Confidentiality Policy
Information for Facilitators
[MS Word]

Background

Confidentiality is an essential part of Living Well trainings. It is important for participants to feel safe enough to share their experiences and their personal concerns. Many times, these issues are of a personal nature, so that a participant may not want them to be shared with a parent, caregiver, spouse, roommate, or even their health care provider.

We believe that it is important to acknowledge the ways that confidentiality is protected in Living Well trainings. This can be discussed during the initial class, using the confidentiality policy hand-out for participants.

It is equally important to inform participants about two kinds of information that will not be held confidential:

• The intent to hurt yourself (for example, to attempt suicide)

• The intent to hurt someone else (for example, to commit assault)

Please note that the “intent to commit” an act is different from the need to vent about feelings and actions from the past. Certainly, participants should be allowed and encouraged to appropriately express their feelings in Living Well trainings.

Policy

It is the policy of the Living Well Iowa program to state what is and what is not held confidential. During the first Living Well training, as part of the “ground-rules,” facilitators should remind participants of this essential component of Living Well:

Everything said in Living Well classes will be held confidential,
with TWO EXCEPTIONS:

1. If a participant discloses in class or in a personal conversation with a facilitator the intent to hurt him- or herself, this will not be held confidential.

2. If a participant discloses in class or in a personal conversation with a facilitator the intent to hurt someone else, this will not be held confidential.

If a participant does self-disclose an intent to hurt him- or herself, or to hurt someone else, it is crucial that the facilitator respond to this. Depending on the circumstances, the facilitator should take one or more of the following steps:

• Assess the immediate intent of the person.

• Express concern and support.

• Offer to call trusted family or friends to get help.

• Help the person find and access community resources to deal with the issues at hand.

• Stay with the participant until help is secured.

As soon as possible when any immediate danger has passed, the facilitator should inform the project director about the situation and interventions used. Contact:
                Kay DeGarmo, Project Director
                Center for Disabilities and Development
                100 Hawkins Dr - Room 263
                 Iowa City, IA 52242-1011
                 319-353-7050
                 kay-degarmo@uiowa.edu