Whether you are preparing to take the MFT Law and Ethics exam or the LCSW Law and Ethics exam, you are guaranteed to see questions on the topic of informed consent. Since counseling is a consumer-oriented profession, informed consent is a very important concept in our field. It provides clients with a clear understanding of the services provided by a therapist.. An informed consumer is a better consumer. We need to help clients receive the greatest benefit from our services by clearly explaining what it entails and the risks and benefits involved.
Informed Consent On The Test
Here are some examples of how informed consent could be tested on the Law and Ethics exam:
- When to obtain informed consent
- Who must consent to treatment
- Who does not have to, but can consent to treatment
- How often informed consent should be revisited
- What should be covered as part of the informed consent
- What are the legal and what are the ethical components of informed consent
- When informed consent must be in writing and when can it be verbal
- How to address informed consent with special circumstances
- How to address cultural issues in informed consent
As you can see, this is an extensive and important topic to be familiar with for your exam. As part of our test preparation, Amanda Rowan goes over these and other areas related to informed consent both from a theoretical and exam application standpoint. Now, let us take a look at a sample question similar to one you might encounter during your law and ethics exam on this topic.
Practice Law and Ethics Exam Question:
A married couple who recently immigrated from Argentina bring their 15-year-old daughter to see a counselor at a community clinic. Neither of the parents speak English; however, their daughter feels very comfortable communicating in both Spanish and English. What are the therapist’s responsibilities at the onset of treatment?
A. Obtain informed consent from the daughter since she is old enough to consent on her own
B. Take additional steps to ensure parents’ comprehension of the informed consent contract
C. Document in the record the fact that parents do not speak English
D. Allow the family to take the informed consent papers home so they can take their time in translating and filling out necessary paperwork
Share your answer and rationale in the comments section below and check back tomorrow for a discussion of the answer and rationale for this week’s Law and Ethics practice test question.
To learn more about informed consent (as well as all of the other topics you need to know for your MFT Law and Ethics exam or LCSW Law and Ethics exam, sign up for one of TDC’s exam prep programs to help you prepare for your exams today! Amanda Rowan has helped thousands of therapists and social workers pass their licensing exams. Are you our next success story?
Comments
15 years old she is old enough and seems mature to decide or agree with the consent form.
B: As social workers we must first ensure that our clients have a clear understanding of their rights wher commencing tx as well as having a clear comprehension as to what they are truly consenting to in treatment. This must be clear and transparent so there are no misunderstandings and clients may feel comfortable to commence tx. Thought the ct (the minor) may feel comfortable communicating in both Spanish and English the parents involvement in tx and understanding what that entails, is crucial in supporting the ct and keeping open lines of communicating
Although it is always a good practice to align, and maintain a good rapport with the parents However, the law stipulates that if the child is 12 years, or older and is mature enough to understand, or articulate in therapy, she/he can legally consent themselves. So, I'm thinking in some cases having access to an interpreter can be costly, and it really wouldn't matter, because the law trump's the parents need to consent. So, I'm thinking that the answer would be, "A?"
A- Imy focus is directed to -who is the clien- and she can consent to treatment with or without her parents.
A -client is old enough to consent - with or without her parents , language barriers of the parents is not a barrier to treatment,
B
The family engaged therapy even thoughProviding Informed consent in language of
The family engaged the therapy, so legally the forms need to be provided in the language the parents can understand, even though the daughter is 15 which makes her old enough to consent she did not engage the therapy so forms need to be provided in parents language.
The answer is B. If taking the ASWB clinical exam it is a national exam and in some states laws differ when it comes to age and signing for consent . So b would be the initial thing to do because it's ethical and the parents were already involved .
Who's the client? if the 15yr old is the client then (based on a previous sample question of a 13yr old giving consent) A would be correct. However, if the entire family are the clients as in family therapy, then B is correct. its important to make sure the parents also understand the consent.