Ethics Category

Confidentiality and the Duty to Protect

3 CE Hours
Skip to Course Registration Info
Enroll In This Course

About the Course

This webinar explores the concept of confidentiality in light of the mental health professional’s duty to protect. The historical evolution of the duties to protect and/or warn others from client caused harm and to protect clients from self-harm are explored.

Important attention is paid to critically evaluating these duties, considering many factors that are often overlooked. Real life examples, like the important Tarasoff and Ewing cases, are used to clarify ethical and legal obligations, and highlighting the challenges found in the conflict between the two.

This course is based on the recorded webinar, Confidentiality and the Duty to Protect created by Kathryn Krase in 2026.

Publication Details

Publication Date: Originally presented as a live event Feb 19th, 2026

Course Material Author

Kathryn Krase, Ph.D., J.D., M.S.W.

Kathryn Krase, Ph.D., J.D., M.S.W., is a social worker, lawyer, researcher, educator, and expert on professional ethics. She has significant experience as a family law practitioner, social work supervisor, along with more than 20 years of experience in faculty and administrative roles in undergraduate, masters, and doctoral level social work programs in and around New York City.

Dr. Krase is the Principal Consultant for Krase Consulting, in Brooklyn, New York, where she focuses on educating mental and physical health professionals on their general legal and ethical obligations.

She is an expert on the professional reporting of suspected child maltreatment. She has authored multiple books and articles on the subject. She has years of experience consulting with government and community based organizations to develop policy & practice standards.

Kathryn Krase authored the material only, and was not involved in creating this CE course. They are identified here for your own evaluation of the relevancy of the material this course is based on.

Target Audience

This course is intended for Behavioral Health and Addictions professionals, including psychologists, social workers, counselors, marriage & family therapists, addiction counselors, art therapists, school psychologists, prevention specialists, psychoanalysts, peer support specialists, music therapists, behavior analysts, school counselors, and teachers. It is appropriate for all levels of knowledge.

Learning Objectives

After taking this activity, you should be able to:

  1. 1 Explain the legal and ethical obligation to keep client information confidential.
  2. 2 Describe the evolution of the duty to protect and/or warn those at risk of client caused harm.
  3. 3 Identify how duties to protect and/or warn compromise the professional relationship with clients.
  4. 4 Competently discuss with their clients these obligations so that clients make an educated decision when sharing information with the professional.
  5. 5 Appropriately respond to ethical, legal, and moral conundrums faced when considering to breach client confidentiality.

Disclosure to Learners

CE Learning Systems adheres to the ACCME's Standards for Integrity and Independence in Accredited Continuing Medical Education. Any individuals in a position to control the content of a CE activity – including faculty, planners, reviewers, or others ― are required to disclose all relevant financial relationships with ineligible entities (formerly known as commercial interests).

The following relevant financial relationships have been disclosed by this activity's planners, faculty, and the reviewer:

Planners and Reviewers

The planners of this activity have reported that they have no relevant financial relationships.

Material Authors

There are no known relevant financial relationships to disclose.

Commercial support

There is no commercial support for this distance-learning course.

California Association of DUI Treatment Programs (CADTP)

3 CE credit hours — Confidentiality
Eligible until Jan 1st, 2028
CE Learning Systems dba Impact CE has been approved to offer Continuing Education credit with CADTP. Approval No. 206.
More Info

NAADAC, the Association for Addiction Professionals (NAADAC)

3 CE credit hours
Eligible until Sep 29th, 2026
This course has been approved by CE Learning Systems, service provider of Impact CE, as a NAADAC Approved Education Provider, for educational credits. NAADAC Provider #192243, CE Learning Systems is responsible for all aspects of their programming.
More Info
NAADAC Approved Education Provider
Course Materials

Video
Paid material

  • Recorded Webinar

    Enroll and start the course to view these materials.

  • Presentation Slides

References

Exam Questions

All exam questions for the course are visible on this page for members of Impact CE.

Membership is free, and you can register today! You'll only pay when you're ready to purchase a course, or if you take advantage of the Unlimited Package.

If you're already a member, please sign in to see the exam questions for this and all other courses.

Enroll In This Course

Discuss this course

You can share your thoughts about this course after you pass the exam.

Sign In or Register to get started.

Frequently Asked Questions

Yes, most likely. Look Up Your State Board for more detailed information. Logged-in site members will see the relevant approval information displayed in the Approvals tab for every course.

If you are having trouble using Impact CE, please contact us! We would be happy to accommodate your needs right away, and your input will help us make Impact CE more accessible for future users too.

Use the Enroll In This Course button and just follow the instructions! You don't pay anything until you're ready to take an exam.

To complete the course, review the course objectives, then review the material, and then pass the exam with a score of 75% or greater and lastly complete an evaluation.

Most of our self-paced courses are based on online articles available for free to the public. Some courses, such as those based on books, require that you purchase the material. Use the Materials tab for more info. Live courses simply require that you attend.

Your certificate(s) will be available to download or email immediately when you pass the course exam and complete the evaluation.

Yes! Use the Help widget at the bottom-right of the screen anywhere on Impact CE to search our help docs, or to ask our support team for help. Unlike most of our competitors, Impact CE has live US-based support reps to help you by email, chat, or phone.

Start your CE Journey now - complete your first course today, on us.

Try for free - no commitment required.

Start a Free Trial Course

Continuing Education

Copyright © 2026 CE Learning Systems LLC

Please Confirm