Social Workers And Abortion

A care worker who holds certain religious or moral values about abortion may face a dilemma when trying to assist a person receiving care who becomes pregnant and wishes to have an abortion.

The abortion question raises a number of issues that form the core of the abortion debate. Opponents and supporters of abortions have been battling over this particular problem for decades and still cannot come to an agreement. Being one of the most common and most controversial medical procedures, abortion tends to affect people on psychological and sociological levels. But while the discussion of the morality of abortion is an ongoing debate, the social issues surrounding abortion in most cases stay unnoticed. The social aspect of the issue is centered on the abortion policy. The main question of the abortion policy is whether the law should permit abortions and, if so under what circumstances. The other is whether the law should put the life of an unborn child first and legally protect it. The peculiarity of the abortion policy is that its measures are highly dependent on different public opinions.

All social workers can attest that at some point in their career they’ve had a situation that was an ethical dilemma. They work with people who are experiencing some very difficult and sensitive situations, and there are instances where issues arise that put social workers in a difficult position in regards to ethics. Whether it be from conflicting responsibilities of a social worker or an issue that lies in an ethical gray area. Fortunately, the National Association of Social Workers (NASW) has a code of ethics for social workers that lays out what is expected and required of a social worker when dealing with a variety of issues. Also, since social workers are considered covered entities under the Health Insurance Portability and Affordability Act of 1996 (HIPAA), they are also held responsible for protecting their clients’ health information. When faced with an ethical dilemma, if a social worker chooses to not follow the standards laid out by the NASW and HIPAA then they could face professional, and potentially legal, disciplinary actions.

In the news article “Abortion: Every Woman’s Rights” Sharon Smith wrote an article about women’s rights to get abortions prior to the hearing of the Planned Parenthood v. Casey court case, “which threatened to severely restrict women access to abortion” (Smith). Women wanted reproductive control over their lives and felt that they were not equal to men no matter what advances they got at work and how high their level of education was. The women’s right movement wanted women to have the choice of abortion for all women, the rich and the poor. In the US, thirty- seven states did not provide

Abortion continues to make a profound impact on public policies and remains one of the most controversial debate of our time. Though abortion continues to be a debate, it was not always a problematic one. Abortion has been present throughout history dating back to the ancient Egyptians, Greek and Roman. Before abortion became a crime in the 19th century, abortion was a womans choice. “Before abortion became the object of law, it was a subject of everyday life” (Roe v Wade BOOK p. 11). From early civilizations to today, abortion was and may still serve as a form of birth control. It has been observed that through abortion those of upper class avoided “unwanted childbearing and the lower classes used it to limit family size when 1 or more child

Every year, as many as a million lives are aborted; lives that could potentially have been your neighbor, your friend, or even your son or daughter. Abortion is the surgical process of killing a baby by various means; and has been in effect since the Supreme Court ruling on Roe V. Wade in 1973 which legalized it nationwide. It was, at first, endorsed as being a woman’s right, but has more recently been viewed by most as the murder of an innocent child. Besides this shift in views, abortion has caused diverse effects on our culture and nation, as well as the death of upwards of 56 million children according to Life News. Our society has been deeply impacted by the effects of abortion and the loss of millions of innocent lives, and Christian

In sum, social workers are required to apply ethical principles in practice. As a result, through my experience, ethics have played a significant role in my professional and personal roles. I will continue to strive to learn and gain skills in ethical principles. I plan to strive, grow and explore my own values and beliefs. In addition, I will continue to follow and employ the ethical guidelines for my clients and for myself as I progress in my role as a social

Abortion has been progressively restricted in many states across America, and this strong push is coming from believers. This act affects The United States in many ways; Amanda Marcotte from Alternet writes, “thanks to increasingly restrictive state and local laws and overzealous law enforcement, we are seeing a return to pre-Roe back-alley abortions and increasingly criminal treatment of women.” These restrictions, promoted by believers, infringe on women’s rights and contribute to danger of female health.

To begin, social work is a profession concerned with helping individuals, families, groups and communities to enhance their individual and collective well-being. Social workers engage themselves in solving problems for individuals or relationships they may have in order to have a better lifestyle. Social workers work in various areas/institutions such as children’s aid agencies, school boards, hospitals and many more.These workers perform different duties depending on their workplace. Social work has four key concepts which include, social change, problem solving, person-in-the-environment and empowerment. These elements help the social workers find a conclusion with who they are working with. Just like any other work environment, there are policies in which they must follow. The CASW code of ethics. (Canadian Association of Social Workers). In some cases, social workers tend to ‘bend’ the code in order to make the right decision based on their experiences, beliefs and values. When they are stuck in a situation where they don’t quite know what to do, this is called an ethical dilemma.

Dangerous Pregnancies: Mothers, Disabilities, and Abortion in Modern America by Leslie J. Reagan reveals the danger and worry expecting mothers encountered when faced with German measles. While no one was immune from the disease, pregnant women were at high risk, as the disease was particularly harmful to their unborn children. Reagan demonstrates that women of all classes were at the heart of the discussion, and these same women shaped the nature of the movement due to their gender.

With reference to abortion, examine and comment upon the issues that emerge from keeping up with developments in medical ethics, whilst maintaining religious principles and/or ethical values. (Total for Question 1 = 50 marks)

This author has chosen to discuss the ethical issues of abortion. This is a highly debated topic that will exist amongst women. It is happening at high rates. “In 2013, 664,435 legal induced abortions

Abortion is wrong because it is the murder of a human being. Abortion continues to be a moral and ethical dilemma for all those involved. The American Nurses Association (ANA) Code of Ethics states, “nurses have the ethical and moral obligation to promote and protect life.” Still, debates continue, opposing the belief of life against the principle of autonomy and a woman’s right to regulate her body. It is disputable that the right to have an abortion is a right to dominate one’s body, but the death of the fetus is an inevitable result of the termination of that pregnancy (Religious studies online, n.d.). One million two hundred thousand abortions are done yearly in the United States from weeks 9 to 21+ of gestation (Pro Life Action League). Nevertheless, nurses, no matter how caring and compassionate, their individual education, culture, religion, past, gender and even age will influence the care that is given to their patients (British Journal of Nursing, 2015, p. 345). With that, if a nurse assists with the procedure of abortion, is he or she going against the Code of Ethics for Nurses? No matter if the nurse assists with the abortion or not certain rules for privacy must be followed. The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPPA) Privacy Rule protects the patients’ health information, even those experiencing unwanted pregnancies (Simmonds & Likis, 2011, p. 794).

Our society is filled with numerous ethical dilemmas. We are consistently bombarded with ethical issues daily. At times, these ethical dilemmas are virtually impossible to unravel. I believe the topic of abortion is one of the most difficult and controversial issues in today’s society. It is also the one people are most passionate about as it continues to be scrutinized by two groups, holding fast to different perspectives; Pro-Life versus Pro-Choice.

In the case of you may not believe in abortion but your client is thinking/seeking information and assistance with this issue whether to or not to have an abortion, is a very hard position to be put into if your values and beliefs say not to. Perhaps seeking information on behalf of the client and finding out the real reason behind the issue why or why not to abort, is because of the relationship situation, financial situation, housing/accommodation situation or age of client if authorities need to be advised, or suggested professionals that can help the client physically (other professionals) and emotionally (Counsellors).