Midterm

Question 1

What is the Ethical Principles Screen?

Answer 1

According to Dolgoff:

1. Protection of Life
2. Social Justice
3. Self-Determination, Freedom, and Autonomy
4. Least Harm
5. Quality of Life
6. Privacy and Confidentiality
7. Truthfulness and Full Disclosure

Question 2

What is Protection of Life?

Answer 2

• applies to all persons, both to the life of a clients and to the lives of others

Question 3

What is Social Justice?

Answer 3

• all persons in the same circumstances should be treated in the same way - that is, the person in equivalent situations have the same right to be treated equally.
• Unequal treatment can be justified when other considerations such as beneficence outweigh the social justice principle or on the grounds that such unequal treatment will promote greater social justice

Question 4

What is Self-Determination, Freedom, and Autonomy ?

Answer 4

• A social worker should make practice decisions that foster a client’s right to and ability to make his or her own decisions
• Freedom is is important but does not override the right to life or survival of the client or of others.

Question 5

What is Least Harm?

Answer 5

• A social worker should choose the option that will cause least harm, the least permanent harm, and/or the most easily reversible harm.
• If harm is done, the social worker should attempt where possible to repair harm done.

Question 6

What is Quality of Life?

Answer 6

• A social worker should choose the option that promotes a better quality of life for the client, as well as the community.
• The priority responsibility is to the client before others.

Question 7

What is Privacy and Confidentiality?

Answer 7

• Professionals have a duty to protect the privacy of clients and groups to the greatest extent possible, consistent with laws and professional ethics.
• Not sacrosanct when the social worker can prevent violence or harm to others.

Question 8

What is Truthfulness and Full Disclosure?

Answer 8

• Social workers should make practice decisions that permit a social worker to speak the truth and to fully disclose all relevant information to clients and to others.
• Social workers are expected to inform clients as appropriate of their relevant training and education, the methods they will be using, fee, confidentiality, the rights of the client, access to files, and so on.

Question 9

Applicable Code of Ethics related to confidentiality?

Answer 9

Standard 1.07 (confidentiality)
(b) - may disclose confidential information when appropriate with valid consent from client or authorized person.
(c) - protect confidentiality unless duty to warn is necessary, but disclose information that is directly related.
(d) - inform client, to the extent possible, about disclosure or confidential information and possible consequences
(e) - discuss with client and other interested parties the nature and limits to confidentiality
(f & g) - working with more that one client - cannot guarantee that all parties will honor confidentiality and inform them about disclosure
(h) don’t disclose confidential information to third party payers unless client authorized it.
(j & k ) - protect confidentiality during legal proceedings (unless law) and when responding to media
(l,m,n,p,q,r) - protect confidentiality of client’s records - written, electronic, storage, when transmitted to others, when being disposed, through social worker termination, social worker death, trainings and teachings (unless authorized), consultation, and client’s death.

Question 10

What is the role of Informed Consent?

Answer 10

• Our role is to help client’s find their own solutions.
• Therapist and client agree to attain the client’s goals.
• Role to inform clients of their rights which guides client to autonomy and personal power.
• This also protects the social worker.

Question 11

Case law related to duty to warn

Answer 11

*professional responsibility to protect other people from client and to protect client from themselves

• liable for civil damages when: * Tarasoff case = 1 & 2
  1. failing to diagnose or predict dangerousness
  2. failing to warn potential victims of violent behavior
  3. failing to commit dangerous individuals
  4. prematurely discharging dangerous clients from hospital

Question 12

Cases related to duty to warn

Answer 12

Tarasoff vs. Board of Regents of University of California
* failed to warn potential victim
Bradley Center vs. Wessner
* failed to take responsible care to prevent a potentially dangerous patient from inflicting harm.

Question 13

Necessary content for informed consent

Answer 13

* Information about what might occur (ex. Awareness that causes disruption or anxiety or pain)
* Assessment of background
* Background of therapist
* Cost
* Length of therapy and termination (managed care issues)
* Consultation with colleagues
* Interruptions in therapy (avoid abandonment issues) – need for permission to share information with a new provider
* Risks and benefits of treatment
* Alternatives to traditional therapy
* Recording therapy sessions
* Clients’ rights to access their files
* Rights to diagnostic classifying
* Nature and purpose of confidentiality

Question 14

What is the Ethical Decision Making Model?

[by Corey,Corey& Callanan]

Answer 14

• identify the problem
• identify the potential issue
• review the relevant ethics code
• know the applicable laws and regulations
• obtain consultation
• consider possible and probable course of action
• enumerate the consequences of the various decisions
• decide on what appears to be the best course of action

Question 15

Ethic Decision Making Model

Answer 15

E- valuate relevant personal, societal, agency, client and professional values

T- hink about what ethical standard is involved relevant to the case decisions

H- ypothesizes about possible consequences of different decisions

I-dentify who will benefit and who will be harmed in view of social worker

C-onsult with supervisor and colleagues about the most ethical choice

Question 16

Define Morals

Answer 16

• general set of rules that apply to everyone in society

* Rules are neither enacted nor revoked by a legislature but accepted and changed by general consensus.

Question 17

Define Ethics

Answer 17

• What is right and correct

* Ethics are deduced from values and must be consonance with them.

Question 18

Define Values

Answer 18

• values refers “to what is worth having or being” and that it “is preferable that it exist rather than not exist”
• values are meant to serve as guides or criteria for selecting good and desirable behaviors.

Question 19

Differences and challenges between morals, values and ethics

Answer 19

Morals are what society sets as acceptable, Values and Ethics are based on Morals. Values are that which are good and desirable and worth having, and Ethics are like values in action .

Question 20

Foundations for ethical decision making:

Ethical Relativism

Answer 20

• reject fixed moral rules. options are chosen because it leads to desired results/ rejects those that lead to unwanted results
• justify ethical decisions based on context or situation in which they are made or on the consequences that will result

Question 21

Foundations for ethical decision making:

Ethical Absolutism

Answer 21

• fixed moral rules that should be held under all circumstances
• actions are inherently right or wrong “because of some feature intrinsic to the act or practice itself”

Question 22

Dual relationships

Dolgoff

Answer 22

• teacher and student or therapist and friend
• an interaction between a social worker and a client in addition to that of the social workers professional role
• sometimes they are unavoidable

Question 23

Dual relationships

NASW 1.06 (c)

Answer 23

“social workers should NEVER engage in a dual or multiple relationship with clients or former clients in which there is a risk for exploitation or potential harm to the client”

“When dual or multiple relationships are unavoidable, social workers should take steps to protect clients and are responsible for setting clear, appropriate, and culturally sensitive boundaries.”

Question 24

Nonmalfeasance

Answer 24

avoid doing harm: “Do not harm”

Question 25

Beneficence

Answer 25

doing what is best for the client

Question 26

Malpractice

Answer 26

Failure to provide professional service - civil, criminal, and professional sanctions [ incorrect dx and tx, issues relation to confidentiality, issues relation to documentation, boundary violations]