Maintaining Appropriate Professional Boundaries: Exploring Ethical Obligations of Mental Health Professionals

Workshop Description

Can mental health professionals work with clients they know outside of their job? Can services be bartered with clients? Mental health professionals have a legal and ethical responsibility to maintain professional boundaries, but these obligations are not always clear-cut.

This course provides real-world context to ethical concerns frequently faced by professionals when navigating professional boundaries. Participants will learn a structured approach to ethical dilemmas, ensuring informed decision-making that protects both clients and professionals while reducing legal liability risks.

Learning Objectives

After completing this webinar, participants will be able to:

• Describe the ethical and legal responsibility of mental health professionals in maintaining appropriate professional boundaries.
• Define dual relationships.
• Apply a framework to avoid dual relationships whenever possible.
• Apply a framework to minimize harm to clients and professionals when dual relationships cannot be avoided.
• Explain how to demonstrate that a client has not been exploited or coerced, either intentionally or unintentionally.

Continuing Education Credits:

This workshop is approved for 3.0 continuing education credit hours for licensed social workers, licensed mental health counselors, licensed marriage and family therapists, and licensed psychologists.

Continuing Education Provider Information

NASW-NYS is recognized by the New York State Education Department’s State Board for Mental Health Practitioners as an approved provider of continuing education for:

• Licensed Social Workers (Provider ID #0014)
• Licensed Mental Health Counselors (Provider ID #MHC-0053)
• Licensed Marriage and Family Therapists (Provider ID #MFT-0037)
• Licensed Psychologists (Provider ID #PSY-0088)

Presenter: Kathryn Krase, Ph.D., J.D., M.S.W.

Kathryn Krase is the Principal Consultant with Krase Consultant and an expert in professional ethics, particularly at the intersection of ethics and legal responsibilities. With extensive experience in consulting for government and community-based organizations, she has played a pivotal role in developing policy and practice standards in mental health and social services.

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