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DEGREE REGULATIONS & PROGRAMMES OF STUDY 2024/2025

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DRPS : Course Catalogue : School of Health in Social Science : Clinical Psychology

Postgraduate Course: Ethics and Governance in Psychological Practice (CLPS11091)

Course Outline
SchoolSchool of Health in Social Science CollegeCollege of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences
Credit level (Normal year taken)SCQF Level 11 (Postgraduate) AvailabilityNot available to visiting students
SCQF Credits10 ECTS Credits5
SummaryThis course will cover understanding and critical reflection on the principles of ethical and safe practice. Students are introduced to the major ethical and practice bodies and regulations covering psychological work with young people and vulnerable adults. Students will be expected to demonstrate the practical application of ethical principles and regulatory frameworks and show critical reflection and appraisal of those regulations in clinical practice.
Course description Students will be introduced to the core concepts of maintaining professional standards, promoting ethical behavior, attitude and judgement and the core components of ethics according to the British Psychological Society (BPS) a) Respect; b) Competence; c) Responsibility; d) Integrity.

This course will support students to examine the ethical responsibilities in some specific area, such as: professional and personal boundaries, differences and similarities in private and public practice, confidentiality, conflicts of interest, trust and deception in the context of research. It will also include maintaining a safe working environment, setting boundaries, obtaining consent and agreement, safeguarding, managing data and confidentiality and managing things when things go wrong.

Seminars and online activity will cover theory and applications of ethical principles and will use a range of strategies to enable students to apply these students in the context in which they work. This may include considering case studies as a mock ethics panel, or as a mock professional practice regulatory panel.

All teaching input implicitly helps support students to develop their professional practice.
Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
Pre-requisites Co-requisites
Prohibited Combinations Other requirements None
Course Delivery Information
Academic year 2024/25, Not available to visiting students (SS1) Quota:  None
Course Start Semester 1
Timetable Timetable
Learning and Teaching activities (Further Info) Total Hours: 100 ( Seminar/Tutorial Hours 10, Programme Level Learning and Teaching Hours 2, Directed Learning and Independent Learning Hours 88 )
Assessment (Further Info) Written Exam 0 %, Coursework 100 %, Practical Exam 0 %
Additional Information (Assessment) MCQ 100%

Feedback Regular online quizzes.
No Exam Information
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
  1. Demonstrate a reflective understanding of ethical principles.
  2. Develop knowledge of relevant steps taken by therapists to resolve ethical issues and conflicts and to provide services within the boundaries of their competence.
  3. Develop knowledge and critical understanding of ethical considerations that pertain to research, publication, record keeping, education and training, assessment, and therapy.
  4. Demonstrate awareness of, and proficiency in the application of ethical principles in complex situations.
  5. Show knowledge and application of relevant regulatory frameworks.
Reading List
Health and Care Professions Council¿s (HCPC) Standards of Conduct, Performance and Ethics

British Psychological Society¿s (2018) Code of Ethics and Conduct

British Association for Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapies (BABCP) guidelines.

The American Psychological Association's (APA)¿Ethical Principles for Psychologist's¿and Code of Code of Conduct

British Psychological Society¿s. Good Practice Guidelines for the Conduct of Psychological Research within the NHS

Di Gerald P. Koocher, Patricia Keith-Spiegel (2008). Ethics in Psychology and the Mental Health Professions: Standards and Cases
Additional Information
Graduate Attributes and Skills This course offers skills and competencies that would be likely to support graduates in meeting the standards of registration of a number of professional bodies such as HCPC:
- promote and protect the interests of service users and carers.
- communicate appropriately and effectively.
- work within the limits of their knowledge and skills.
- delegate appropriately.
- respect confidentiality.
- manage risk.
- report concerns about safety.
- be open when things go wrong.
- be honest and trustworthy; and
- keep records of their work with service users and carers.
KeywordsEthics,Integrity,code of conduct,psychological therapies
Contacts
Course organiserProf Elizabeth Gilchrist
Tel: (0131 6)51 3982
Email: Liz.Gilchrist@ed.ac.uk
Course secretaryMrs Clara Shaw
Tel: (0131 6)51 3970
Email: Clara.Shaw@ed.ac.uk
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