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The topic of suicide in counseling is not taboo and certainly has grown in recent years. Both pieces of literature provide informational statistics about suicide and death among young people. Suicide was noted as the third leading cause of death in individuals age 15-24 (Stone & Zirkel, 2012). School counselors are typically the first line of contact to intervene for a student, but it is still unclear what action steps should be taken once they are made aware of suicidal intent. The online article argues that once a counselor conducts a risk assessment, they need to inform the parent as a method of prevention.

The article defends counselor intervention techniques and states that incidents of parents suing counselors or educators because of negligence rarely hold up in court. As schools increase their risk assessment and communication strategies, it has become increasingly more difficult to pin blame on counselors. The library article discusses strategies of counselor interventions and risk assessment. Three school districts are evaluated, and different methods of risk assessment are discussed.

In the library research there remains an emphasis on situation evaluation, risk assessment and notification of parents. Once parents are notified, counselors still closely monitor students to observe noticeably questionable behavior (Crepeau, 2013). The topic of suicide and counselor blame are two concepts that cannot be taken lightly. As a future counselor, I find it intriguing that parents place so much fault in an individual unrelated to students. Future incidents of suicidal thoughts with my counseling students could potentially result in the need for this information. These pieces of literature relate to the field of counseling in that they both promote the idea of prevention on the front end to avoid blame on the latter end.

Crepeau, H. F. (2013). An exploratory study of suicide risk assessment practices in the school setting. Psychology in the Schools, 50(8), 810–822. https://doi-org.easydb.angelo.edu/10.1002/pits.21705

Stone, C., & Zirkel, P. (2012, May 1). Student Suicide: Legal and Ethical Implications. Retrieved October 28, 2018, from https://www.schoolcounselor.org/magazine/blogs/may-june-2012/student-suicide-legal-and-ethical-implications

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Internet Article: Student Suicide; Legal and Ethical Implications

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Internet Article: Student Suicide; Legal and Ethical Implications

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https://www.schoolcounselor.org/magazine/blogs/may-june-2012/student-suicide-legal-and-ethical-implications

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Library Article: Suicide Risk Assessment in School Setting

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Library Article: Suicide Risk Assessment in School Setting

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https://easydb.angelo.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=psyh&AN=2013-29117-005&site=ehost-live

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Counselor Sued for Student Committing Suicide

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Counselor Sued for Student Committing Suicide

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Legally counselors are required to step forward and intervene when a student displays behavior of potential self harm or suicidal ideation. Unfortunately, counselors cannot stop a student from taking their own life, if they have made the decision final in their minds. I chose this topic because I find it interesting that families feel a school counselor is to blame for their child taking their own life.

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Option #3: Counselor Fired for Grade Change

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Option #3: Counselor Fired for Grade Change

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https://www.timesenterprise.com/news/local_news/cairo-high-guidance-counselor-terminated/article_d4bac2dc-7340-5e95-9c6c-25f9884450ff.html

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Option #3: Parents Sue School Counselor after Student Commits Suicide

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Option #3: Parents Sue School Counselor after Student Commits Suicide

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https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/education/parents-of-teen-who-committed-suicide-sue-school-counselor/2016/12/03/f417bfae-b975-11e6-a677-b608fbb3aaf6_story.html?utm_term=.9669d384d92a

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5. Houston ISD and counseling as a "related service"

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5. Houston ISD and counseling as a "related service"

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The biggest interference with this concept is that, at Ashantia's school, there is a battle with the special education department and counselors. The main question is about who provides what services to students. Counselors intervene when the student has needs of "related services" but special education employees feel that counselors are not sufficiently trained to handle these issues. For her specific campus, there is a constant question of "who should handle this issue?"

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4. Keeping ACA standards while counseling at her sons school

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4. Keeping ACA standards while counseling at her sons school

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Ashantia is working on obtaining her LPC in the state of Texas. Additionally, she is a counselor at the same school that her son attends. Since she is required to abide by American Counseling Association requirements, she has a number of legal requirements that she needs to be aware of to avoid violation. The ACA specifically prohibits counselors from providing services to family, friends or anyone they are unable to remain impartial with. This stops her from being able to attend field trips with her son, or give certain presentations in a group that her son might be a part of.

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My ultimate goal post graduation is to become a College Readiness Counselor at a high school in Houston, TX. Having recently moved to Houston, my previous position in Waco, TX was a college readiness specialist.

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Option 1: Interview a School Counseling Professional

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Option 1: Interview a School Counseling Professional

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TOP 5 LEGAL & ETHICAL ISSUES IN COUNSELING
Person Interviewed: Ashantia Wolfe
Position: Lead Counselor, Houston ISD

Ashantia is a counselor who is currently working towards gaining her LPC. As such she is required to adhere to American Counseling Association standards along with HISD's counseling requirements. Here are the top five issues she identified.

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2. Maintaining legal rights of students with disabilities

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2. Maintaining legal rights of students with disabilities

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With constantly changing standards of how to handle students with disabilities in her district, Ashantia emphasized how important it was to legally advocate for students with disabilities to receive their services. She also made mention of the counselors position to promote the mission of the diagnostician. She stated that her school is slightly more vigilant in assisting the special education population, but she feels that this group benefits with more individuals advocating for their services.

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1. Confidentiality with student information

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1. Confidentiality with student information

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Ashantia identified specific issues that she deals with regarding educational "need to know". With the influx of students viewing "13 Reasons Why" where students have more exposure to topics like suicide, depression, and death she expressed concern with the ethical dilemma regarding student confidentiality. When she counsels a student who is constantly down, at what point should other teachers be alerted, or when should parents be involved. The lack of understanding of true student intention behind their sadness, and how home factors can contribute to their depressed feeling was also mentioned. Because Ashantia counsels middle school students, the issue of suicide and the popularity of the show was slightly delayed, but it is still an ethical dilemma she faces.

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3. Potential liabilities with improper techniques by other school counselors

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3. Potential liabilities with improper techniques by other school counselors

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Ashantia spoke candidly about training newer counselors in the process of interventions. One of her biggest challenges is the liabilities of newer counselors improperly counseling students. Without much detail, she mentioned how important it is to maintain state mandated requirements. Failure to do so could result in investigation by the state of Texas.