Code of Ethics
Guided by ethics
Gather Well leadership is working with a multidisciplinary team of external advisors, including ethics consultants, to develop a code of ethics. We look forward to sharing it publicly later this year. Our code of ethical practice is grounded in professionalism, dignity and respect, diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), safety, collaboration, and respect for indigenous traditions.
The scope of topics includes:
- Confidentiality, privacy, & informed consent practices;
- Appropriate consensual touch and boundaries;
- Screening clients; assessing client eligibility and readiness; guide/client fit; continuing/discontinuing treatment;
- Business practices, scope of practice, and practice maintenance;
- Somatic and other techniques;
- Relationships (clients & guides; students & teachers);
- Guide self care;
- Organizational ethics
Though the finalized version is still under development, here is a summary of our ethical commitments.
- We are committed to clients and students’ physical and emotional sense of safety. This includes proper assessment of factors relating to medical, psychiatric, and psychological safety, physical safety of the setting during sessions, explicit parameters around touch during sessions with clear rules prohibiting any kind of sexual touch or exchanges considered sexual harassment;
- We are committed to client autonomy and informed consent. This includes transparency on practice guidelines and establishing clear, well informed agreements around guide-client interaction during guided sessions;
- We are committed to client-centered services, including clear practices of confidentiality and consent, commitment to the scope of practice, and clear parameters around healthy, professional relationships between clients and guides.