The Overlooked Side of Ethics: Protecting Clients and Ourselves in Clinical Practice

March 30, 2026

10:30 AM – 6:30 PM EST

Live In person (Hooksett NH Library) & Live Virtual

Earn 6 CE Hours Category A Ethics

NASW Approved – New Hampshire Chapter

Registration Fee: $199

Intended Audience:

This training is designed for mental health clinicians, including LCSWs, LICSWs, LMFTs, LPCs, LCMHCs, psychologists, school counselors, interns, and other behavioral health professionals seeking to enhance their clinical skills.

Course Description: The Overlooked Side of Ethics: Protecting Clients and Ourselves in Clinical Practice is a comprehensive, intermediate-level ethics training designed specifically for mental health clinicians seeking to deepen their ethical awareness and strengthen risk management practices in real-world clinical settings.

While most clinicians are familiar with professional codes of ethics, ethical challenges rarely present themselves in clear-cut or textbook ways. Instead, they often emerge subtly—through incomplete documentation, blurred boundaries, unmanaged burnout, scope-of-practice drift, or poorly planned terminations. This dynamic, case-based training explores the less visible, yet critically important, dimensions of ethical practice that directly impact both client welfare and clinician protection.

Grounded in the ACA, NASW, and NBCC Codes of Ethics, as well as current research on documentation standards, clinician burnout, and professional competence, this workshop moves beyond theory to practical application. Participants will engage in guided reflection, structured ethical decision-making exercises, and collaborative discussion of complex clinical scenarios that mirror the realities of contemporary mental health practice.

Special attention is given to:

• Documentation as both a clinical and legal safeguard
• Self-care as an ethical responsibility—not a luxury
• Recognizing impairment and mitigating ethical risk
• Managing dual relationships and boundary complexities
• Clarifying scope of practice and competence
• Ethical termination and continuity of care planning

Clinicians will leave with concrete tools, ethical decision-making frameworks, and actionable strategies that enhance professional integrity, reduce liability risk, and prioritize client well-being. By examining the overlooked side of ethics, participants strengthen both their clinical confidence and their capacity to sustain ethical, effective practice over time.

This one-day, 6-hour ethics training fulfills continuing education requirements while offering meaningful professional growth through interactive learning and applied clinical discussion.

Training Objectives:

• Explain how documentation practices impact ethical compliance, client welfare, and legal accountability.
• Identify self-care as an ethical imperative and assess its role in maintaining professional competence.
• Apply ethical decision-making models to complex clinical scenarios.
• Evaluate how burnout, impairment, and dual relationships increase ethical risk.
• Implement best practices related to informed consent, confidentiality, and scope of practice.
• Develop ethical termination plans that prioritize client welfare and continuity of care.

Brittany Barberian, LCMHC, is a Licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselor, EMDRIA Approved Consultant, and New Hampshire Approved Clinical Supervisor who brings extensive experience in trauma-informed care, and ethical practice in mental health settings. As a leader and educator with Infinite Learning Institute, Brittany is deeply committed to strengthening clinicians’ confidence, competence, and professional integrity. Her work emphasizes the intersection of ethics,

documentation standards, scope of practice, burnout prevention, and sustainable clinical work. Drawing from her experience supervising both developing and seasoned clinicians, she helps professionals translate ethical principles into practical, real-world decision-making that protects both client welfare and clinician longevity.

Breonna McFarland, LCMHC, LMFT, LPCC, is a Licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselor, Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor, New Hampshire Approved Supervisor, and AAMFT Supervisor in Training. With a strong systemic and relational foundation, Breonna brings a multidimensional perspective to ethical decision-making in clinical practice. Her clinical and supervisory work focuses on documentation integrity, relational boundaries, dual relationships, termination planning, and maintaining professional competence. She is passionate about helping clinicians navigate complex ethical situations with clarity, structure, and accountability while remaining grounded in client-centered care.

Together, Brittany and Breonna bring complementary expertise in trauma-informed practice, relational ethics, supervision, and risk management to this ethics trainings. Their collaborative teaching approach integrates professional codes of ethics, current research on clinician burnout and effectiveness, and structured ethical decision-making models. Through interactive discussion, case-based learning, and guided reflection, they equip clinicians with practical tools to safeguard client welfare, strengthen professional judgment, and sustain ethical excellence in clinical practice.

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