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LAW & ETHICS EXAM LATEST VERSION
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During the initial session, the client mentions that she has been hospitalized several times for "severe depression". The client becomes tense and guarded when the therapist attempts to explore the hospitalizations, saying that "it's in the past": She also states adamantly that she won't give permission to get those records. The therapist should FIRST: A. Assess her current level of depression. B. Reassure her that the focus will be on the present. C. Acknowledge her right to decide about releasing her records. D. Explore her resistance to sharing her records. - CORRECT ANSWER C. Acknowledge her right to decide about releasing her records. Explanation: main thing is the client's concern - meaning this is the best answer to what is happening in the questions stem. A therapist receives a court order to testify in a hearing for a client accused of child abuse. The therapist should FIRST: A. Assert privilege. B. Contact the client to determine their wishes.
C. Consult with a lawyer regarding the matter. D. Review the client's records to determine what needs to be shared. - CORRECT ANSWER C. Consult with a lawyer regarding the matter. Explanation: cannot assert privilege because it is a court order. therefore, next best answer would be to consult with a lawyer A 13-year-old girl is referred by her teacher for therapy for depression. The therapist determines she is mature enough to consent for her treatment. LEGALLY the therapist should first: A. Obtain written consent for treatment from the client. B. Determine whether her parents should give consent. C. Obtain release to speak to the teacher. D. Assess for any crisis issues. - CORRECT ANSWER B. Determine whether her parents should give consent. Explanation: need to have a reason before you can have someone 12 or older to consent to therapy (need to be included in the notes) A family consisting of a mother, stepfather, 13-year-old son and 11 - year-old daughter seeks family therapy after the recent marriage of the mother and stepfather. From whom should the therapist obtain informed consent? A. All of them B. The mother because she has custody of her kids. C. The mother and stepfather because the children are too young to consent.
D. Convey minimum amount of information needed to get help.
- CORRECT ANSWER A. Obtain a release from the client since the colleague might know him/her. Explanation: since it is a small rural town - having a consent is the best answer. Following an injury, a client becomes involved in a lawsuit and the therapist's testimony has been requested by the client's lawyer. The client waives privilege and tells the therapist that he would like him to testify in court. The therapist does not believe the testimony is in the client's best interests but he insists. How should the therapist proceed? A. Refuse to testify as it is not in the best interest of the client. B. Obtain a release to consult with the client's lawyer to explain concerns. C. Edit testimony and only provide information that would benefit the client. D. Proceed with testifying. - CORRECT ANSWER B. Obtain a release to consult with the client's lawyer to explain concerns. Explanation: continue to advocate for client as much as possible. A client wants to see his records. The therapist determines that there is high risk of detrimental consequences to the client if the client were to see the records. The therapist should: A. Allow them to see the record and sit with them while they view it to explain what they are reading. B. Allow them to see a summary of their records.
C. Explain why viewing the records would be harmful. D. Deny the request to access the records. - CORRECT ANSWER D. Deny the request to access the records. Explanation: legally protected to deny records - "high risk of detrimental consequences to the client" need to document in notes why you are not sharing it. you do not have to explain why! A 16-year-old client informs the therapist that her past therapist touched her inappropriately in a sexual manner when processing past trauma. What should therapist do? A. Provide her with the pamphlet, "Professional Therapy Never Includes Sex." B. Make a child abuse report. C. Inform the child's mother about the incident. D. Maintain confidentiality. - CORRECT ANSWER B. Make a child abuse report. Explanation: client is a minor, therefore you must file a child abuse report. A therapist receives an order from the court for a former client's records. The therapist is concerned that the release of the records will cause harm to the client. The therapist advocates to the court to limit the scope of the release. The court declines the request. The therapist must: A. contact the client and warn them of the pending release. B. provide a copy of the records immediately.
she frequently leaves on extended trips with her new boyfriend and the client has to "fend for herself". She adds "I just can't manage all this and I don't see it getting better." Which of the following actions should the therapist take first? A. Get a release to speak to her daughter. B. Get a release to consult with the doctor about her treatment. C. File a report with Adult Protective Services. D. Assess client for potential suicide. - CORRECT ANSWER D. Assess client for potential suicide. Explanation: lead with higher risk situation which is suicide risk! then APS report. During a session, a client makes a vague threat toward his former boss. When the therapist asks what the client means by the statement, the client ignores the question. What should the therapist do NEXT: A. Remind client you are a mandated reporter. B. Warn the boss if client appears agitated. C. Insist on clarifying the nature of the statement. D. Explore the nature of conflict with former boss. - CORRECT ANSWER C. Insist on clarifying the nature of the statement. Explanation: Tarasoff - clarify the nature of the threat During the third session, a client discloses that he murdered someone one year ago. After clarifying the person was not a minor, the therapist should:
A. inform the client that a mandated report is required. B. explore the client's motive. C. notify the police. D. keep the client's disclosure confidential. - CORRECT ANSWER D. keep the client's disclosure confidential. Explanation: crimes are confidential unless a child or elder is involved. A therapist has been seeing a client with a history of depression for over a year. The client reports feeling bad and having suicidal ideation, but denies having a plan and promises not to take any action on those feelings. The therapist still feels concerned about the client. How should the therapist respond? A. Have the client sign a no harm contract. B. Discuss voluntary hospitalization. C. Suggest making contact between sessions. D. Document the therapists concerns in the client's file. - CORRECT ANSWER C. Suggest making contact between sessions. Explanation: Client already made promises to not take any action on those feelings and has no active plan. A client comes to therapy on the advice of her sister. She shares that she is unhappy in her current relationship but is afraid to leave. She states that her boyfriend is very jealous and gets physically aggressive when she makes him angry. She adds that he is also very loving most of the time and can't imagine not being with him. The therapist should FIRST: A. discuss a safety plan to escape the violence.
situation? A. Discontinue treatment until after the therapist obtains necessary training. B. Employ the use of peer consultation and use their suggestions to guide treatment. C. Employ the use of supervision with someone who specializes in treating eating disorders. D. Determine the best evidence-based treatment method by reading published studies. - CORRECT ANSWER C. Employ the use of supervision with someone who specializes in treating eating disorders. Explanation: first choice - refer to someone who has the experience second choice - supervision w/ someone who specializes in eating disorders which ends up being the correct answer During a utilization review phone call, a therapist in private practice is informed that one of her clients who has a diagnosis of PTSD is only authorized for two more sessions. The therapist disagrees and asserts that the client needs 10 more sessions in order to be sufficiently able to deal with the demands of everyday life. However, the utilization review agent maintains that insurance will not pay for more than 2 sessions. The therapist knows that the client is unemployed and will be unable to pay without insurance. The therapist should: A. Refer the client to a community mental health agency. B. Terminate the client after the two sessions are complete. C. Continue to see the client and explore an alternative payment plan.
D. Continue to see the client free of charge. - CORRECT ANSWER C. Continue to see the client and explore an alternative payment plan. A therapist starting a new practice would like to advertise in her community. What are potential ethical concerns? A. Could create dual relationships within community. B. There are no ethical concerns. C. Could interfere with relationships in community. D. It is unethical to advertise in public. - CORRECT ANSWER B. There are no ethical concerns. Explanation: Trick question A single father's parental rights were terminated due to neglect of his two young children. After a year of the children being in foster care, the foster care therapist receives a call from the father stating that he has changed his behaviors and would like to have custody of his children returned to him. The therapist should: A. Empathize with the father but state that the therapist can't do anything to reinstate parental rights. B. Discuss the request with the judge who terminated parental rights. C. Inform the father to speak with a lawyer regarding his appeal. D. Encourage the father to first re-develop a relationship with his children by setting up weekly home meetings. - CORRECT ANSWER C. Inform the father to speak with a lawyer regarding his appeal.
D. Refer client for psychiatric evaluation. - CORRECT ANSWER C. Explore lack of progress directly with client. Explanation: the best answer because it should be a decision made between client and therapist. best thing to do first - supports client's selfdetermination! A client is concerned because she is convinced her husband is intending to kill his boss today after work. She knows he has been planning it, and she saw him pack a gun in his briefcase this morning. The therapist should: A. Initiate a 5150 for the husband, since there is imminent danger to his boss from a credible third party. B. Call the police and the husband's boss with the client in the room as per therapist's duty to warn. C. Encourage the client to call the police and create a safety plan for the client. D. Get a release from the client to call the police and boss, and call with the client in the room. - CORRECT ANSWER C. Encourage the client to call the police and create a safety plan for the client. Explanation: the husband is not your client so Tarasoff does not apply! first - encourage client to call police, but only if client does not want to call and wants you to call then you would need a release since the husband is not your client. A therapist working at a community mental health agency started a group for survivors of domestic violence. While meeting with potential group members, a woman states she is concerned that
what she says in the group might be shared with people in her community. How should the therapist respond? A. Ensure client that all information shared in group will remain confidential. B. Acknowledge client's concerns and review importance of group maintaining confidentiality. C. Acknowledge that information shared in group is not protected by confidentiality laws. D. Review limits of confidentiality and obtain written agreement from group members. - CORRECT ANSWER C. Acknowledge that information shared in group is not protected by confidentiality laws. Explanation: BE HONEST - you can't guarantee the info wont get out, you can do B but C is the truth, the group is not held by the law of confidentiality! A therapist receives a subpoena from the lawyer of a client whom the therapist treated in couples therapy. The couple is getting divorced. The husband signed a release for the records. The therapist should FIRST: A. release the records to the lawyer once the wife tells you she permits the release. B. assert privilege on behalf of the clients. C. contact the wife to determine her wishes. D. schedule a session with the couple to discuss the matter. - CORRECT ANSWER C. contact the wife to determine her wishes. Explanation:
D. Encourage the family to take a different action in the best interests of the child. - CORRECT ANSWER A. Inform the family that a child neglect report must be filed. Explanation: This is a mandated report. but best practice would be to inform the family! INFORM FAMILY AND/OR CLIENT FIRST if that is an option when you are mandated to make a report. An Asian American family seeks family therapy. During the second family therapy session, the 14 year-old angrily states that she is tired of the painful punishment from her father for "trying to fit in with her friends at school." The father notes that the punishment is necessary to prevent his daughter from imitating the behaviors of her American friends and thus bringing shame to the family. The therapist should initially: A. explore their cultural beliefs related to parenting and discipline. B. inform the parents that their behavior requires a report of suspected child abuse. C. determine the nature and severity of the punishment. D. help the daughter understand her parents' behavior as culturally appropriate. - CORRECT ANSWER C. determine the nature and severity of the punishment. Explanation: we don't know what the punishment is - then you could do A but C first because we need to determine whether or not we need to make a report During a group session with teen moms, one client shares that she's been fighting with her boyfriend since he took their 4-month-
old out in the car without a car seat. She complains, "He just does what he wants with the baby and tells me I worry too much." The therapist should NEXT: A. Obtain more details about the boyfriend's treatment of baby. B. Inform the group that a child abuse report must be filed. C. File a report with child protective services immediately after group. D. Refer boyfriend to a parenting class for teen dads. - CORRECT ANSWER C. File a report with child protective services immediately after group. Explanation: law says we have to put babies in car seats (like if a two year old runs out in the street or leaving a kid in the car). you would want to make the report after the group. don't tell the whole group, but tell the girl after the group. In which of the following instances is a mandated report required? A. A 14-year-old takes pictures of a 9-year-old in her underwear. B. A 4-year-old was left alone with a 12-year-old and the 4- yearold was harmed. C. A 13-year-old reports having sex with her boyfriend. D. A 19year-old reports sexual abuse by her coach when she was 13years-old. - CORRECT ANSWER B. A 4-year-old was left alone with a 12-year-old and the 4-year-old was harmed. Explanation: big age difference and the younger child was harmed. A 9-year-old girl is referred to the therapist because she is being teased for smelly clothes and dirty hair. The girl shares that she
A therapist has seen a young adult client for a few months. During a session, the client tells a therapist that he recently participated in the break in of a neighbor's house and plans to repeat the offense. The therapist should: A. discuss alternative ways the client can express his aggression. B. maintain client confidentiality. C. obtain a written contract that the client will not commit such actions. D. report the intent to the police and warn the neighbor. - CORRECT ANSWER B. maintain client confidentiality. Explanation: plan to commit crime without harm to anyone else. this is the best answer. didn't say in the stem why he was doing it so A does not make sense. A therapist meets with a couple for the first time. The couple discloses that the husband is also working with an individual therapist on managing his anger more effectively. The therapist would like to speak with the husband's individual therapist. The therapist should: A. Obtain a written release from the husband to speak with his therapist. B. Obtain a written release from both the husband and wife to speak with the husband's therapist. C. Obtain a written release from the husband if only obtaining information about his treatment. D. Obtain a written release from the husband and wife if planning to work collaboratively with husband's therapist. - CORRECT ANSWER B. Obtain a written release from both the husband and wife to speak with the husband's therapist.
Explanation: since they are a couple, you need consent from them both to talk with the husband's therapist and it is already stated in the stem that the therapist would like to speak with the individual therapist so D doesn't make sense. All of the following should be included in an initial evaluation EXCEPT: A. Assessment of risk. B. Presenting problem. C. Mental health history. D. Expectations of therapy. - CORRECT ANSWER D. Expectations of therapy. Explanation: expectations of therapy come up later in informed consent. initial evaluation is ABC but not D. A client with a history of suicide attempts leaves a distraught goodbye message on his therapist's voicemail. The therapist returns the call but the client does not answer. What should the therapist do next? A. Initiate a 5150. B. Call 911. C. Call his emergency contact. D. Contact the client's family. - CORRECT ANSWER C. Call his emergency contact. Explanation: right to break confidentiality - place to start is C, a good intake form includes an emergency contact. that is a person who hopefully has immediate contact with them. we don't know that
