ETHICAL GUIDELINES & CODE OF CONDUCT

The National Academy of Sports Medicine (NASM) expects all Certified Wellness Coaches to follow the ethical guidelines and code of conduct outlined below.

Each Certified Wellness Coach must provide top-tier professional services and demonstrate empathetic client care in their practice. As a NASM Certified Wellness Coach, I will do the following:

• Abide bully by these NASM Ethical Guidelines & Code of Conduct and recognize that this Code applies to my relationship with coaching clients, employers, and other coaches.

• Conduct myself in a manner that merits the respect and trust of my clients, the public, other colleagues, and NASM.

• Treat each colleague and client with the utmost respect and dignity.

• Accurately assess and identify my coaching qualifications, expertise, experience, training, certifications, credentials, and affiliations.

• Advertise in a manner that is honest, appropriate, and an accurate representation of services that can be delivered without the use of provocative language and/or imagery.

• Refrain from false or derogatory statements and assumptions concerning the practices of colleagues and clients.

• Use appropriate professional communication in all verbal, non-verbal, and written transactions and make verbal and written statements that are true and accurate about what I offer as a wellness coach, the coaching profession, the results that may be expected by the client, and the NASM Certification.

• Appropriately represent myself, my business, and my content on any social media or web platform so as to foster my credibility, expertise, value, and fairness.

• Provide and maintain an environment that ensures client safety that, at a minimum, requires that I must do the following:

  • Not diagnose or treat illness or injury unless for basic first aid or if I am legally licensed to do so and am working in that capacity at that time.

  • Not begin to work with a client prior to receiving and reviewing intake assessments and signing a contract.

  • Refer the client to other healthcare providers or mental health professionals when the support required is out of my scope of practice.

• Remain in good standing and maintain current certification status by meeting all necessary renewal requirements.

• Commit to taking the appropriate action to address any ethics violation or possible breach as soon as I become aware of such situation, whether it involves me or others.

• Communicate and create awareness in others, including organizations, employees, coaches, clients, potential clients, and others who might need to be informed of the responsibilities established by this code.

• Refrain from unlawful discrimination in occupational activities, including age, race, gender orientation, ethnicity, sexual orientation, religion, national origin, or disability, and consistently demonstrate fairness, dignity, and respect in all professional relationships.

• Recognize and honor the efforts and contributions of others and only claim ownership of my own material. I understand that violating this standard may leave me subject to legal remedy by a third party.

• Strive at all times to recognize any personal issues that may impair, conflict with, or interfere with my coaching performance or my professional coaching relationships. I will promptly seek the relevant professional assistance and determine the action to be taken, including whether it is appropriate to suspend or terminate my coaching relationship(s) whenever the facts and circumstances necessitate.

• Ethically speak what I know to be true to clients, prospective clients, or employers about the potential value of the coaching process or of me as a coach and make clear to any employer and to the client what activities fall within the scope of practice as well as the outcomes that can reasonably be expected.

• Carefully explain and strive to ensure that, prior to or at the initial meeting, my coaching client or employers understand the nature of wellness coaching, the nature and limits of confidentiality, financial arrangements, and any other terms of the coaching agreement.

• Have a clear coaching service agreement with my clients and/or employer(s) before beginning the coaching relationship and honor this agreement. The agreement shall include the roles, responsibilities, and rights of all parties involved.

• Hold responsibility for being aware of and setting clear, appropriate, and culturally sensitive boundaries that govern interactions, physical or otherwise, I may have with my clients or employer(s).

• Avoid any sexual or romantic relationships with current clients or employers. Further, I will take the appropriate action to address any issues related to inappropriate personal relationships among coaches, clients, and staff. In order to provide a safe environment for everyone involved, it is my responsibility to immediately terminate professional relationships when potentially harmful personal ones emerge.

• Respect the client’s right to terminate the coaching relationship at any point during the process, subject to the provisions of the agreement. I shall remain alert to indications that there is a shift in the value received from the coaching relationship.

• Strive to protect the health, safety, and welfare of the client without exception. I will encourage the client to make a change if I believe the client would be better served by another coach or by another resource, and I will support my client seeking the services of other professionals when deemed necessary or appropriate.

Professionalism