Confidentiality for Youth and Parents/Trusted Adults

Best practices staff can employ to enhance confidentiality include: 

• Talk about confidentiality when setting Group Agreements. In these groups, confidentiality means that youth and leaders will not reveal personal information shared by youth during the sessions.
• State that the Facilitator will maintain confidentiality. It is also a good idea to mention that while the group agrees to maintain confidentiality, there is no guarantee that the group members might not breech confidentiality either accidentally or if they choose to, despite the Group Agreement. Encourage youth to only share things they are comfortable sharing, with the understanding that everyone will strive for confidentiality, but it cannot be fully guaranteed that group members will maintain it.
• The only exception to confidentiality is when a participant discloses behaviors or circumstances that endanger the self or others, (e.g., someone reports being abused physically or sexually, says they are feeling suicidal, or is carrying a weapon and plans to use it in a fight later that day). In these instances, youth should let the facilitators know what they have heard. The Facilitators may be required to make a report to authorities. This should be discussed during the first session and when recruiting youth, so youth and parents know what to expect.
• Establish and respect confidentiality.
  • Let youth see you modeling an appropriate respect for confidentiality. Avoid discussing participants’ personal information outside of the group.
  • Familiarize yourself with your agency’s policies concerning confidentiality, and be sure to follow them.