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Code of Ethics

The document discusses the importance of health and fitness specialists staying within their scope of practice. It states that deviating from one's scope of practice is unprofessional and can result in legal consequences like fines or loss of certification. To stay within scope, specialists should admit when a client's questions are outside their expertise and refer them to someone more qualified. They should also only share results from tests and screenings, not give medical advice, and not conduct exercises they lack training for to avoid potential injuries. In conclusion, following one's scope of practice is a key ethical responsibility for specialists.

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54 views2 pages

Code of Ethics

The document discusses the importance of health and fitness specialists staying within their scope of practice. It states that deviating from one's scope of practice is unprofessional and can result in legal consequences like fines or loss of certification. To stay within scope, specialists should admit when a client's questions are outside their expertise and refer them to someone more qualified. They should also only share results from tests and screenings, not give medical advice, and not conduct exercises they lack training for to avoid potential injuries. In conclusion, following one's scope of practice is a key ethical responsibility for specialists.

Uploaded by

api-641177207
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Danny Neumann

Sports Nutrition

Dr. Bowman

October 31, 2021

Health and Fitness Code of Ethics

One of the most important code of ethics for health and fitness specialists is working in

your scope of practice. Scope of practice is what you have the training, education, and

experience to work in. As a certified specialist, it is both your professional and legal

responsibility to follow the guidelines of scope of practice. Deviating from your scope of

practice is not only an unprofessional thing to do to your clients, but it can also get you in some

serious legal trouble. Depending on the action, an individual who does not stay in their scope of

practice can be subject to fines, jail time, or revocation of their certifications. In order to make

sure a specialist stays in their scope of practice they can follow these steps.

First, it is important for a health and fitness specialist to state when something is out of

their expertise. If a client is asking questions about something that you are not educated about

or have the training in, it is important to tell them that you are not qualified to answer those

questions. Instead, it is professional to refer them to someone who can answer those

questions. Giving recommendations and answers about something that is out of your area of

expertise is deviating from your scope of practice and can come with great consequences. For

example, if a client were to ask a health and fitness specialist to make them a diet plan, it would

be out of their scope of practice to do so. Instead, the specialist should refer their client to a

registered dietician.
Next, it is very important for health and fitness specialist to only do what they are

supposed to when it comes to testing and screening. For example, if a specialist is doing pre-

exercise screening they should keep the results to themselves and not try and give their client

advice. Say you were doing a body fat percentage test and found that your client’s results were

high, it would be unprofessional to share these results and to try and tell them that they should

change their diet or that they are at risk for chronic diseases. Instead, you would use this

information to construct a workout regiment and work around your client’s needs. It is not your

job to share that information, as it is out of your scope of practice.

Finally, it is very important that specialists do not conduct workouts or exercises that

they were not trained to do, and ones that can cause injury to the client. If you are an instructor

and are conducting an exercise that you should not be doing and the client gets hurt. You can

be in for serious legal trouble. It is the specialists responsibility to know what workouts they can

and cannot do with their clients to avoid this from happening. For example, say a client is

experiences pain in a joint in a muscle and is asking for help to relieve this pain. This is

something that a health and fitness specialist is not qualified for, and not something they

should attempt to help their client with. This is the job of a licensed chiropractor.

In conclusion, staying within your scope of practice is one of the biggest code of ethics

for a health and fitness specialist. A specialist is not allowed to give advice or conduct exercises

that they are not trained to do, otherwise it can lead to legal trouble. It is the specialist’s duty

to admit when they are not qualified for something, and to give appropriate recommendations

to a professional that is. I agree with this code of ethics as it insures that the client is getting the

best service that they can, while keeping the specialist out of trouble.

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