Community College of Baltimore County, Dundalk Campus

Division: Business, Social Science, Wellness and Education

Course: Ethics in Chemical Dependency Counseling: CMDP 213-DW1

SYLLABUS

A. Semester/term and year: Winter 2006

B. Instructor's name: Marilyn M. Kuzsma, LCADC

C. Instructor's office room number: Building E, Room 104 J.

D. Contact information: Telephone: 410-285-9694; Email: mkuzsma@ccbcmd.edu; Fax: 410-285-9482

E. Instructor's office hours: To Be Announced

F. Pre-requisites: CMDP 102 or permission of the instructor

A. Overall Course Objectives:

Upon completion of the course, the student will be able to:

1. Define professional ethics.
2. Identify at least two professional codes of Ethics in the CDC field.
3. Define ethics, morals and values and describe the relationship between these concepts.
4. Identify the four common values that underlie codes of ethics in most helping professions.
5. Identify the confidentiality issues in the CDC field, and show a working knowledge of the laws and regulations governing disclosure of client information, as well as the ethical dilemmas that might be presented in the area of patient confidentiality.
6. State the steps involved in an ethical decision making model.
7. Apply ethical principles and the ethical decision making model to a series of case studies given in class, and work with classmates to determine preferred outcome(s) of the case studies.
8. Discuss the special ethical issues inherent in the chemical dependency counseling field, e.g. need for supervision, professional impairment and credentialing.

B. Major Topics:

1. Definitions of ethics, morals and values.
2. Four common values underlying codes of ethics in the helping professions.
3. Two Codes of Ethics for Addiction Professionals: a)NAADAC, The Association for Addiction Professionals and b) Maryland State Board of Professional Counselors and Therapists.
4. Ethical issues relating to the addiction counselor.
5. Ethical issues relating to the addiction client.
6. Ethical issues relating to the agency, other professionals, and society.

C. Rationale: This course is designed to introduce students to the ethical and proactice issues that they ae likely to face in the chemical dependency counseling field. Topics will include professional codes of ethics, values underlying codes of ethics in the helping professions, client confidentialtiy, professional impairment, licensing and certification. The course will focus on the process of ethical decision making for addictions professionas.

 

A. Requirements: The first four weeks of the course will have a bulletin board discussion assignment and an essay question assignment due. In the last week of the course a Case Study and Take Home Exam will be due.

B. Instructor's Grading Policy:

Grades will be assignmed as follows:

Assignments and Quizzes	Point Value
Module #1 Quiz	30
Module #1 Introductions	40
Module #2 Quiz	30
Module#2 Case Study Discussion	40
Module # 3 Quiz	30
Module #3 Case Study Discussion	40
Module#4 Quiz	30
Module #4 Case Study Discussion	40
Written Case Study	70
Essay Questions	30
Total Points	380

Final Points	Letter Grade
342 - 380	A
.304 - 341	B
266 - 303	C
228-265	D
Below 228	F

 

C. Instructor's Attendance Policy: As participants in an online course, students will be expected to log on regularly and keep current with assignments and postings as listed on the course website.

 

A. Materials:

Bissell, L. and Royce, J. (1994). Ethics for addiction professionals. Second edition. Center City: Hazelden. Note: This text can be ordered online from the CCBC-Dundalk Bookstore.

 

B. Special Procedures:

Methods of instruction will include reading textbook selections, reading instructor's lecture notes, visiting one or more web sites, meaningful contribution to bulletin board discussions, weekly quizzes, case study assignments, short essay questions.

This course is offered in an on-line environment. As such, studetns are expected to check the on-line learning web-page to be sure that they ahve the required computer hardware and browser required to access the course. Students are ressponsible for contacting the instructorand/or technical support person if problems exist. Please note that some assignments and quizzes/tests may be available to the student only during specific dates. Missing the "window of opportunity" for these assignments is the student's responsibility. If such an assignment is missed, the instructor reserves the right to assign a failing grade for that assignment. Check the course calendar frquently.

C. Tentative list of dated assignments:

The dated assignments appear in the WebCT course modules..

D. Course Outline

MODULE	WEEK	TOPICS
Module 1	Wk 1	Introduction to Ethics
Module 2	Wk 2	Ethical Issues Relating to the Counselor
Module 3	Wk 3	Ethical Issues Relating to the Addiction Client
Modules 4	Wk 4	Ethical Issues Relating to the Agency, Other Professional, and Society
Module 5	Wk 4	Case Study Assignment and Essay Questions

 

 

Here are some tips you should follow which will help you to succeed in this course:

• Set aside a specific time each week to work on this course. The estimated amount of time you should spend is 4 hours/week
• Keep in touch with me and your classmates by frequently checking your course e-mail, bulletin board, and calendar. This will help build a sense of community among us. Using the various communications tools provided in this course effectively is the same as "raising your hand" and participating in class discussions.
• Be aware of the time lag that is inherent in most on-line courses. Although the communications tools make it appear that the transfer of information such as assignments is "instantaneous", it does not mean that the reply will be instantaneous. One of the hardest things about an on-line course is becoming comfortable with its asynchronous nature. In general, expect assignments to be returned within 7 days.
• Familiarize yourself with published deadlines.
• Ask for help when you need it.
• Remember that there are traditional ways for keeping in touch. Use the telephone, a fax, or make an appointment to meet with me on campus.
• Work off-line and save your assignments on your computer before submitting them electronically. You can use the saved version of your work to copy and paste to an on-line assignment or you can attach the saved file to an e-mail or bulletin board message. This will prevent a lot of frustration should your Internet connection or your system "fail".
• other things....

This course is a program requirement for the Chemical Dependency Counseling degree and certificate programs.