How To Report Unethical Treatment By Psychotherapist

By Aimee Schwartz


Some people have mental disorders. They want to get rid of these conditions so they seek the assistance of medical practitioners. These professionals will be able to help them with their situations.

However, there are cases where harm might also be inflicted by these professionals to them. For this, unethical treatment by psyhotherapist should be reported by the patients immediately. Some factors should be considered when such will be done.

There are certain warning signs that the individuals may notice when they experience harassments. The practitioners may tell sexual jokes or stories to their patients. They may also give seductive looks to their clients. They may also discuss the sex lives of their patients excessively. They may also intimately touch their body parts. They may even hug, touch, sit close to, or lie next to their clienteles.

The individuals may also experience special treatments from the practitioners. The professionals may ask them for dates or other social activities. They may also receive bouquets of flowers or expensive gifts from them. They may also hear sweet words from these therapists. There are also times that these therapists will confide with them their personal secrets. They may even change their business policies just to accommodate the clients.

There are several methods that these individuals can do to be able to report these incidents. First, they can go with administrative actions. Typically, these practitioners receive licenses from certain licensing boards. The licenses will allow the therapists to legally practice their professions and render their services. If the patients will file complaints and submit them to these boards, the authorities may suspend or even revoke the licenses of the professionals.

They can also go with professional association actions. Most professionals have memberships with certain associations. These associations typically establish codes of ethics that all of the members should follow. After they file their complaints with these associations, certain officers will conduct investigations. Once they prove that the therapists are guilty, they will remove them from their associations. However, the accused will still be able to render their services although they now possess bad reputations.

The individuals can also go with civil actions. With these options, they can file civil charges with civil courts and seek money for the damages they experienced. Before they do so, they will need to look for good lawyers who will represent their cases in courts. These legal practitioners can also suggest the best options that they can do for this undertaking. The clients may also engage in media circuses especially if the therapists are famous.

Criminal actions can also be gone with. These actions are applied to those who had sexual encounters with these practitioners. Local law enforcement authorities can be contacted and their cases will be investigated by officers. When enough evidences are found, criminal cases can be charged against these practitioners and penalties will be served, such as prison times or fines.

Whatever actions the patients will go with, they have to take note of the durations that they can file complaints, namely the statute of limitations. Usually, these statutes will only last for six months from the dates that the professionals did the acts. They should not endure these relationships for long periods of time.




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