Overview

The APS Psychology & Yoga Interest Group are privileged to have Dr. Thomson-Casey present a 2 hour, online session on Ethical Decision-Making in Yoga-Informed Psychological Practice.

Psychologists are increasingly incorporating yoga informed approaches such as breathwork and movement into their work with clients. While these practices are valued, they also raise important questions about scope of practice, competence, and professional responsibility.

This session shifts the focus away from how to integrate yoga and instead examines how to make ethically defensible decisions in practice. Drawing on regulatory frameworks and clinical reasoning models, participants will be introduced to a structured approach for navigating ethical complexity in integrative contexts.

Through case discussion, the session will explore how psychologists can:

• Maintain clarity of professional role
• Client capacity and safety
• Communicate transparently with clients
• Justify their decisions under professional and regulatory scrutiny

This is not a session about whether yoga “belongs” in psychology, but about how to ensure that decisions about its use are thoughtful, transparent, and defensible. 

Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of this event, participants will be able to:

• Apply ethical and regulatory frameworks to evaluate the use of yoga-informed practices within psychological care.
• Assess client suitability, capacity, and safety when considering breathwork, movement, and other body-based interventions.
• Identify and maintain appropriate professional role boundaries and scope of practice.
• Communicate transparently with clients about the rationale, risks, benefits, and limitations of integrative approaches.
• Utilise a structured clinical decision-making process to support ethically defensible practice and documentation.

Presenter(s)

Dr. Carrie Thomson-Casey

About the presenter(s)

Dr. Carrie Thomson-Casey is a clinical psychologist, educator, and researcher at Southern Cross University working at the intersection of psychology, integrative mental health, and professional practice. Her work focuses on clinical reasoning, ethical decision-making, and the development of reflective practice in health professionals. Carrie has particular expertise in navigating scope of practice and interdisciplinary integration and is currently developing a pedagogical framework to support ethically defensible decision-making in emerging areas of practice, including the integration of complementary approaches within psychological care.

Notes

Target Audience

This event is aimed at Psychologists interested in integrating yoga-informed and body-based approaches into practice while ensuring ethically sound, evidence-informed care.

Please note:

• This is a Member Groups event. All communication will be sent to the registrants’ registered email address. This includes event reminders with details (such as the Zoom link) and any pre-event or post-event resources, if provided by the facilitators.
• A post-event email will be sent within two weeks of the event’s completion to each registrant’s registered email address. This email will include the CPD certificate, event-recording, and any additional resources shared during the session.

Duration of Access

This event will be recorded. The recording will be emailed to all registered within 2 weeks post event and available for viewing up to 90 days.

CPD

It is up to attendees to assess and determine how learning from this event aligns with the requirements of their learning plan. The providers accordingly do not make any representation that the event counts towards attendees’ CPD learning requirements. If an attendee determines themselves that the learning they complete aligns to their learning plan, then they can decide to count those hours towards their CPD requirements for the registration cycle.

The information in this presentation has been prepared in good faith and for educational purposes only. Therefore, the information is general in nature and should not be relied upon in the treatment of any condition and you should seek your own independent professional and/or legal advice concerning any specific issue. The APS accepts no responsibility for any errors, omissions or decisions relating to the information. The content should not be reproduced without permission or unless permitted by law.

If you are experiencing registration difficulties please contact APS Events Support.