Additional Information

• • Target audience

    • This course is intended for psychologists, counselors, social workers, marriage and family therapists, and other mental health and related professionals. 

  • Instruction level - Intermediate

    • It is expected that participants will have basic knowledge of the topic. Less than 25% of the presentation will review knowledge provided in an introductory workshop in this topic area. The remaining time will focus on advanced topics such as new research, specialty topics not typically covered in graduate education, or specific clinical applications. 

  • Recommended Prior Course 

    • Consent as Foundation - Understanding Sexual, Gender & Relationship Diversity

      • This course serves as a foundation for all the courses in this series on GSRD. 

    • If you have taken a course with Dr. Kieran from at any time, you may have most of the basics already.  
      
      

  • Full description

    • This intermediate workshop builds on foundational knowledge of sexual, gender, and relational diversity (SGRD) and examines clinician responsibilities through an explicitly ethical and applied lens. Grounded in contemporary empirical research, APA and other professional ethical codes, and current professional guidelines, the program demonstrates why competence with sexually, relationally, and gender-diverse populations—including kink/CPE communities, asexual-spectrum clients, and those engaged in consensual non-monogamy—is an ethical obligation across mental health disciplines.

Rather than focusing on introductory definitions, the session assumes baseline familiarity and moves directly into ethical integration. Participants analyze core ethical principles (autonomy, beneficence, nonmaleficence, justice, integrity, and respect for people’s rights and dignity) as they apply to complex clinical scenarios. Particular attention is given to how implicit biases, hetero/mono/cisnormative assumptions, and culturally dominant relationship scripts (e.g., expectations of relational “escalation”) can influence clinical judgment and unintentionally contribute to harm.

Through structured case examples and guided ethical analysis, participants explore real-world dilemmas including misinformation and evidence use in clinical settings, consent and safety assessment, duty-to-protect considerations, dual and multiple relationships in small or marginalized communities, and boundaries of professional competence. The workshop emphasizes that neutrality, silence, and value-laden framing may themselves carry ethical weight, particularly when working with stigmatized populations.

The program also examines systems-level responsibilities, including inclusive documentation practices, intake structures, and clinic policies, framing these as matters of justice and access rather than optional affirming practices. An applied ethical decision-making framework is introduced to support clinicians in navigating ambiguity, managing conflicts between ethical principles, and determining when consultation, supervision, or referral is required.

By the end of the workshop, participants will be able to articulate how professional ethical standards apply to SGRD practice, identify areas of potential bias or competence limitations, and implement structured ethical reasoning processes to reduce harm and support equitable, evidence-informed care. This program directly meets ethics CE requirements by strengthening clinicians’ ability to uphold professional standards, protect client autonomy, and respond responsibly to diversity-related complexities in practice.

• • Presenter 

    • Dr. Rachel Anne Kieran (Psy.D.) is a psychologist, writer, and educator, and the founder of StorieBrook Therapy & Consulting, LLC, an affirming therapy practice rooted in justice, community, and cultural humility. Her clinical work focuses on sexual, gender, and relational diversity (including kink and consensual non-monogamy), neurodiversity, fat and disability justice, and clients from non-majority spiritual and pagan paths.

Dr. Kieran’s practice model emphasizes accessible, bespoke collaboration with clients, including sliding-scale options and a community space designed to be welcoming, trauma-aware, and identity-affirming. Through StorieTree Professional Education, she creates continuing education programs for mental health and allied professionals that center ethics, intersectionality, and dismantling systemic barriers to care.

Her current writing projects include a book on finding and crafting mental healthcare for diverse spiritualities, and related work on “rainbow sheep” identities—those who never fully fit either mainstream or countercultural norms. Across her roles as therapist, educator, and author, Dr. Kieran is committed to the belief that affirming care is a right, not a privilege.

• • Learning objectives

    • After completing this workshop, participants will be able to:

      • Identify ethical principles and calls to action from APA (and other) guidelines relevant to practice with sexually marginalized populations

      • Apply ethical principles to clinical dilemmas involving sexual, gender, and relational diversity.

      • Distinguish personal values from professional responsibilities in treatment decision-making.

      •  Identify limits of competence and appropriate referral pathways.

      • Examine how bias and silence function as ethical risks.

      • Reflect on ethical decision-making as an ongoing process rather than a fixed standard.
        
        

  • Agenda / structure

    • • Introductions and creating shared working definitions – 15 minutes 

      • Consent check & framing – 10 min

      • Ethics foundations (assumed knowledge) – 15 min

      • Ethical principles & codes in action – 50 min

      • Case studies (media, dual roles, community size) – 45 min

      • Competence, referral, and repair – 30 min

      • Consent when it’s complicated – 30 min

      • Ethics beyond the therapy room – 15 min

      • Integration & reflection – 15 min
        
        

  • CE information

    • • This program has been approved for CE by the Georgia Psychological Association.  

        • Acceptance of continuing education credit is determined by individual licensing boards. 

          • The Georgia State Board of Examiners of Psychologists accepts GPA-approved CEs for license renewal under Area III for renewal of their licensees. For information on the board requirements in other states, please consult your state licensing rules.

          • The Georgia Board of Professional Counselors, Social Workers, and Marriage & Family Therapists accepts GPA-approved CEs for license renewal as related hours for renewal of their licensees (Rule 135-9-.01(2)(f)(1)).  For information on the board requirements in other states, please consult your state licensing rules.  

      • StorieTree Professional Education has submitted an application for APA Sponsor Approval and is currently in the review process. All StorieTree programs are developed in alignment with the APA Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct and the APA Standards for Continuing Education Sponsors.
        
        

  • Pricing & accessibility notes

    • Standard Price - $90

    • For more information on equity pricing for accessibility, please read the StorieTree Pricing & Equity Policy

    • For more information on StorieTree's ongoing accessibility efforts, please visit our Accessibility page.  

  • Cancellation/refunds - please see the StorieTree Attendance, Participation & Refunds Policy

  • Disclosures - please read the StorieTree Disclosure Policies for more information