LIMITS OF CONFIDENTIALITY

Hi George so good to see you , thank you for coming in (pause) I’m Erin I’ll be working with you today it’s
a pleasure to meet you.

I do ask all my clients this question so I hope you don’t mind have you ever done counselling or therapy
before?

Answered no: well that’s okay , its great to see you making this step

Answered yes: that’s awesome to hear

Now before we truly begin I do want to make you aware of our limits of confidentiality, my intentions
are to keep what you share within this space confidential however there are times where I may be
required to share information, if you have any questions feel free to ask

These limits to confidentiality are:

1. if you say you are going to hurt yourself
2. if you say you are going to hurt someone else
3. if you say that a child is being abused (neglected, physical or sexual)
4. if there is subpoenaed from the court
do you have any questions for me about those limits of confidentiality?

So what has brought you here today?

Leah Durkin, fifteen years-old, has been in the care of the Children’s Aid Society (CAS)
for the last two months. This has precipitated the need for a Family meeting with all
members of the Durkin Family present - father, George Durkin, mother, Linda Durkin
and brother, seventeen year-old Lucas Durkin.

You are the *Child and Youth Care worker assigned the Durkin Family Case. You need
to understand the current family dynamics and what changes must occur in order for
Leah to return home. Reviewing your colleagues notes from the initial intake and
previous conversations with Leah and Linda you noted: the father, George, is a police
officer who is an alcoholic suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and
the mother, Linda, has been the victim of his alcohol fueled rages. George has always
abused her verbally and has more recently struck Linda on at least six occasions that
Leah can recall. This is what led to Leah being placed in CAS care. The older brother,
Lucas, also deals with alcohol addictions and Linda fears he may also be using drugs.
You are meeting the Durkins in your office, for the first time, to see how they interact
and gain a greater understanding of who they are.