Human Rights And Social Work

Starting my education path in social work, a front four classes are required upon entrance into the social worker program. One of the front four classes is introduction into social work (SWK 2000). Reflecting on the class SWK 2000, I have gained great knowledge on the social work profession. The knowledge I gained is in relation with the job descriptions of social worker historically and in modern times, where they work and what populations they encounter, the issues social workers face in practice, and lastly, the presentation of the National Association of Social Workers Code of Ethics (NASW).

Social work is based on respect for the inherent worth and dignity of all people as expressed in the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights(1948) It is therefore of paramount importance that a social work professional should work towards promoting the best interests of individuals and groups in society. I very much recognize the contribution that social work brings to inclusion having worked alongside social workers during the course of my shadowing placement. I possess a real commitment to promote equality which I have had the pleasure of doing in a multitude of different roles. From academic journals as well as my lecture notes I now appreciate the central importance of using the fundamental principles of human rights and equality to underpin my practice, and the inherent need to promote justice in relation with the people I will work.

Traditionally, Social Workers are seen as human rights workers who advocate for the people to ensure equal access to all services by ensuring services are in place to meet human rights such as the right to

Social workers enduring commitment to helping better the community results in awarding it to be “among the most value based of all professions” (Reamer, 2006, p. 3). The social work and human services industry is built on, according to the Australian Association of Social Workers (AASW) Code of Ethics, “the pursuit and maintenance of human well-being. Social work aims to maximise the development of human potential and the fulfilment of human needs” (2010). The AASW’s Code of Ethics has three basic values of social work; respect for persons, social justice, and professional integrity (Chenoweth & McAuliffe, 2015, p. 106). Social work and human service work is all about advocating and promoting social justice, with a mission to challenge and contest unjust systems. With the industry’s goals in mind, it becomes apparent that social workers and human service workers should be strongly associated with values and ethics. Social work and human services are values-based professions where its work is influenced by personal values, organisational values and professional

All people are unique, individual and different. But fundamentally all humans on the planet have a fundamental human right to make the choices they want about their life and the way they live it. In the social care setting, this means the people we support too. However, although not providing support in a person centred way takes away and individual’s rights, it also means we are not meeting the needs if the people we support and it means there are no established boundaries of what the people we support need support with and what they can do for themselves.

This policy has many principles that social workers are obliged to, in order to inform and guide ethical practice. One principle specifically that relates to Aileen’s case is section 3.2 stating that, “social justice is a core obligation which societies should be called upon to uphold. Societies should strive to afford protection and provide maximum benefit for all their members” (AAWS, 2010). In addition, the AAWS Code of Ethics elaborates on the principle of social justice requiring all social work professionals to; promote social fairness by reducing barriers with special regard for those who are vulnerable or oppressed, advocate for and fight against inequalities and injustice, and work to eliminate all violations of human rights (AAWS, 2010). Relating back to Aileen’s case, if these principles within the policy of the AAWS Code of ethics were to be implemented and operated on all levels including the micro, messo and macro levels, will create a platform and equal opportunity for equitable and socially just outcomes to be achieved in all

A good example is the action of redistributing surplus value. Social usefulness, Christian charity and social justice like fairness are the legitimate context for the practice of welfare. This paper is going to look at the key points of the NASW code of ethics, CSWE Educational Policy and standards and HIPAA. It will also look at the challenging ethical issues that are faced by social workers and the social work profession as a whole and the core values of the profession of social work. NASW Code of Ethics serves as guidance to the conduct of social work professionals in their day to day activities in the work place.

There are many publications that would bring value to the overall presentation of knowledge one could gain in search of further understanding of areas related to social work as a profession. Many understandings are attributed to social workers and case managers, who have chosen to work not with raw materials to create a finished product, but precious human life. This challenge brings on many personal and ethical struggles since erred raw materials can typically be discarded and another produced. In the field of social work, a misdiagnosis creates an extenuating circumstance and another attempt to get the medication or therapeutic process correct. In the article Social workers and the NASW Code of Ethics: belief, behavior, disjuncture, the

The social work profession was created to promote social justice and change on behalf of clients. (National Association of Social Workers, 2008) Within the code of ethics, the

Social workers are responsible for human physical and emotional well-being. In order to help people, social workers have to make their decisions based on strong moral and ethical values. As claims DuBois B. (2009) “Social Work is a values - based profession. Values reflect preferences and inform choices” ( p.105).

As discussed by Williams & Bell (2015), the evolving identity of social work has been continually unclear among the general public and social workers themselves. Theoretically social work practice is thought to have abandoned its original ideals of community focus and collective betterment shifting its concentration to individualistic approaches. Since its inception, beginning with settlement houses and charity organizations in the 19th century, social work practice has endeavored for recognition as a profession in its own right not as a supplement to other professions in a secondary manner such as assisting doctors or lawyers etc.

To my acceptance, the social work profession’ vision and mission strives to promote a just society (NASW p.1). Sincerely, I believe a just society is communities composed of diverse and united populations who actively participate in the creation of peaceful norms, laws, practiced behaviors, and policies that aim to provide equal opportunities to all members within such society. Therefore, I am convinced, the social work profession’ mission is to promote the dignity, integrity, and the well-being of all persons (NASW p.2). For instance, the nation social work associations’ code of ethics (NASW) is composed of enriched sets of ethical principles and practiced behaviors; that focus on promoting adequate and equal distributions of resources to

The Council on Social Work Education (CSWE) is a national association of educational programs and individuals that confirms and improves the quality of social work education to become a professional job. CSWE puts in a countless amount of effort to strive for this mission by setting up a bachelor's and master’s degree programs in social work. On the other hand, the National Association of Social Workers (NASW) is the largest membership organization of professional social workers in the world, with approximately 132,000 members. To be more specific, NASW has a determination to intensify the maturity and developmental process of its members. The main goal is to retain professional standards and to create fair social policies. NASW progresses

#1 A: Social work can be defined as a broad profession, with the sole purpose of improving the lives and relieving the hardships of the members of a population. Social work addresses many problems for the well being of society, including: health care, criminal justice and domestic violence, economic and public policies, child and family welfare, as well as homelessness. Social workers are trained professionals with the education and tools necessary to address problems from several different perspectives, with the intention of helping the masses and not just individuals. Social workers have the ability to inform people in need of resources available to help them achieve a wide variety of goals, whether personal social mobility, or financial independence.

Social workers promote social justice and social change with and on behalf of clients. “Clients” is used inclusively to refer to individuals, families, groups, organizations, and communities. Social workers are sensitive to cultural and ethnic diversity and strive to end discrimination, oppression, poverty, and other forms of social injustice. These activities may be in the form of direct practice, community organizing, supervision, consultation administration, advocacy, social and political action, policy development and application, education, research and evaluation. Social workers seek to enhance the capacity of people to address their own needs. They also seek to promote the