Although becoming a counselor can prove to be a rewarding career, the nature of this profession creates unique risks for your clients that could be harmful. These dangers are important for counseling centers to consider, as they could be facing numerous Nonprofit Workers Compensation risks. The following are some of the biggest risks counselors and therapists face,  safe business practices counseling centers could implement to reduce these risks.

Violence from Patient: An unfortunate risk of working with psychiatric patients is violence. Depending on their diagnoses and the issues your clients are working through with them, house calls should be limited. While not every company offers this service, those clinics and professionals that do house calls should be wary of potential dangers of entering someone’s home unprotected.

Overall Health: It comes as no surprise that working with crisis laden individuals for a living can cause added stress to the counselor’s life. As stated by the Board of Professional Affairs’ Advisory Committee on Colleague Assistance, constant interaction with these patients has the potential to affect the counselor negatively while also struggling with pressure to keep up with the constantly changing demands of the job. As patient information needs to be kept confidential, it can be difficult for counselors to express themselves or vent, often resulting in isolation.

Risks of Ignoring Issues: Being overworked, stressed, and/or being exposed to uncomfortable patient relationships can cause serious effects on a counselor. It is not uncommon for depression, anxiety, and isolation to be coping mechanisms for individuals in this profession. What’s more, chronic irritability and even cynicism are common characteristics of long time counselors and therapists who are not proactive about their conditions.

The above mentioned factors are not the only factors your clients should consider. Self-assessment, taking vacations, and voicing discontent with other therapists is advised in order to reduce emotional burnout.

At Charity First, counseling centers are just one of the target classes in various programs that we have a market available for coverage. We have written thousands of nonprofits, social service and human service agencies, and understand the unique and complex risks that come with the incredible work these organizations do. Please contact us today for more information at (800) 352-2761.