Confidentiality
I treat my work with you with the utmost sensitivity and confidentiality. Counselling begins with a contract between us, and part of this is that everything that you disclose to me is treated as confidential.
If my counselling services are provided by your organisation, your employer may require feedback on some factual aspects such as confirmation of dates and times of your sessions.
Exceptional Circumstances
There are, however, specific circumstances where there is an ethical obligation to break confidentiality, namely:
- where there appears to be a serious risk of harm to yourself or others;
- if obliged to do so by law;
Additionally, as a professional counsellor, I undertake supervision with appropriately qualified individuals. The emphasis in supervision is on my work as a counsellor, and where any reference is made to my work with you, it will be presented anonymously and with care to omit identifying personal details or sensitive business information. Counselling supervision is subject to the same strictures of confidentiality as is the counselling itself.
Organisational settings
To work effectively with your staff, and to get to the crux of any issues, it's imperative that the person being counselled feels able to talk completely freely about their situation, knowing that what they say is being treated as confidential.