Ethical Dilemma 1: A social worker needs to be alert regarding their reaction to what clients share. No reaction is needed, as we are not there to react but rather allow the client to inform us. The attention solely on the client, a reaction would reverse attention from the client to the worker. Sharing what she experienced is difficult; therefore, do not over take with a reaction. After listening, support should be given before providing advice. A social worker should ensure the client is aware that by no means did she provoke this situation. By no means did the landlord have a right to ask her for such exchanges. Addressing it was uncalled for behavior and hardship of added stress and emotions placed on top of her stressful financial situation. From here, a worker could begin to provide the advice regarding options and resources available. The first priority should address and ensure the safety of the client. The safety of the client needs exploring before a worker was to send them home to the house in which the specific landlord involved is in control of. If the client feels unsafe to return to her residence, the social worker needs to assist her in finding other options. Other options for safe shelter could include emergency shelters, family, friends, safe houses etc. In Manitoba, employment and income assistance recipients are able to access funds through the “special needs – legislative authority” (Section 21 of EIA Administrative Manual) by requesting money
A social worker has a multitude of responsibilities to ensure the best care is provided for their clients. Due to conflicting interpretations of ethical guidelines and rules, and a variety of personal views, social workers can sometimes find themselves in a tough situation when there are conflicts of interest. This can cause difficult or awkward sessions between the social worker and client, and can ultimately lead to the termination of services. In the case between Allison and Carmen, conflicting views caused Carmen to discontinue her sessions with Allison.
As a social worker many problems may arise because of the constant grey area of either letting your personal values interfere with your professional opinion. It is essential to provide your client with information and tools to help them succeed and overcome their problems. Following the core values is essential to being a resourceful, competent social worker. In some cases, core values are in conflict. In a situation where more than one core value is in conflict it is considered an ethical dilemma (Hick, 2009). It’s not guaranteed that a perfect solution will arise, therefore one of the core values is subsided because the other has more of an impact on the client.
This report will be analysing the policies and legislations guiding the service user and the organisation caring for them. The importance of ethics in social care will also be explained .the case study will be discussed using the policies and legislations provided by the government.
Ethical dilemmas happen frequently in the social work and how one handles them could be the difference on how a clinician keeps their license or not. The problem is there is no way to prepare a person from knowing what situations will arise. Scenarios arise all the time and new ways to handle them is constantly changing. The ethical dilemma can happen anywhere and at any time with anyone, it could be a client, co-worker, and even supervisors. No social worker is safe from them. One however can practice with scenarios and be aware of personal biases. A social worker needs to evaluate each dilemma with the different frameworks and principals to determine which one applies best, anticipate what possible outcomes could happen, and what interventions a social worker would implement.
Social work is a very unique profession. The other professions that are in the same realm as social work are very specialized, however, social workers must have a broad range of knowledge in order to help their clients. This is where multiple agencies come together to make sure professionals are properly trained and knowledgeable. In the field of social work, ethics and values are the key principles that provide the basis for the mission. It is these principles that guide the decisions and actions of everyone in the profession. Without a clear set of guiding principles, social work professionals could do more harm than good. This profession sees people during highly emotional times in their lives, and that can be extremely challenging. The National Association of Social Workers Code of Ethics not only sets the standards, but also guides a social worker through dealing with ethical dilemmas. As we evolve as a society, so have the guiding principles and values for the social work profession.
There are many ways in which social workers can avoid ethical dilemmas. In regards to the Jones case I will explain five ethical dilemmas. I will explain what 3 core values could have benefitted the Jones family and I will give three strategies I will use to practice ethical behavior in my field of social work in the future.
In the National Association for Social Workers (NASW) Code of Ethics, there are many standards a social worker should uphold in order to promote a healthy and helpful relationship with the client. One such aptitude is Cultural Competence and Social Diversity, which is in section 1.05 of the NASW code of ethics (National Association of Social Workers, 2008). There are three sections associated with this competency “Social workers should understand culture and its function in human behavior and society, recognizing the strengths in all cultures”. It is assumed that “social workers should have a knowledge base of their clients’ cultures and be able to demonstrate competence in the provision of services that are sensitive to clients”. As a
To begin with, the client whose name is Mr. Sam Pilsudski has an obstructed airway secondary to cancer of the larynx. He is a 67-year-old widower, and a father of one son and two daughters, who is unconscious and terminally ill, if not for a much-needed operation to remove both his cancer and larynx to save his life. However, one of Mr. Pilsudski’s daughters has adamantly refused to consent to the surgical procedure despite the physician explaining that although the operation would unfortunately render his patient disabled without a voice consequentially, but ultimately surviving the procedure to live and recover. Moreover, the physician attempted with rational and clear communication to express the gravity of the rather poor prognosis of his illness to his daughter that in the event of foregoing the surgery, his patient would surely die (Ralph Dolgoff, Donna Harrington, and Frank M. Loewenberg (2012), Ethical Decisions for Social Work Practice. 9th Ed; p. 279).
According to the Preamble of the Code of Ethics of the National Association of Social Workers, “the primary mission of the social work profession is to enhance human wellbeing and help meet the basic human needs of all people, with particular attention to the needs and empowerment of people who are vulnerable, oppressed, and living in poverty.” National Association of Social Workers. (approved 1996, revised 1999, 2008). Code of Ethics of the National Association of Social Workers. Washington, DC: Author. The ethical considerations of the Bruff Case as presented by Hermann and Herlihy (2006), are clearly defined and set forth Code of Ethics; additionally, the Code provides guidance to counselors on dealing with issues which might give rise
Cassdy, your exactly right a social worker, working as an exotic dancer enhances the potential of a client and worker creating multiple relationships (dual relationship). It's hard for me to speak on a clients prospective of the dual relationship. I can only speak on my perspective and personal views social workers are beholden to the Social Work Code of Ethics otherwise known as the National Association of Social Workers (NASW) Code of Ethics during a Social worker's studies and vow to abide by its standards and principles throughout our careers.
Due to tremendous advancements in technology the social work environment has changed. How social work practitioners function in the professional setting has expanded through the utilization of technology, more specifically the internet. The internet has created venues and opportunities for partnership and promoting varying interests relating to social work in what is called social networking sites (Hu & Bryer, 2014). It is through the diversified mediums, purposeful dynamics, and integration of ethical frameworks that the existence of social networking sites for social workers has blossomed into a significant presence in operational practice.
the colour of his skin, then it could lead to him having a feeling of
The chosen case study creates multiple dilemmas for the Social Worker for a variety of
Secondly, authors/practitioners have provided frameworks to help clarify conflicting values and ethical dilemmas. For example: Mattison (2000, p.206) offers a framework to analyse ethical dilemmas such as:
School social workers work within schools to provide a variety of social, emotional, and mental health services to students to support overall success. The intent of this research is to evaluate the significance of having a school social worker available to general education students within the Owatonna High School setting and to examine the gaps in services that may have appeared since removal of this position in 2009. Various related studies were examined to outline a range of ways in which school social workers are used to support student success. During this study, a total of seven employees of the Owatonna School District were interviewed regarding school social work. As a whole the participants identified a large number of gaps