Confidentiality in Case Handling - Essay Example

Confidentiality in Case Handling Confidentiality has always been a major issue of moral, legal and ethical concern pertaining to case handling between a client and a case manager. To this end, confidentiality refers to a legal, moral and ethically binding promise between a client and a case manager to adhere to secrecy based on any information disclosed (Gilliland, 1988). However, disclosure is possible under the agreed conditions set by the subject or client. It is a fundamental precinct between the case manager and subject as it cultivates a mutual feeling of trust and confidence for disclosure.

Prior to setting up a confidentiality agreement, the case manager or counselor should articulate the tenets and limitation of the confidentiality agreement. To this end, the articulation of the limits are necessary incase the case negates the boundaries of ethical, moral and legal behavior. Consequently, one of the tenets of confidentiality is the legal principle (Oermann & Gaberson, 2009). The level of privileged information varies between the client and case manager and depends on the type of professional consulted.

To this end, clients have the right of confidentiality when divulging privileged information to certain professionals such as lawyers, pastors or doctors. However, a lesser extent of rights exists in professional such as counselors, psychologists or social workers. Thus, the client should be clearly notified on this precinct. The ethical principle is another tenet that refers to the guiding principles followed during a case handling process between the client and case manager (Kannenberg, 2003).

These may include a case manager maintaining a professional level of caution in ensuring information revealed in confidence adheres to the confidentiality clause. Consequently, when ethical standards pertaining to confidentiality are violated the case manager is liable to a loss of confidence and credibility by the client. Thirdly, pertains to moral principles in which the therapist or case manager has to reflect on the limits of his/her moral principle subject to information divulged in confidence.

For example, the case manager should exercise control over his or her moral principles in situations where information infringes on their personal values. However, in circumstances where the client divulges information that is deemed violent and injurious to either himself/herself or a third party, a fourth principle is applied. This is principle is known as the intent to harm and duty to warn (Gilliland, 1988). In this circumstance, the case manager is expected to evaluate that the threat posed is sufficiently injurious to the client or the public good and disclose the information to a third party.

Hence, in such a scenario, the fourth principle outweighs the ethical, legal and moral tenets.ReferencesGilliland, B. E., & James, R. K. (1988).Crisis intervention strategies. Pacific Grove, Calif.: Brooks/Cole Pub. Co..Kannenberg, R. L. (2003). Case management handbook for clinicians. Eau Claire, Wisc.: PESI Healthcare.Oermann, M. H., & Gaberson, K. B. (2009). Evaluation and testing in nursing education. New York, NY: Springer Pub. Co..