An Introduction to the Ethical Use of Assessment Measures

Communicating care to clients is essential for developing a therapeutic alliance. But with the increased focus on client treatment outcomes, communicating care can be overshadowed — and even lost — when assessing, evaluating, writing treatment plans, and monitoring progress.  Thank goodness purposefully using assessment measures can do both! Using them can help create a therapeutic alliance by supporting clinicians and clients when used ethically and in client-centered ways. Assessment measures can identify a wide array of clinical concerns used to diagnose disorders and validate a client’s lived experience. When used ethically, they can be used to develop a client-centered treatment plan and monitor client progress throughout treatment. Working together, clinicians and clients can use them to connect, learn, and grow. But it appears many clinicians don’t use them. Learning how to access, score, and use them efficiently throughout treatment can be overwhelming. But with an easy, purposeful process, that can all change! Learn…