Some Ethical Considerations in Paid Peer Consultations in Health Care

Professional associations often recommend consultation as an essential activity to ensure competence. Although consultation differs from supervision and includes generally few legal risks to the consultants, consulting psychologists should nonetheless strive to promote the effectiveness of the consultee’s practice. Few data exist to guide psychologists who are asked to be, or want to be, paid consultants, but we can offer suggestions based on our experience as consultants. We urge consulting psychologists to pay special attention to informed consent, maintaining appropriate boundaries, and ensuring that they remain within their boundaries of professional competence.