Child Counseling - Assignment Example

In the presence of such challenges, it is advisable for these young children to seek for counselors, who are experts in helping people to overcome some of the challenges they face. Therefore, counselors, in the process of performing their duties, must adhere to some of the norms, always known as the Legal Do’s and Don’ts depending on the issues presented before them. Analysis of Manuel Situation Manuel is a 15 year-old boy who is undergoing through adolescent stage. He realizes that the problems that he goes through do not give him the chance to continue with his life, and sees his life as worthless.

Consequently, a counselor who is to deal with this situation needs to understand the situation and status of Manuel in order to come up with concrete solutions to Manuel’s problem. Hence, a counselor is advised to follow various legal norms, always refers to as Legal Do’s and Don’ts, when dealing with different problems as explained by Carlos et al (2012). These rules and regulations are constituted by respective government bodies, which disallow discrimination of clients during the counseling process.

Consequently, in the case of Manuel, some of the four legal norms that need to be put into consideration include: Assent to treatment Ideally, the law requires that the treating clinician must seek the consent to treat Manuel from Manuel himself and any other adult, guardian or the person who holds responsibility for the child. Since Manuel is a young teenager, the law regulates that it is the adult who should give informed consent and that Manuel should merely assent. This implies that the doctor may treat a child who is below the age of 16 would be treated solely on the consent of the parent, even if it is against the child’s wishes.

This scenario would have been different if Manuel was an older teenager, where he would have consented while the parent would have merely supported the decision. In addition, the law demands that explanations must be simplified or be suitably tailored to Manuel’s age and understanding even as it has to also include the outline of the objective of the treatment, the treatment’s likely effects, the risks of possible treatments recommended as well as the nature of the treatment (Clark 2001).

Witnessing psychotic behavior The law requires that in the emergency room, the mental health professional must witness the psychotic behavior as well as assess the patient and determine whether an involuntary or voluntary mission of the patient is necessary. This situation is recommended by the law specifically in instances where the patient is forced into the hospital by the police or any other local authority. Usually, the law restricts that a person who suffers from a mental disorder cannot be forced into hospitalization or treatment, when the person becomes dangerous to himself as well as to others, then the police must be alerted to take the patient to the hospital.

At the hospital, family members or those close to the patient may be asked to provide information that would help the mental health profession to make a decision on which intervention to seek (Clinton 2010). Informed Consent The law requires that the physician may share information on the situation of a child’s health to the parents, unless the child has attained 18 years. This means that the clinician who examines Manuel, or the counselor summoned upon to intervene in the child’s situation must inform the child’