ETHICAL ISSUES IN CONDUCTING FORENSIC EVALUATIONS

ETHICAL ISSUES IN CONDUCTING . FORENSIC EVALUATIONS . Karen C. Kalmbach Phillip M. Lyons Sam Houston State University UNIQUE NATURE OF FORENSIC MENTAL HEALTH. PRACTICE. The role of the FORENSIC mental health professional (MHP) often differs sub- stantially from that of the typical clinician. These differences bear directly on the ETHICAL delivery of services (Canter, Bennett, Jones & Nagy, 1994; Heilbrun, 2001, 2003). For the therapist, the client is the individual presenting for treatment; in FORENSIC EVALUATIONS this is rarely the case (cf. Green- berg & Shuman, 1997). This distinction carries with it important ramifications for informed consent or disclosure as well as the con- trol and use of information obtained during the course of the evaluation . Additionally, the customary therapeutic alliance and typical assurances of confidentiality do not exist in a FORENSIC con- text. Pressure to assume an advocacy position, however subtle, may pose an ETHICAL dilemma for the FORENSIC MHP.

In seeking to share information before decisions are made, informed consent speaks to the importance of personal autonomy and respect for the dignity of people. Disclosure, or notification, on ... declining (adapted from Melton et al., 1997, p. 88)

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  Information, Evaluation, Conducting, Issue, Personal, Shares, Forensic, Ethical, Ethical issues in conducting forensic evaluations, Declining, To share information

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