AP reports:
A state licensing board is proposing a $5,000 fine, a reprimand and ethics training for the head of the University of Oregon’s counseling office.
The proposed discipline, announced Friday, stems from allegations that Shelly Kerr released a student’s counseling records to the UO’s lawyers without the student’s permission. The student sought counseling after she said she was raped by three basketball players.
The Board of Psychologist Examiners says Kerr violated rules requiring psychologists to protect the confidentiality of counseling records.
Read more on The Register-Guard.
The Board of Psychologist Examiners issued the following statement yesterday:
On September 25, 2015, the Board of Psychologist Examiners voted to issue a Notice of Proposed Disciplinary Action in regard to Shelly Kerr, Ph.D., the Director (and records custodian) of the Counseling and Testing Center at the University of Oregon. In the Notice, the Board proposes a reprimand, a $5,000 civil penalty, and to require her to take courses on professional ethics pre- approved by the Board Chair, for failure to protect and maintain the confidentiality of a student’s counseling records.
Charles Hill, Executive Director
Oregon Board of Psychologist Examiners
(503) 378-4154 charles.j.hill@state.or.us
The detailed proposed action can be found here (pdf). Note that this action is not proposed under HIPAA or FERPA, but rather, under Oregon’s state laws concerning confidentiality and disclosure of records.