Page 1 of 1 [ 11 posts ] 

EstherJ
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 4 Apr 2012
Age: 32
Gender: Female
Posts: 1,041
Location: The long-lost library at Alexandria

30 Jun 2012, 7:07 pm

Let's say that you have a family member with a mental illness. Is it illegal disclosure to share that with someone (such as a friend or a mentor) for moral support?

I got permission from said family member to post it on here, but I still wonder about the legality of it all...



McAnulty
Toucan
Toucan

User avatar

Joined: 8 May 2012
Age: 38
Gender: Female
Posts: 258
Location: Montreal

30 Jun 2012, 7:35 pm

No, it's to illegal. They chose to share it with you. You are allowed to share it with people, you didn't sign any confidentiality agreements. It is only illegal if you are a member of certain professional orders or organizations because people must confide in them in order to get treatments or services. So a doctor sharing it would be illegal, as I'm sure you're aware. When I worked with people with special needs we were discouraged from speaking about clients outside of work, even amongst ourselves because it is unethical. We were not under any legal obligation not to.



EstherJ
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 4 Apr 2012
Age: 32
Gender: Female
Posts: 1,041
Location: The long-lost library at Alexandria

30 Jun 2012, 7:37 pm

I see what you're saying.

I talk about it because I need to. The person doesn't believe they have the illness anymore, but they do and that stuff just doesn't go away. I just want to make sure it's not illegal.

But, why would it be illegal to share if you need support and you're a family member? I just get paranoid. I know they wouldn't be happy with me telling my mentors, but that's my business for my own help, and because I care.



McAnulty
Toucan
Toucan

User avatar

Joined: 8 May 2012
Age: 38
Gender: Female
Posts: 258
Location: Montreal

30 Jun 2012, 7:44 pm

You should absolutely talk about it, it affects you too. In my case with my job it was different because it was from a professional perspective. But when it comes to your friends you have every right to discuss your concerns and feelings with people you trust who can help you. When I was younger I was having a rough time and my friend spoke to a counsellor at school about it because she was worried about me. I wasn't happy about it either but it's good that she did, she needed support.



EstherJ
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 4 Apr 2012
Age: 32
Gender: Female
Posts: 1,041
Location: The long-lost library at Alexandria

30 Jun 2012, 7:59 pm

Ok, thanks. Do you ever feel paranoid about legal issues and questions? I find I get that way a lot - like, I would make a mistake that accidentally breaks the law or something.



McAnulty
Toucan
Toucan

User avatar

Joined: 8 May 2012
Age: 38
Gender: Female
Posts: 258
Location: Montreal

30 Jun 2012, 8:05 pm

No, not too much. Lol, I do get a little nervous about doing my taxes properly, I'm afraid they're going to start taking money back from me. And while I'm not afraid of jaywalking or putting out cigarettes on the sidewalk, I'm always paranoid a cop is going to catch me and fine me. But other than that I don't really think much about laws.



salem44dream
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 21 Jun 2012
Age: 69
Gender: Male
Posts: 699

30 Jun 2012, 9:08 pm

Don't use any real names or identifying information that would reveal who you or the other person is. Then you are well within the limits of keeping everything confidential. To be on the safe side, you can even change some of the details of the situation in the way you present it.

Health professionals get in trouble when they actually say a patient's name to a completely different patient, along with health information they shouldn't be passing along.



lostgirl1986
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 28 Feb 2012
Age: 37
Gender: Female
Posts: 6,418
Location: Ontario, Canada

30 Jun 2012, 9:39 pm

No it's not illegal. It would be illegal if they weren't your family member and you were a professional who worked with them though unles you kept the person anonymous.



League_Girl
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 4 Feb 2010
Gender: Female
Posts: 27,205
Location: Pacific Northwest

01 Jul 2012, 12:35 am

Nope, not illegal. It's only illegal for professional to share that information with others but there are gray areas of course like if they have to report you for something like if you are suicidal. They do warn you in your first session with them. But I think they only share it with people who need to know it, not with people outside of work like their family and friends or neighbors or just random people they run into.


_________________
Son: Diagnosed w/anxiety and ADHD. Also academic delayed.

Daughter: NT, no diagnoses.


MightyMorphin
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 29 Apr 2012
Age: 33
Gender: Female
Posts: 570

02 Jul 2012, 4:36 pm

Basically as someone said above, just talk about said person and the issues they are having, just don't say who they are, what their name is etc.

It's not about legal or illegal being an issue here, it's about confidentiality. They trust you with the knowledge you have about them, and you should respect that.



EstherJ
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 4 Apr 2012
Age: 32
Gender: Female
Posts: 1,041
Location: The long-lost library at Alexandria

02 Jul 2012, 10:43 pm

Well, I mean, I have a few mentors and I have spilled my struggles with this person to them. Of course I told them who that person is.

But, not telling them would have compromised my mental stability at the time. I'm not diagnosed with major depressive disorder for no reason. I NEEDED to tell someone that a member of my immediate family has a problem...