In providing services of any kind, an organization essentially contracts with participants to perform the work it prescribes. It is implicit in this contract that those who actually perform the work, and the organization as a whole, are competent to achieve their goals in reasonable circumstances. It is obvious that no program or individual will be 100% successful. Participants may not be ready — think of the long-term failure rates of many addiction treatment programs — or resistant. Some community-based interventions can succeed less than half the time, and that may be the best someone can do. But regardless of the success rate, participants and the community have a right to expect the program to know what it is doing and will do everything possible to provide effective services. This means that community services must be provided by people who are competent in what they do. Ethical considerations are extremely important in community interventions. A program that behaves unethically or allows its employees to do so ignores both its mission and its credibility and effectiveness in the community.
Both confidentiality and consent raise the issue of privacy, which has been the subject of much debate over the past 20 years. Technology has made information much more accessible to many more people, and as a result, the privacy of individuals has become much more threatened. Much of what is discussed above and below has been the subject of litigation or legislation (as in the case of the Buckley Amendment). While the issue of the right to privacy, constitutional or otherwise, is far too broad to examine in detail here, it always hides behind any decision to disclose information. Ethical behaviour for community intervention is not limited to following certain professional codes and keeping your nose clean. This means actively striving to do what is right for participants and the community, and treating everyone – participant, staff, funders, the community as a whole – ethically. By doing what you do in the community, you take on a number of responsibilities: Perhaps the most well-known ethical issue – perhaps because it is most often violated – is the expectation that participants communicate and inform as part of a community intervention or program (including conversations, written or recorded records, grades, test results, etc.) will remain confidential. The legal responsibilities of programs in this area may vary, but confidentiality is generally the best policy. It protects both participants and the organization from privacy breaches and creates a relationship of trust between the participant and the program.
Depending on the program, the employee`s position and the participant`s needs, confidentiality may include a number of possibilities: The offence was so serious that the physician could have lost his licence to practise medicine if it had been disclosed. The committee ultimately decided that the woman`s right to let the case lie was more important than her right to reimbursement by the doctor, and no complaint was ever filed. Was the committee right? It is extremely difficult to say exactly what the purpose is. Most ethical decisions are far from settled. In practice, ethical considerations can sometimes seem difficult and open to interpretation. It is a wide range of views that covers a range of practical issues. Some ethical and legal issues in practice may include the dual relationship between supervisors and supervised entities, maintaining change in this area by attending regular continuing education courses, and maintaining ethical accounting practices, such as preventing double billing or simply invoicing for services rendered. Other dilemmas social workers may face include billing under false names or circumstances, or interviewing children without parental consent.
There are really three facets to consent: program participants who consent program staff to share their records or information with others for the purposes of delivery; Participants who agree to undergo certain medical or other services, treatments, research or program conditions; and community members who agree to the location or implementation of an intervention in their neighbourhood. Conflicts of interest are almost always unethical, to the point that the mere appearance of conflict should be avoided. Even if decisions or actions are not really influenced by personal interests, people with conflicts of interest in their public or professional lives should do everything they can to resolve them. Many programs provide a complaint procedure for participants who feel they have been unfairly denied services or suffered some form of harm during their contact with a community program. Participants should be aware that such a complaint procedure exists, receive a copy and have it explained to them so that they can file a complaint if necessary. They should also have a copy of any specific conditions they agree to by signing up for the program: for example, staying drug-free or keeping a journal. In all circumstances, the ethical treatment of participants requires that they be informed of the program`s privacy policy. In most cases, they have the option not to participate if they are not satisfied with these guidelines; In the case of court-ordered participation, they at least know what to expect. All of this brings us to the following two issues that may be closely related to confidentiality and to each other: consent and disclosure. A social worker`s commitment is first and foremost to her clients.
Despite her best intentions, a social worker may face some legal and ethical challenges in social work when interacting with clients and their families. The most common issues that can arise include confidentiality, professional boundaries, respect for the client`s right to self-determination, and awareness of conflicts of interest. Since ethical issues are not always settled, community-based programs should develop their own ethical guidelines and guidelines before questions arise. If you can agree on standards for primary ethical issues – confidentiality, consent, disclosure, jurisdiction, conflict of interest, blatantly unethical behaviour, and overall ethical position and actions of the program – and create policies that help you maintain those standards, you will be on the path to community respect and excellent service delivery. Responsibility to participants. You are responsible for trying to provide the best and most effective services possible throughout the duration of the program. It means being constantly looking for better methods and ideas; Pay attention to participants` comments; Build on the successes of the program; and identifying, learning and correcting program weaknesses.
