Chapter 6: Records, Subpoenas, and Technology
1. Legal principles view the contents of a client’s counseling records as belonging to
a. the client’s counselor.
b. the agency where the counseling took place.
c. the client.
d. the court that has requested the records..
e. the insurance company that paid for the counseling sessions.
2. When counselor trainees make audiotapes or videotapes of counseling sessions for
supervision purposes
a. trainees must retrieve the tapes after the supervisors have reviewed them, and then
erase the tapes.
b. supervisors must handle the tapes appropriately during the time the tapes are in the
supervisors’ possession.
c. supervisors should return tapes to trainees after the tapes have been reviewed.
d. the tapes should be labeled simply, in a manner that does not bring attention to the
fact that the tapes are confidential records.
e. all of the above.
3. Generally, counselors create clinical case notes
a. to protect themselves in the event they are later sued.
b. for their own use, so that they may be effective counselors.
c. for insurance companies who reimburse clients for the cost of mental health services.
d. to keep up with whether the client attended sessions on particular days and whether
the client paid for the sessions that were rendered.
e. so that they may reflect upon their counseling sessions and improve their skills.
4. Which of the following statements is most appropriate regarding clinical case notes?
a. counselors should not take clinical case notes if they are worried about the notes
being subpoenaed or later being seen by the client or anyone else.
b. counselors should take the clinical notes they need in order to function effectively as
professionals.
c. it is reasonable to assume that clinical case notes will not be read by anyone other
than the counselor who wrote them.
d. writing illegible case notes is a protection against being called upon to reveal
sensitive information pursuant to a subpoena.
e. if clinical case notes are kept at the home of the counselor, they cannot be
subpoenaed.
5. When documenting for self-protection
a. documentation should be relatively vague so as not to reveal too much information.
b. as much detail as possible (e.g., dates, times of events, and exact words spoken)
should be included.
c. in the event a counselor realizes that documentation should have been occurring
sooner, the counselor should back-date the documentation rather than write a
summary of what has happened up to that point in time.
d. counselors document to avoid responsibility for clinical decisions that were made or
actions that were taken.
e. counselors should avoid including information related to disagreements they have had
with a client.
6. The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) requires that
a. counselors give clients a clear written explanation of how they use, keep, and disclose
their health care information.
b. clients have access to their records.
c. a written process exists for clients to request amendments to their records.
d. a written history of most disclosures of client information be available to clients.
e. all of the above.
7. The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 (FERPA), which is sometimes
referred to as the “Buckley Amendment,” affects all
a. community mental health centers in the United States.
b. public educational institutions.
c. private or parochial educational institutions.
d. public hospitals.
e. private hospitals.
8. HIPAA rules state that if clients are first informed and given an opportunity to orally object
a. psychotherapy notes created by the counselor may be transferred to insurance
companies.
b. insurance companies may pay counselors directly for the services they render to
clients.
c. their records may be transferred to another mental health professional.
d. their records may be destroyed at the end of the counseling relationship.
e. counselors may give health care information to family members or others assisting in
the client’s care.
9. If a subpoena for the counseling records of a client is received, a counselor who works in a
mental health agency should
a. ask his or her supervisor to obtain a legal opinion as to whether the records should be
copied for the attorney who has issued the subpoena.
b. immediately turn the records over to the attorney who has issued the subpoena.
c. call the attorney who has issued the subpoena and request that the subpoena be
withdrawn.
d. consult with a counselor colleague before deciding how to respond.
e. hire an attorney in private practice and ask the attorney to tell the counselor whether
the records should be copied for the attorney who has issued the subpoena.
10. Subpoenas are used
a. to obtain copies of records.
b. to cause potential witnesses to testify at a deposition, hearing, or trial.
c. to ask potential witnesses to respond in writing to written questions.
d. to require witnesses to appear at a deposition, hearing, or trail and to bring their
records with them.
e. all of the above.
11. When a counselor uses a networked or shared computer for the storage of confidential
information on clients,
the counselor should
a. never let anyone else know or be able to access the password.
b. Store confidential records on a portable storage device rather than on the computer’s
hard drive.
c. only use computers that are kept behind locked doors.
d. have a manual lock placed on the computer that requires a key.
e. never print out confidential information because it might be read by others.
12. When a counselor communicates with a client using e-mail
a. the counselor should never include anything that is confidential because it is unethical
to do so.
b. the client’s business e-mail address should never be used because employers often
read the e-mail messages of their employees.
c. the client should be told to avoid using e-mail to set or change appointment times
because it is impossible to tell whether the counselor received the message that was
sent.
d. the client should be advised that e-mail messages can always be retrieved and that e-
mail systems are not as secure as other means of communication.
e. the counselor should never print out the e-mail messages because the client’s
confidentiality would be compromised by the existence of paper copies.
13. Internet sites that contain career information that might be helpful to clients
a. can be counted on for quality because all are approved by the federal government
before they are allowed to be created.
b. contain better, up-to-date information than printed sources.
c. should be avoided because they usually contain inaccurate information.
d. are not monitored for content or quality.
e. have little practical use for clients because they are so technical in the way they
present career information.
14. The practice of providing counseling services over the Internet
a. has been determined to be unethical by the American Counseling Association Ethics
Committee.
b. is never as effective as providing counseling services face-to-face.
c. is controversial.
d. is rare.
e. is risky because no guidelines have yet been developed by professional associations.
15.Counselors who use social media profile sites for professional purposes should NOT
a. “friend” their clients
b. establish an effective method for verifying client identity
c. provide a list of all their licenses and links to the licensing boards
d. post a photo of themselves on the site
e. use the site to advertise their specialty areas
Chapter Six