., stop seeing a 17 yo pt → keep records for 7 yrs

-may want to retain records for longer, depending on situation

When emailing or faxing a pt’s files, you must…

***can’t guarantee that it won’t be accessed by unauthorized ppl → must use coding + remove idenitfying info

-if confidential info is entered into systems that are available to ppl whose access has not been consented to by the recipient (e.g., Gmail, fax), must remove idenitfying info

Fees and Financial Arrangements

-need to reach fee/billing agreement with pts “as early as feasible”

i.e., discussing fees, billing/payment policies, issues with payment

-for unpaid fees, can use collection agencies/other legal measures, BUT FIRST need to tell pt + provide opportunity to make prompt payment (only give limited info to collection agency)

Withhholding pt records d/t unpaid fees…

-CAN’T withhold pt records bc of unpaid fees (esp if needed for emergency tx) (this is illegal per HIPAA)

-doesn’t necessarily apply for education, assessment, other professional activities

Can forensic psychologists accept contingent fees?

-Contingent fees = payment depends on outcome of a case/the service

-Forensic psychologists CANNOT accept contingent fees (introduces impartiality)

Bartering for psychological services

-accepting something nonmonetary (i.e., goods/services) from pts in return for psychological services

-Bartering is discouraged d/t negative consequences, but may be acceptable when not clinically contraindicated or exploitative

• Bartering goods is less risky than services

When is bartering for psychological services okay?

1.) when not clinically contraindicated

2.) or exploitative

Is it okay to bill insurance for pt’s missed apt or waive a pt’s copaymentUnethical + illegal to provide payors of services (i.e., insurance) with inaccurate info:?

No, it’s unethical + illegal to provide payors of services (i.e., insurance) with inaccurate info

Referral fees

-cannot take a fee based on the referral itself––any fee would have to be based on a service provided (e.g., time colleague spent discussing the pt with you, copying/fwding the pt’s file)

–––––––– STANDARD 7 –––––––––

Ps CANNOT require students to disclose personal info in course/program-related activities unless:

-Req was clearly identified in admissions and program materials

OR

-Info is necessary to evaluate/help students whose personal problems are preventing them from fulfilling training/professional activities in competent manner

-Info is necessary to evaluate/help students whose personal problems are posing threat to students/others

If individual or group therapy is a undergrad/grad course requirement…

-must be given option of choosing therapist unaffiliated with the program

-faculty that’re likely responsible for evaluating students cannot provide the therapy

Guidelines for programs requiring personal therapy:

-the req (incl. potential risks/benefits and planned safeguards) are described in program application materials

-the req is justified by the program’s training objectives

-students are given some choice in selecting therapists + no multiple rships

-students are given financially-feasible options so it’s affordable

Evaluating Student/Supervisee performance

-evaluations must based on students’ performance on relevant, established program req (not personality, other factors not clearly linked to performance)

-must establish timely and specific process for providing feedback; communicated at beginning of academic/sv rship

Dismissing a supervisee

-supervisees have due process rights; dismissal from program is last resort

-must provide constructive feedback regularly

-if supervisee exhibits problem bx → sv should provide remediation

• if problem still not solved, more formal action (limited endorsement, probation, termination from program)

This must be documented + done in a way where supervisee has right to due process

Examples of how a supervisor might provide remediation when supervisor exhibits problem bx

-increase sv; change format/focus of sv

-reduce supervisee workload

-require completion of academic coursework

-recommend personal therapy, leave of absence

-recommend 2nd internship in another setting

Can you have sex with current/former students/supervisees?

-can’t have sexual involvement with students/supervisees that you’re likely to have evaluative authority over, or in your department/agency/training center

–––––––– STANDARD 8 (Research) ––––––––

Modifications to prior IRB proposals require IRB modification request when…

-full/expedited status: major and minor mods require modification request

-exempt status: only major mods

-major mods = procedures that increase risk of harm, adding sensitive Qs risk confidentiality breaches, major changes to design

-minor mod = changing recruitment (unless adding a vulnerable population),

Can you make changes to eliminate immediate hazards w/o IRB modification approval?

Can make the change prior to IRB approval AND must be reported asap

Informed consent in research needs to include:

-purpose of research, expected duration, procedures

-right to decline participation/withdraw; foreseeable consequences of declining/withdrawing

-limits of confidentiality

-benefits, participation incentives

-potential risks, discomfort, adverse effects (and other reasonably foreseeable factors that may impact willingness to participate)

-contact info for info on research/participant rights

Informed consent for experimental research (that studies a treatment) includes:

(Participants are randomly assigned; don’t want them thinking they’re getting regular therapy/help)

Must inform participants:

• experimental nature of tx (i.e., this is for research, outcomes not guaranteed)

• available alternative txs

• how participants are assigned to experimental vs. control

• that control group won’t be getting tx (i.e., “if you’re assigned to control group, you won’t receive any psychotherapy,” so participants don’t anticipate they’ll be getting help for their depression)

Is assent needed from minors in research?

-Yes, child assent usually needed EXCEPT when the research has direct health benefits to child

• then, guardian consent overrides non-assenting child

-if no direct benefits to child, child’s non-assent overrides guardian

Informed consent must always be obtained prior to research participation unless:

-permitted by law/institutional regulations

-The research is unlikely to cause distress/harm AND:

• Routine educational practices (e.g., comparing 2 teaching methods by looking at student records)

• Job/organizational effectiveness w/ participant confidentiality, and no risk to employment (e.g., company compares 2 employee training programs on worker productivity)

• Naturalistic observation (w/ participant confidentiality)

• Archival research (no confidential info)

• Anonymous questionnaires

Informed consent for recording audio/images may be unnecessary if:

-naturalistic observation in public places (where no expectation of privacy) + unlikely to lead to identification/harm

-deception research: but consent to use recording needs to be obtained during debriefing

Research participation can be a course-requirement or given as extra-credit opportunity if:

-must be “given choice of equitable alternative activities”

Excessive incentives/inducements for research participation…

-reasonable efforts to avoid excessive incentives that are likely to coerce participation

• e.g., $1000 for risky drug trial to indigent participants

Can professional services be offered in exchange for participation?

-Yes, if it’s not coercive

-Participants must be informed about:

• nature of services

• potential risks/limitations (sessions done by trainees, only 5 sessions), and obligations (need to complete questionnaires to receive incentive)

When can deception be used in research?

1.) alternative nondeceptive procedure not available

2.) justified by significant scientific value

-NOT ALLOWED when procedures likely to cause physical pain or severe emotional distress

-Have to inform “as early as is feasible” (preferably after participation, but no later than end of data collection) + allow participant withdraw data at any time

Caring/using/disposing animals in research

-Ps are responsible for complying with laws/regulations + ensuring humane treatment (have liability) +

• Trained P (trained in care of lab animals and RM) supervises all procedures involving animals (P carries liability)

-Ppl handling animals must be under a Trained P’s sv + received instruction in RM and care/maintenance/handling of the animals to the extent appropriate to their role

Ending animal’s life: must be rapid and pain minimized, following accepted veterinary procedures

Research involving animal pain/stress/privation of basic needs (food, sleep) is…

(same as deception research)

-needs to be justified by potential scientific value + no alternative procedure

If you notice an error in your prior published research:

-take reasonable steps to correct errors in a correction, retraction, erratum, or other publication means

-contact journal editor

Publication Credic:

-only take credit for work you’ve actually done, or substantially contributed

• formulating problem/hypothesis

• study design structuring

• conducting/organizing analysis

• interpreting results

-minor contribution should be acknowledged appropriately (i.e., footnotes, acknowledgments)

Articles substantially based on a student’s doctoral dissertation →

-student must be principal author “except in exceptional circumstances”

-e.g., multiple student dissertations published in one article

Plagiarism

• word-for-word replication

• or paraphrasing w/o appropriate citation

-plagiarism = presenting portions of another’s work/data as own––EVEN if source is cited occasionally

Is self-plagiarism (word-for-word replication w/o quotes/citation) okay?

• Okay if rewording would distort accuracy + the duplicated info is limited (e.g., research method, diagnostic criteria)

-generally unethical (gives false impression of scientific contribution/new work, inflation of scientific record)

(not addressed in EC, just APA Publication Manual)

Are duplicate + piecemeal publications okay?

–––––––– STANDARD 9 () ––––––––