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From: Kevin Eldridge
Date: 21 Oct 2011
Time: 07:45:25 -0500
Remote Name: 24.12.164.27
Elisabeth, The ASHA Code of Ethics has 4 parts. Part one states, "Individuals shall honor their responsibility to hold paramount the welfare of persons they serve professionally..." Part three states, Individuals shall honor their responsibility to the public by promoting public understanding of the professions, by supporting the development of services designed to fulfill the unmet needs of the public, and by providing accurate information in all communications involving any aspect of the professions..." The state of Illinois is large enough that someone could be over 7 hours away in rural area. If they contacted me and wanted to be seen via Skype but could not afford the time or money to drive to see me, would I best serve them by seeing them on Skype or turning them away? If there was no one better able to serve them face to face, I would schedule a time to "chat" via Skype to see how they respond to the situation of speaking via teletherapy. If it appeared we were "communicating" one individual to another, I would argue that I could best uphold the code of ethics by taking them on as a client via Skype. If we were talking about a teen, I would try to help them understand the importance (and cost effectiveness) of our intensive program involving the teen and parents. But I believe that teletherapy will offer many individuals the only option to receive therapy from a qualified professional. And for many of those folks, face to face therapy will not be an option. I hope this answers your question.