Bryan has been a Licensed Professional Counselor for 5 years. During that time, the pastor at his church has referred clients dealing with various issues to Bryan. The latest referral is John. John initially presented with problems managing anger in relationships. In the fourth session, John reveals that he is dealing with issues regarding his sexual orientation. He identifies himself as having been bisexual, but identifies primarily as gay. He has been talking to his pastor regarding his sexual orientation and the implications that has for his membership in his church. John would like Bryan to help him work on sexuality issues. John is also requesting that Bryan send summaries of sessions to the pastor. …show more content…
Both A.1.c, Counseling Plans and A.1.d Support Network Involvement are standards of the ACA ethical code involved in this case. Going over a counseling plan with John will be an important and necessary step for Bryan. Together, Bryan and John can work out a counseling plan that can be modified as needed to ensure that John’s needs are being met throughout the counseling process. Support networks can be very valuable assets to a client’s well-being. In the case of Bryan, allowing John the opportunity to share how his faith community is helpful might be an important aspect of the therapeutic process. A.2.a, Informed Consent, is another code of ethics that Bryan should pay attention to. Bryan will need to ensure that John understands his freedom enter and remain in the counseling relationships. Additionally, Bryan has the on-going responsibility to keep appropriately documented discussions of any rights or responsibilities of client and therapist that are communicated to John; which will be important to note if John wishes his information to be shared with his pastor. Bryan has a commitment to his client’s well-being, first and foremost, which leads us into other standards of the ACA ethical code involved in this case: A.2.c. and A.3 are two additional ACA ethical codes to discuss. A.2.c manages developmental and cultural sensitivity. From the information given in Bryan’s case, the client’s developmental stage is not known, however it is Bryan’s responsibility to ensure that he is communicating in a way that is both developmentally and culturally appropriate to John. For example, understanding John’s faith and the part it plays in John’s wellness will be an important process in ensuring that John feels respected. For some denominations of faith, a pastor is considered a spiritual counselor. ACA ethical code A.3. is noted because John has disclosed that he has been confiding in