What are the implications?

As an HSPP, you will routinely work with children and families who struggle with issues for which mental health treatment is necessary. These issues may include substance abuse, mental illness, trauma, and many others. As you help children and families obtain services to address these issues, it is important to avoid stepping into the role of a licensed mental health counselor. Failure to maintain professional boundaries in these and other situations can be harmful to the family and can result in serious legal repercussions.
In this Discussion, you explore the consequences of accidently stepping into the role of a licensed mental health counselor when working with families.
-To Prepare:
Review on ethical approaches, standards, and considerations.
Reflect on the professional boundaries of an HSPP and on family situations in which those boundaries may inadvertently get broken.
Think about a situation in which an HSPP may accidentally step into the role of a licensed mental health counselor when working with a family. What are the implications?
Post an example of a situation in which a human services professional practitioner may accidentally step into the role of a licensed mental health counselor when working with a family. If you were the HSPP in the example, explain how you would know that you breached a professional boundary and what you would do to rectify the situation. Incorporate the NOHS standards for ethical practice into your response.