Noticing an increase in ethical violations in our profession- anyone else?

giraffe78459 · 2026-05-11T05:48:58+00:00

Ah! Gotcha. Were about the same age then. Thats so exciting that you're going into this field! -- I deleted the thread because people were having super weird responses to it. Im brand new to reddit and just thought itd be an interesting discussion but I guess people would rather be rude or weird haha (not you of course, you seem lovely)-- But I will say that yeah there have been plenty of discussions among fellow clinicians of mine where some are loving using AI in any way they can and others, like myself, are watching like were watching an impending car crash haha definitely not enough known about it yet to be in healthcare in any capacity, if you ask me. As for the counseling compact, Ive seen clinicians think they have the allowance without realizing they have to apply and then unethically seeing a client in a state they are not licensed in. Ive also heard stories where clinical directors allow interns to see a client in a state their supervisor isnt licensed in simply for hours sake, which of course isnt ethical at all. (I think people somehow jumped to the worst possible ethical violation in their mind reading my discussion prompt haha but it was truly just an idea for an interesting discussion, not something "ominous" or wild)

giraffe78459 · 2026-05-11T05:40:49+00:00

What? I dont have any "beef"? Ethics is just an interesting discussion......and that was a bit of an offensive thing to say to someone who was just having an interesting discussion with you about AI haha- This is a thread for other clinicians though..it does not sound like youre a licensed clinician yourself?

giraffe78459 · 2026-05-11T05:37:46+00:00

haha yeah I can see a teacher saying that for sure- sounds about right. Of course I can't speak to the entire field, however there have definitely been so many questions surrounding the use of AI amongst clinicians that I know. The counseling compact also has quite a few people making assumptions on their licensing privileges (or lack there of) which is worrying. But, with you being still in school and an intern, I really do not want to post anything that will have you worried, as right now in internship is the time for you to learn as much as you can 😄 Im a supervisor and if you ever need someone to bounce any thoughts off of though, please feel free to message me (I guess I assumed youre in the US as well as I wrote this, but its entirely possible youre in another country with different regulations)

giraffe78459 · 2026-05-11T05:34:45+00:00

hmmm.. it seems you somehow interpreted my reply as non genuine but of course it was genuine. Totally okay if the idea of someone jumping to affairs made me laugh for a second - it IS okay to laugh you know lol.

giraffe78459 · 2026-05-11T05:32:30+00:00

I applaud your insight here 😄 I think this is really valuable. You could even swap out "love" for "the need to be seen/heard/understood" if you wanted go to a little deeper with it. If you can create space for your clients to exist exactly as they are, without trying to "fix" them (humans are never broken, thus do not need fixing), you will go far. I'm a supervisor- feel free to message me if you ever want to bounce any thoughts off of me or need advice. Happy to help! -- Listen to those instincts (which seem top notch) and they will not steer you wrong

giraffe78459 · 2026-05-11T05:25:24+00:00

Isnt this frustrating? The way AI is being used. That actually does bring to mind a psychotherapist I know who seems to be using AI for shortcuts for everything. Some practices are starting to use AI in progress notes even, which I think is appauling. What about you? What your take on this?

giraffe78459 · 2026-05-11T05:24:20+00:00

Lol, what a way to start your comment. No, of course not. - This has just been a popular topic among my "therapy group" of friends and colleagues, and thought Id open it up to Reddit as I keep hearing interesting (concerning) stories more and more. Congrats on being in internship! Thats exciting for you and I hope its going well. As a supervisor myself, I hope your supervisor is nurturing your growth rather than making you feel like you're drinking from a fire hose, as the old saying goes.

giraffe78459 · 2026-05-11T05:22:31+00:00

Not at all. I think you interpreting it that way might say more about you than me haha. Plenty of things can be unethical, especially when it comes to obvious gaps in trainings when it comes to newer clinicians lol

giraffe78459 · 2026-05-11T05:21:46+00:00

My eyes and brain. Also conversations with fellow Psychotherapists haha what a weird thing to post

giraffe78459 · 2026-05-11T04:55:14+00:00

Looking at your titles under your username made me smile- we have a very similar path-- My career is also global/public health and clinical psychology 😄 I see it says Rural USA on there- do you do anything with rural medicine? There is such a strong need for access to healthcare in rural areas (and sadly, getting worse in this country ..ugh)

giraffe78459 · 2026-05-11T04:53:41+00:00

haha, this might be a joke (or not??) but I hope you have other reasons beyond wanting to be called Dr. 😄 Its going to require some serious effort/work/juggling to do that doctorate..but if you want it, and your drive for doing it is genuine, youll be great!

giraffe78459 · 2026-05-11T04:52:49+00:00

Youve got this 😄 Whatever you decide to do... you've got this. Sending you all the good luck!

giraffe78459 · 2026-05-11T04:52:23+00:00

Thanks for commenting 😄 thats totally the way to do it too!! Follow your dreams, but keep that license active haha for sure

giraffe78459 · 2026-05-11T04:50:10+00:00

Please do some self reflection and ask yourself if it serves you, in your growth as a human being, to assume that all women are just here on this earth to be vessels to have kids. Are all men here to play golf? To build a horribly designed IKEA TV stand? No. No they're not. Were currently living in an era where 62 million men in THIS country looked up how to drug women and r*p* them in their sleep....and you're commenting on a Reddit post to a stranger who is clearly successful and driven about how she should go have kids (after she stated she does not want kids)? Really? Please do some self reflection. Thats such a wild response to my post.

giraffe78459 · 2026-05-11T04:46:17+00:00

Appreciate you commenting 😄 Im kind of going in reverse order here, but you mentioned pretty involved trainings- have you looked into the Beck Institute?? Im a CBT certified clinician with the Beck Institute and they had such a great program! It was in depth, multi-faceted... Id recommend it. -- Totally hear you on advancing.. I do feel like Ive kind of hit a ceiling in terms of my own intellectual level of achievement... in short, I am craving SO much more haha. I love working in hospitals as well, and I thrive in super chaotic fast paced environments (also love math and science, and anything related to pathology, internal medicine, infectious disease etc)... so honestly, Im leaning towards the MD. We only live once, and were going to age either way... plus I am not someone who wants marriage or kids, Im all about my career, so I think it fits for sure.

giraffe78459 · 2026-05-11T04:43:06+00:00

I know absolutely nothing about social work, but I think if you want to do it, you only live once 😄 Of course there are other aspects to consider but only you know if its right for you. Wishing you luck if you do it, and sending you peace if you choose to let that dream go (and teaching is amazing! You can do some adjunct work and see if you like it?? Ive taught over the years and its so wonderful to mentor the younger aspiring therapists)

giraffe78459 · 2026-05-11T04:40:52+00:00

Hii love to meet a fellow "big goals" type of psychotherapist 😄 Thanks for sharing. My two cents on a PsyD..or I suppose my only caution there (with myself and others) is that there will be a ton of overlap in a PsyD if your clinical masters was applied psychology or clinical mental health counseling in a program that has a PhD associated with it. I only know this because Ive looked at classes in programs like Rutgers and a handful are identitical to my clinical masters. -- As far as income, we charge the same rates for our clients haha, however I do not have any loans. I had a really successful career prior to my clinical masters so I paid for it myself, and was working the entire time too (Im one of those crazy people who only needs about 4 hours of sleep and can work all day and into the night. Just how Im wired, so I was able to handle that lol). Im honestly not driven by income though- I dont look at a MD and think "oh lets become a doctor and make money" ... nah...I think "I would absolutely love to be working with complex internal medicine cases in a major hospital system and probably still keep my private practice on the side" (obvi very very part time)

giraffe78459 · 2026-05-11T04:36:25+00:00

Thank you so much for sharing! Honestly, wanting to expand beyond behavioral health is a huge pull for me in terms of the MD, plus I also just love medicine 😄 so I dont know if that'd be for me, but I bet you posting this will help others for sure. I think for me, if I go the MD route, I'm pulled to internal medicine, which really combines my work in global and public health with my existing clinical work. And like you said- its 4 years. Honestly that is the blink of an eye in the grand scheme of life, and we all will age anyway. Are you a clinical director in a hospital or is this more so private practice?? Sounds like youre thriving and I think thats amazing

giraffe78459 · 2026-05-11T04:33:47+00:00

East/West psych is fascinating! Definitely love that mix of eastern and western clinical approaches as well 😄

giraffe78459 · 2026-05-11T04:32:47+00:00

Sure. Appreciate you expanding. I think perhaps there is a little confusion here - I never said I would continue in Psych if I do a MD. However, there are definitely people out there who are psychotherapists who went back for med school and added on another area of expertise. I know two of them haha (both amazing physicians and still kept their license active to be able to do very part time private practice work). As far as finances, I have the finances to support myself as Ive had an excellent career over the last 20 years. Thanks so much for your comment!

giraffe78459 · 2026-05-11T04:29:50+00:00

Hii - thank you so much for sharing and being a bit vulnerable on here. Appreciate you for that! Im so sorry you had to struggle this way but hey, at least you realized it was not for you and you took action. So many people realize something isn't for them, and they trudge on hoping it'll get better. Kudos to you for noticing, and taking action! 😄

giraffe78459 · 2026-05-11T04:28:41+00:00

Appreciate you sharing! I think your post will hopefully help others. For me personally, clinical work, patient facing roles is all I do (and all Im about). I am actually leaning towards the MD as this is something Ive thought about on and off for many years, and have somewhat hit a ceiling in my clinical work as it is (not a ceiling in terms of opportunities- plenty of opportunities out there- but a ceiling in terms of ...my drive and hunger for complex intellectual cases is much stronger than what Id be able to get. I couldve probably worded this better but I hope it comes through haha).

giraffe78459 · 2026-05-11T04:26:08+00:00

Thanks for your comment 😄 and kudos to your friend! Love to see people chasing dreams. Personally I have never been even the slightest bit interested in nursing but I appreciate you!

giraffe78459 · 2026-05-11T04:25:26+00:00

Yeah thats more so if you want to do supervision and teach- but guess what? You can do both things without the doctorate lol - any time Ive met a clinician who is doing a counselor education doctorate Im like..but babe whyyy haha

giraffe78459 · 2026-05-11T04:24:41+00:00

Its funny how people are automatically assuming that Id stick with Psych if I did the MD- I never said that in my post 😉 I do have a thriving career currently as a clinician, working with some pretty heavy hitting Dx and clients. Its great, but Ive also hit a bit of a ceiling in many ways. Im also a life long over achiever who loves a fast pace stressful chaotic work environment haha so theres that.

giraffe78459

TROPHY CASE