E-therapy: The Ethics Behind the Process

AbstractE-therapy is a new form of counselling that is arising the last years. E-therapy, cyber therapy, webcounseling, and Internet counselling are often used interchangeably. The question that arises on the ethical dilemmas since the licensing laws have not yet caught up with the rapid pace of technology. The salient ethical dimensions of e-therapy include competence, credentialing, informed consent, exceptions to confidentiality, as well as privacy and security limits (Corey, Corey, & Callanan, 2007). The informed consent (written and verbal) including the potential risks, consequences and benefits of telemedicine, or competence to practice, confidentiality, doing no harm, and on how terminations, interruption of service and payment arrangements need to be discussed. In addition, when using these technologies, it's important to conduct an initial assessment of each client to determine his or her appropriateness for telepsychology. Other factors to consider include making sure you have provided adequate emergency contact information in case your distance client faces a crisis, and ensuring that your patient's privacy and confidentiality are adequately protected by encrypting electronic transmissions and records. Furthermore the APA “Ethics Code applies to these activities across a variety of contexts, such as in person, postal, telephone, internet, and other electronic transmissions” (p. 1061). In other words, the ethical standards contain language designed for psychologists who provide services in person, via electronic media, or by other forms of communication