AIBU to be annoyed my confidential counselling learning journal was shared?

[norfolknannie]

I am studying to become a therapist. The tutors are all qualified therapists. As part of the course, we do weekly learning journals which are confidential reflective journals about what we're learning, what stood out to us and what our class brought up for us. They can be, and are intended to be, quite personal. The students each have a set tutor and the journal is read by that tutor then destroyed afterwards.
This week I mentioned something in my journal, thinking it would only be read by my direct tutor. I was having a check in with another tutor and he mentioned something to me that I had never told him, only written about it in my journal. This means either my direct tutor allowed this other tutor to read it, or she told him about it. AIBU to be annoyed that my journal was shared? I wrote it with the intention that only my direct tutor would read it.

If it's explicitly stated that only your named set tutor would read it, then yes. But I'd suggest that for other tutors to support you effectively, it would be reasonable for your learning journals to be available to them. Tutors can become unwell, go on holiday, leave their jobs - and leaving you without support would be unethical.

Yes it was, as far as I understood, agreed that it would only be your set tutor who would read it. If my tutor became ill or left, I'd expect a conversation would be had about who would be my alternative tutor, who would obviously then read the journals.

Any other thoughts?

You need to discuss this with your set tutor.

How is your set tutor different to another tutor? What is it about this reflection on lessons that you only want one tutor to read but not another? Sounds all bit odd

I’d think it would be quite dangerous for any journal to be ‘secret’ like this. Was the disclosure worrying in terms of being unsafe for you or others?

I would be uncomfortable with that if it wasn't what had been agreed, in the same way that I wouldn't want random people trawling through my medical records because they fancied a read - or things being disclosed to people who didn't need to know them without my consent.

I think it would be reasonable to ask for clarification about how your data is being processed - who has access, is it being destroyed as agreed, what level of confidentiality and consent should you be able to expect, when would information be shared more widely.

An appropriately boundaried relationship is pretty central to therapeutic work and I would expect the same in your tutor relationships.

Is this in a uni and is the journal classed a a component of your coursework?

I work in a uni and we would look over other work as part of the moderation process to ensure fairness across the course. Are you sure this was only to be read by 1 tutor? Where did you get that information.

Sorry to hear that you shared things you may not have otherwise but I fear there may have been some crossed wires here.

I think I'd be upset and unsettled if I had understood that only one person would read my personal thoughts.
That said, I find this quite an unusual arrangement for a taught course.
As PP say, you need to discuss it with your personal tutor.

Is your tutor being supervised by this other person?

What kind of organisation is running this and what is the course? I would assume the other tutor is your tutors clinical supervisor.

Yes therapists normally have supervision with another therapist- it’s standard practice

I don’t believe the T&Cs specifically state your work will only been seen by your named tutor. For quality control / marking consistency etc. others do have access including the external examiners.

The journals do not form part of graded assessment - that would be coursework which is moderated and I understand that those essays would be shared among tutors to ensure marking consistency. The journals are to demonstrate self-awareness, growth and reflection, are not marked but are read by your set tutor. We are encouraged to share personal thoughts and feelings in the learning journals.

I know therapists have supervisors but this other tutor was not my set tutor's supervisor, he is a colleague. I asked another student today whether they understood journals to be bound by confidentiality or not, in case I had got the wrong end of the stick, and they also said they believed they were only to be read by their own set tutor. They were surprised when I explained I thought mine had been shared.