Ethics In Mental Health Substance Use

Ethics in Mental Health-Substance Use aims to explore the comprehensive concerns and dilemmas occurring from mental health and substance use problems, and to inform, develop, and educate by sharing and pooling knowledge, and enhancing expertise, in this fast developing region of ethics and ethical care and practice. This volume concentrates on ethical concerns, dilemmas, and concepts specifically interrelated, as a collation of problem(s) that directly or indirectly affect the life of the individual and family. Whilst presenting a balanced view of what is ethically best practice today, this title challenges concepts and stimulates debate, exploring all aspects of the development in treatment, intervention and care responses, and the adoption of research-led best practice.

Discussions of key ethical dilemmas in mental health care, including consent, trauma and violence, addiction, confidentiality, and therapeutic boundaries. This book discusses some of the most critical ethical issues in mental health care today, including the moral dimensions of addiction, patient autonomy and compulsory treatment, privacy and confidentiality, and the definition of mental illness itself. Although debates over these issues are ongoing, there are few comprehensive resources for addressing such dilemmas in the practice of psychology, psychiatry, social work, and other behavioral and mental health care professions. This book meets that need, providing foundational background for undergraduate, graduate, and professional courses. Topics include central questions such as evolving views of the morality and pathology of deviant behavior; patient competence and the decision to refuse treatment; recognizing and treating people who have suffered trauma; addiction as illness; the therapist's responsibility to report dangerousness despite patient confidentiality; and boundaries for the therapist's interaction with patients outside of therapy, whether in the form of tennis games, gift-giving, or social media contact. For the most part the selections address contemporary issues in contemporary terms, but the book also offers a few historic or classic essays, including Thomas S. Szasz's controversial 1971 article “The Ethics of Addiction.” Contributors Laura Weiss Roberts, Frederic G. Reamer, Charles P. O'Brien, and Thomas McLellan

Writing with clarity, coherence, and optimism, the authors summarize fundamental principles, enumerate essential skills, and review recent empirical findings in the overlapping areas of clinical ethics and psychiatry. Case illustrations, tables, and strategic lists enhance the book's 17 informative chapters.

The definitive book on ethics for chemical dependency treatment professionals. The treatment of addiction as a biological, psychological, social, and spiritual disease requires a high standard of ethical knowledge and professional skill. This groundbreaking, reader-friendly guide to contemporary ethical issues informs and challenges health care professionals, students, and faculty with a thorough and compassionate examination of the dilemmas faced when providing care for individuals suffering from substance use problems or addiction.Renowned psychiatric ethicists Cynthia Geppert and Laura Weiss Roberts tackle issues of autonomy, respect for persons, confidentiality, truth telling and non-maleficence--setting the standard for contemporary ethical practices. These challenges are illuminated with real-world case examples that show potential effects on diverse patient populations.

Mental health-substance use is a complex interrelation, with equally complex implications for individuals and their families, health professionals and society. Although its international recognition as an issue of critical importance is growing, clear guidance for professionals on mental health-substance use and its treatment is hard to find. The Mental Health-Substance Use series has been written to address this need, concentrating on concerns, dilemmas and concepts that impact on the life and well-being of affected individuals and those close to them, and the future direction of practice, education, research, services, interventions, and treatment. This first book outlines the specific health issues, experiential aspects, treatment options and wider implications of mental health-substance use, as well as defining the field, through contributions from international experts and practitioners. This Introduction and the subsequent volumes will challenge concepts and stimulate debate, exploring all aspects of the development in treatment, intervention and care responses, and the adoption of research-led best practice. They are essential reading for mental health and substance use professionals, students and educators.

First Published in 1999. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.

This book draws on both the historical context and contemporary research evidence to present the roles of the Mental Health Social Worker, the Approved Mental Health Professional and Best Interest Assessor, within an ethical framework. Codes of practice and statutory legal requirements, such as the Mental Health Act, Mental Capacity Act and the Human Rights Act, are all considered and linked to a competency-based approach that will assist both those in training and those in practice to understand the dilemmas, complexities and conflicts that are evident in the practice environment.

Research holds a key to preventing and effectively treating mental disorders, including ADHD, depression, schizophrenia, and substance abuse. Yet even as research holds out promise, mental health researchers face numerous ethical challenges. Responsible for ensuring participants are able and willing to grant consent, researchers must also constantly protect privacy and confidentiality. But for so many situations, the appropriate decisions are not so clear. An individual with cognitive deficits may have difficulty understanding a research study and granting informed consent, but nevertheless wants to participate. Many studies gather private information about medical records or illegal behaviors that could lead to emotional, social, or legal harm if shared, yet state laws and institutional review boards may require researchers to breach confidentiality in specific situations. Moreover, mental health consumers and other vulnerable research participants are frequently familiar with historical cases of abuse of human subjects, and may be mistrustful of researchers or fear exploitation. At the same time, researchers are often frustrated when they feel that advocates or institutional review boards erect barriers to research, even while failing to enhance the ethical treatment of participants. Ethical research is rarely simply about avoiding bad activities, and more frequently about how to pursue good research when multiple values and commitments conflict. Ethics in Mental Health Research explores how ethical issues arise in mental health research, and offers concrete guidance to researchers who seek to comply with federal regulations while conducting research that is at once ethical and scientifically credible. Case studies used throughout illustrate a variety of situations and effective problem-solving strategies. This book is essential reading for mental health researchers, IRB members, and research advocates.