TPC-Journal-V2-Issue1

The Professional Counselor \Volume 2, Issue 1 29 outside of therapy and routine social interactions are protected by the counselor’s investment in the community and the community’s trust in the counselor (Faulkner & Faulkner, 1997). This emotional investment of the counselor in the community can become a positive ethical force as “dual relationships and familiarity with patients…tend to decrease the probability of exploitation—not increase it—as the power differential in a more egalitarian relationship is reduced” (Scopelliti et al., 2004, p. 955). Due to the counselor’s involvement in the community, the local clientele may choose the services of the frontier counselor because they may be seen as someone who would understand and have awareness of the client’s concerns (Schank et al., 2010). Thus the regard the counselor has for the community’s overall welfare can act as a monitor “warning that distancing through anonymity and neutrality is not only likely to be counter-therapeutic, but also to increase the likelihood of exploitation” (Scopelliti et al., 2004, p. 955). This of course assumes that the counselor is diligently aware of their relations with clients and community members because, as Reamer (2003) states, such relations “can be ethically appropriate and, in fact, therapeutically helpful as long as the clinical dynamics are handled skillfully” (p. 128). Conversely, lack of awareness can lead rural clinicians to consider that because multiple relationships can be expected they are free to engage in any type of relationship and excuse it as a natural result (Werth et al., 2010). Considerations for Frontier Counselors Certainly there are no easy answers to the ethical dilemmas that working in frontier areas presents. Limited by resources, bound by geography and distance, and confronted with issues that might seem tractable in more urbane environments, the awareness of a frontier counselor needs to be focused on many professional and ethical levels at any one time. Define Clear Boundaries Informed consent is paramount. Considering the potential for ethical violations in a frontier setting the counselor must clearly communicate to his or her clientele the parameters within which the counseling relationship can exist. This should include how the client wishes chance or social encounters with the counselor to be handled as well as how multiple relationships, to the extent that they can be pre-determined, should be addressed when they occur. In an environment where overlapping relationships are best viewed as a certainty the need for transparency in the client/counselor relationship is fundamental for a clinical relationship that can weather the ethical realities of frontier life. The counselor also needs to consider his or her own professional boundaries and determine a level of comfort in regards to the potential ethical issues that shape frontier clinical practice. Clarifying one’s own understanding of where boundaries of competence are can help the counselor determine when he or she is entering an area of uncertainty regarding providing services in which the counselor may not be fully conversant. In this regard the counselor also needs to come to terms with his or her own acceptable level of multiple relationships with clients. Understanding one’s self- determined boundaries, be they ethical or personal, can help alert the counselor to behaviors that could lead to ethical violations. Confidentiality. The counselor must communicate to the client the confidentiality issues that are common in frontier environments and establish an understanding of the counselor’s ethical and legal obligations. Even when the client expects the counselor to share information about the client with other services or professionals in the area, it is the responsibility of the counselor to foster an understanding on the part of the client as to the extent and obligation of counselor/client confidentiality. As with other aspects of counseling, the frontier counselor should also be prepared to define their professional boundary of confidentiality when dealing with other professional services or agencies in the area. To the extent that they are able, it is a counselor’s duty to protect their client’s confidentiality, even in the face of a cultural value that shares information as part of communal survival. Professional Awareness The journey from analyzing ethical case studies in training situations to personal involvement in potential ethical violations can be very short for the new frontier counselor (Schank & Skovholt, 2006). Counselors new to the frontier