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Like its pioneering predecessor, this new edition of Professionalism and Ethics: Q & A Self-Study Guide for Mental Health Professionals offers an interactive, case-oriented approach to mental health ethics. Organized around scenarios that pose important—sometimes thorny—ethical questions, the book draws on the diverse clinical and research experience of its contributors, who have backgrounds in medicine, ethics, psychology, law, medical education, religious studies, public health, and related fields. The editor, an internationally recognized scholar in bioethics, psychiatry, and medical education, oversaw a rigorous review process, ensuring that the content meets the highest standard, as befits a text on ethics and professionalism. The book begins with an overview of the role of ethics in caring for people with mental illness, concepts and models of professionalism, and ethics education, followed by a chapter examining ethics in the mental health professions, with emphasis on learning and applying essential skills. Questions and annotated answers follow, and the brief case descriptions that frame each question, presented in single-answer, multiple-choice format, echo the real-life complexities of clinical practice. Psychiatry has evolved significantly since the last edition, and the new edition's plentiful revisions and fresh material reflect these changes: • Assisted suicide and euthanasia, which pose controversial and difficult ethical questions, are explored in-depth, with attention accorded religious views, the complexity of informed consent, and the concern that some who choose euthanasia may be clinically depressed.• Navigating social media, experiencing the loss of anonymity, and engaging in self-disclosure of all kinds presents new challenges for practitioners; the pitfalls, both ethical and psychological, are thoroughly discussed. • The digital age poses many ethical dilemmas regarding patient privacy. Is it acceptable for clinicians to \"Google\" their patients, or is it merely voyeurism? What about consent? • Burnout among mental health practitioners is growing, and professional well-being is an emergent topic. The book examines the increased expectations of physicians and what setting reasonable limits in an era of the electronic health record might look like.• Over the past few decades, neuroscience has been accepted as the conceptual basis for understanding and treating mental illness, and neuroethics have achieved an attendant importance. Human subjects research and the active question of public trust in science, as well as emerging domains, including neurotechnologies, neurolaw, and philosophy of cognition, are carefully examined. Eloquent, instructive, and pragmatic, Professionalism and Ethics: Q & A Self-Study Guide for Mental Health Professionals offers critical learning to prepare professionals for ethical challenges in care and research and is an essential reference and tool for an increasingly complex world.

At some point in their careers, mental health professionals may face legal action from clients. Clients may be noncompliant regarding policies agreed upon at the outset of therapeutic services, not adhere to an individualized treatment plan, be inappropriately aggressive, and file unjustified ethics and licensing complaints and/or lawsuits. Unfortunately, many mental health practitioners are not prepared for such actions and suffer great distress that affects their professional and personal lives. This practical text, written by an author who is both a psychologist and an attorney, demonstrates how mental health professionals can avoid legally actionable mistakes in their practices and what to do if they occur. Reflecting contemporary social policy and laws regarding mental health services, the text emphasizes the protection of rights for both practitioner and client, and addresses such pitfalls as malpractice, licensing hearings, noncompliant clients, and dealing with the legal system. It distills the author's wisdom, gained over more than 30 years of legal counsel to all types of mental health practitioners, and describes how to improve practice strategies for achieving quality care, confront ethics and licensing complaints, and defend against potential or actual lawsuits. Additionally, the book covers individualized treatment planning, effective record keeping, how to deal with dangerous clients, how to insulate yourself from risk, and more. Numerous real life examples further help practitioners foster the knowledge and skills to assertively defend their rights should the need arise.

The Ethics of Private Practice helps mental health professionals understand the essential ethical issues related to many of the challenges of being in independent mental health practice. Seasoned clinicians Barnett, Zimmerman, and Walfish offer readers astute insight to help them build a practice that is designed to minimize unintended ethical violations and reduce associated risks.

Research in embodied artificial intelligence (AI) has increasing clinical relevance for therapeutic applications in mental health services. With innovations ranging from 'virtual psychotherapists' to social robots in dementia care and autism disorder, to robots for sexual disorders, artificially intelligent virtual and robotic agents are increasingly taking on high-level therapeutic interventions that used to be offered exclusively by highly trained, skilled health professionals. In order to enable responsible clinical implementation, ethical and social implications of the increasing use of embodied AI in mental health need to be identified and addressed. This paper assesses the ethical and social implications of translating embodied AI applications into mental health care across the fields of Psychiatry, Psychology and Psychotherapy. Building on this analysis, it develops a set of preliminary recommendations on how to address ethical and social challenges in current and future applications of embodied AI. Based on a thematic literature search and established principles of medical ethics, an analysis of the ethical and social aspects of currently embodied AI applications was conducted across the fields of Psychiatry, Psychology, and Psychotherapy. To enable a comprehensive evaluation, the analysis was structured around the following three steps: assessment of potential benefits; analysis of overarching ethical issues and concerns; discussion of specific ethical and social issues of the interventions. From an ethical perspective, important benefits of embodied AI applications in mental health include new modes of treatment, opportunities to engage hard-to-reach populations, better patient response, and freeing up time for physicians. Overarching ethical issues and concerns include: harm prevention and various questions of data ethics; a lack of guidance on development of AI applications, their clinical integration and training of health professionals; 'gaps' in ethical and regulatory frameworks; the potential for misuse including using the technologies to replace established services, thereby potentially exacerbating existing health inequalities. Specific challenges identified and discussed in the application of embodied AI include: matters of risk-assessment, referrals, and supervision; the need to respect and protect patient autonomy; the role of non-human therapy; transparency in the use of algorithms; and specific concerns regarding long-term effects of these applications on understandings of illness and the human condition. We argue that embodied AI is a promising approach across the field of mental health; however, further research is needed to address the broader ethical and societal concerns of these technologies to negotiate best research and medical practices in innovative mental health care. We conclude by indicating areas of future research and developing recommendations for high-priority areas in need of concrete ethical guidance.

Stress, burnout, and professional impairment are prevalent among mental health professionals and can have a negative impact on their clinical work, whilst engagement in self-care can help promote therapist well-being. This literature review examines the role of self-care in the promotion of well-being among mental health practitioners. Specifically, empirical research is presented in relation to specific domains of self-care practice, including awareness, balance, flexibility, physical health, social support, and spirituality. Findings from this review underscore the importance of taking a proactive approach to self-care and, in particular, integrating self-care directly into clinical training programs and into the quality assurance processes of professional organizations within the field of mental health.

Background During COVID-19 pandemic, healthcare workers (HCWs) have had high workload and have been exposed to multiple psychosocial stressors. The aim of this study was to evaluate HCWs in terms of the relative contributions of socio-demographic and mental health variables on three burnout dimensions: personal, work-related, and client-related burnout. Methods A cross-sectional study was performed using an online questionnaire spread via social networks. A snowball technique supported by health care institutions and professional organizations was applied. Results A total of 2008 subjects completed the survey. Gender, parental status, marriage status, and salary reduction were found to be significant factors for personal burnout. Health problems and direct contact with infected people were significantly associated with more susceptibility to high personal and work-related burnout. Frontline working positions were associated with all three dimensions. Higher levels of stress and depression in HCWs were significantly associated with increased levels of all burnout dimensions. Higher levels of satisfaction with life and resilience were significantly associated with lower levels of all burnout dimensions. Conclusions All three burnout dimensions were associated with a specific set of covariates. Consideration of these three dimensions is important when designing future burnout prevention programs for HCWs.

Although informed consent models for prescribing hormone replacement therapy are becoming increasingly prevalent, many physicians continue to require an assessment and referral letter from a mental health professional prior to prescription. Drawing on personal and communal experience, the author argues that assessment and referral requirements are dehumanising and unethical, foregrounding the ways in which these requirements evidence a mistrust of trans people, suppress the diversity of their experiences and sustain an unjustified double standard in contrast to other forms of clinical care. Physicians should abandon this unethical requirement in favour of an informed consent approach to transgender care.

Background Health care workers exposed to COVID-19 might be at increased risk of developing mental health problems. The study aimed to identify factors associated with anxiety, depression and insomnia among health workers involved in COVID-19 response in Nepal. Methods This was a cross-sectional web-based survey conducted between April 26 and May 12, 2020. A total of 475 health workers participated in the study. Anxiety and depression were measured using a 14-item Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS: 0–21) and insomnia was measured by using a 7-item Insomnia Severity Index (ISI: 0–28). Multivariable logistic regression analysis was done to determine the risk factors of mental health outcomes. Results Overall, 41.9% of health workers had symptoms of anxiety, 37.5% had depression symptoms and 33.9% had symptoms of insomnia. Stigma faced by health workers was significantly associated with higher odds of experiencing symptoms of anxiety (AOR: 2.47; 95% CI: 1.62–3.76), depression (AOR: 2.05; 95% CI: 1.34–3.11) and insomnia (AOR: 2.37; 95% CI: 1.46–3.84). History of medication for mental health problems was significantly associated with a higher likelihood of experiencing symptoms of anxiety (AOR: 3.40; 95% CI:1.31–8.81), depression (AOR: 3.83; 95% CI: 1.45–10.14) and insomnia (AOR: 3.82; 95% CI: 1.52–9.62) while inadequate precautionary measures in the workplace was significantly associated with higher odds of exhibiting symptoms of anxiety (AOR: 1.89; 95% CI: 1.12–3.19) and depression (AOR: 1.97; 95% CI: 1.16–3.37). Nurses (AOR: 2.33; 95% CI: 1.21–4.47) were significantly more likely to experience anxiety symptoms than other health workers. Conclusion The study findings revealed a considerate proportion of anxiety, depression and insomnia symptoms among health workers during the early phase of the pandemic in Nepal. Health workers facing stigma, those with history of medication for mental health problems, and those reporting inadequate precautionary measures in their workplace were more at risk of developing mental health outcomes. A focus on improving mental wellbeing of health workers should be immediately initiated with attention to reduction of stigma, ensuring an adequate support system such as personal protective equipments, and family support for those with history of mental health problems.