Board Certified–TeleMental Health Provider (BC-TMH) Practice Exam 2026 - Free TeleMental Health Exam Practice Questions and Study Guide

The duty to warn comes from a court decision and from professional ethics, not from federal law or administrative forms. Tarasoff v. Regents of the University of California established that clinicians have an obligation to protect individuals who are being threatened by a patient, which can include warning the potential victim or taking other steps to prevent harm. Professional ethical standards, such as those issued by psychology and psychiatry associations, reinforce this protective obligation and guide how to respond to credible threats. In practice, many states have codified this duty in statutes, but it begins with the Tarasoff ruling and ethical expectations, not federal statutes or unrelated policies. Patient consent forms address confidentiality and consent, not the clinician’s duty to warn, and financial risk management policies deal with organizational risk rather than clinical duties to protect third parties.