There is a good chance the National Code of Conduct for Health Care Workers applies to your counselling or psychotherapy practice. There is also a good chance you have not checked what it actually requires.
I recently discovered something rather embarrassing in my own counselling practice (while I was attending a “supervision on supervision” OPD day!).
It turns out that I, as counsellor in QLD, am bound by the Queensland version of the National Code of Conduct for Health Care Workers. This Code, together with information about how clients can make a complaint, must be displayed or made available at premises where a practitioner provides health services, unless an exemption applies. When I mentioned this to some of my fellow attendees, and later on my supervisees, I discovered I wasn’t alone.
Several experienced counsellors and psychotherapists had never thought about it either. That prompted me to take a closer look at the Code and, importantly, what it means for counsellors and psychotherapists across Australia.
What is the National Code of Conduct?
The National Code of Conduct for Health Care Workers establishes minimum standards of conduct and practice for health care workers who are not registered under Australia’s national health practitioner registration scheme.
That makes it particularly relevant to counsellors and psychotherapists, because neither profession is currently regulated through AHPRA and/or a National Board in the way that psychology, medicine, nursing and several other health professions are.
The Code is intended to provide a baseline level of protection for people receiving health services from “unregistered” practitioners. There is an important wrinkle, though. Despite being called the National Code, it is implemented through legislation in individual states and territories. The Australian Government provides links to the relevant jurisdictional authorities, and requirements can differ between jurisdictions.
So, if you practise outside Queensland, don’t simply assume that the Queensland requirements apply to you. Check the requirements in your own state or territory.
What does the Code mean for counsellors?
Much of the (Queensland) Code will probably look familiar to anyone who already follows a professional code of ethics. It requires practitioners to provide services safely and ethically, obtain appropriate consent, work within their competence, recognise their limitations and refer clients when appropriate. It also addresses privacy, record keeping, insurance, adverse events, financial exploitation and professional boundaries.
For counsellors and psychotherapists, several areas deserve particular attention.
Work within your competence
The Code requires health care workers to maintain appropriate competence and not provide services outside their experience, training or qualifications. That is worth considering when you are tempted to expand your practice into a new area because you’ve developed an interest in it. Being interested in complex trauma, eating disorders, dissociation, addictions or another specialised area does not automatically mean you are competent to work independently with every presentation. “I’m interested in this” and “I’m competent to provide this service” are different statements.That’s a useful supervision conversation….
Be accurate about your qualifications and claims
The Code prohibits misinformation and misrepresentation about qualifications, training and professional affiliations. It also prohibits claims about the effectiveness of treatments or services that cannot be substantiated. That applies to your website and advertising just as much as it does to conversations with clients. Be particularly careful about titles, specialist claims and statements about what a particular therapy can achieve. We discussed that in my recent group supervision session!
Respect informed choice
Counsellors must obtain appropriate consent and respect clients’ right to make informed choices about their healthcare. The Code also specifically says practitioners must not attempt to dissuade clients from seeking or continuing medical treatment. For counsellors working with complex mental health presentations, this is an important reminder that counselling does not operate in isolation from the wider healthcare system.
Keep proper records and protect privacy
The Code requires appropriate records and compliance with relevant privacy legislation. In Queensland, for example, practitioners must maintain accurate, legible and up-to-date clinical records and keep them secure. Good record keeping is therefore not simply an insurance requirement or something your professional association recommends. It forms part of your broader professional obligations.
Maintain professional boundaries
The Code prohibits sexual misconduct and inappropriate close personal relationships with clients. That may sound obvious, but counselling and psychotherapy involve vulnerability, trust and an inherent power imbalance. Maintaining professional boundaries therefore deserves ongoing attention, particularly when relationships become complex. Again, supervision has a role here.
And then there’s the poster…
This was the bit that caught me out.
In Queensland, practitioners covered by the Code must display or make available a copy of the Code and information about how clients can make a complaint, in a way that is easily visible or accessible to clients. And Queensland isn’t the only jurisdiction with requirements around making the Code and complaints information available. The exact requirements vary across Australia, so if you are practising as a counsellor or psychotherapist, find the relevant Code for your state or territory and check what you are required to display, publish or provide to clients. Don’t assume that because you are a member of a professional association, or because you have professional indemnity insurance, you’ve automatically covered everything. I have now adapted the Code of Conduct on both my Counselling Supervision and Simplifying Life websites, and have integrated the Code in my supervision and counselling contracts and consent forms.
The National Code isn’t another document to download, file away and forget. It provides a useful legal baseline for something counsellors should already be aiming for: safe, ethical, competent and accountable practice. And perhaps the most useful supervision question of all is: If a client, colleague, insurer or regulator looked closely at my practice tomorrow, could I demonstrate that I am practising safely, ethically and within my competence?If the answer is yes, excellent. If the answer is, “Mostly… but I’m not sure where my Code poster is,” then perhaps you’ve just found your next supervision homework.
Marc de Bruin is an ACA Level 4 counsellor, clinical supervisor (for both PACFA and ACA), university tutor, and former barrister-solicitor with over 20 years’ experience in counselling, supervision, and professional development. He is the founder of Counselling Supervision and Simplifying Life.
