Ethical Guidelines for Counselors Working With Older Adults According to Schwiebert, Meyers and Dice, the population of adults ages 65 and older has grown, it is estimated that by 2030, there will be about 70 million older adults, which is twice the amount from 1997. As the number of older adults will continue to grow, social workers will increasingly be required to assist the elderly with meeting their needs and their families. Social workers may experience difficulties addressing ethical issues that are not address in the American Counseling Association (ACA) guide. Therefore, the Association for Adult Development and Ageing has identified three areas of concern: cognitively impaired older adults, older adults that are victims of abuse and older adults that are terminally ill, in which Schwiebert, Meyers and Dice examined those three areas of concern. …show more content…
There are many questions a social worker needs to ask themselves when working with older adults, such as: are they able to care for themselves? Are they safe? Are they in danger or are they a danger to others? The Social worker must make ethical judgments while maximizing independence and preventing harm. There are four categories of elder abuse, physical, psychological abuse, financial exploitation, and violation of rights. The most prevalent type of abuse is physical and verbal abuse and neglect. Social workers working with older adults need to be aware of the signs of abuse. It is also important for social workers to know the current laws in their area regarding elder
Assisted Living Facilities abuse is a frequently occurring problem in our society (Hamilton). There are diverse categories of abuse that transpire in Assisted Living Facilities which are physical abuse, sexual abuse, emotional abuse, neglect, abandonment, and financial abuse. Samples of physical abuse would be hitting or beating the elders with an object or their hand, force feeding them or pulling their hands. Sexual abuse is the Assisted Living Facility employees having sexual acts with non-consenting patients. Emotional abuse is the employees saying things verbally to torment the patient. Neglect would be the employee does not take care of the patients such as providing hygiene. Abandonment occurs when leaving patients to fend for themselves. Financial abuse is when the patient’s family pays for the services that were not taken care of. “Elder abuse is fast becoming one of the uppermost law enforcement tasks of the next century, “said Paul Hodge who investigates crime against the elderly (Gonzalez). Since abuse occurs throughout assisted living facilities, state and federal governments should establish a type of punishment such as sending for employees to prison, ways to prevent abusing elderly’s is by inspecting employees ' criminal records, qualified staff, reporting injuries, having surveillance of the areas that do not affect patients privacy, promoting continuous family visits, and shortage of staffing.
Social Work is a profession that is committed to the promotion, restoration, maintenance, and enhancement of social functioning. Its focus is to work with individuals, groups, and communities, in helping them use the resources within themselves and the environment to cope more effectively with their problems. At its most basic level, social work is about promoting the general welfare of society by representing those who are most vulnerable. Providing social services can sometimes be a difficult task, wrought with ethical uncertainties and challenges. The Social Work Code of Ethics helps social workers navigate these challenges throughout their careers and provide a framework for the principles and standards a social worker must uphold.
In 1965 the first Aging American’s Act was passed. This legislation was part of Lyndon Johnson’s Great Society reform. In passing this legislation nearly 50 years ago, the government created a new department the focused on the rights and needs of the gaining population called the United States Administration on Aging. The original legislation was complete with seven titles. The articles include Title I—the Declaration of Objectives for Older Americans; Title II—Establishment of Administration on aging; Title III—Grants for state and community programs on aging; Title IV—Activities for health and independence, and longevity; Title V—Community service senior opportunities act; Title VI—Grants for Native Americans; and Title VII—allotments for vulnerable elder rights protection activities. Each of these titles are present in the most recent Aging Americans Act Reauthorization Act of 2013. Each of the titles in the original and reauthorization have levels of measure to ensure that the legislation is enacted in a manner that will protect the aging population. The titles provide guidance to involved organizations and caregivers ensuring each is properly educated in treating the medical and mental health needs of the aging population as well as recognizing, reporting, and preventing elderly abuse, neglect, and physical, mental, and financial exploitation.
In the medical field, the workers are highly trained to be able to make a distinction between what is right and what is wrong. Elder abuse is becoming a serious issue in the health environment. As defined in the website, MedicineNet.com, elder abuse is: “the physical, sexual, or emotional abuse of an elderly person, usually one who is disabled or frail”. The older population consists of people over sixty-five years old. They are very fragile and sometimes they are forgotten or abused. The elderly can be victims of mistreatment in nursing homes, hospitals, or even in their own house. Nursing is the act of promoting health for others, and of providing care and security with the skills nurses have acquired. However, those who are nursing can also harm, or hurt people by advising them. Elder abuse can take many forms such as financial abuse, physical abuse, sexual abuse, and emotional abuse.
The National Association of Social Workers, NASW, considers the following as its six most core values; service, social justice, dignity and worth of the person, importance of human relationships, integrity, and competence. The value of service is considered to be a core value because offering help to those in need is a crucial goal for all of those looking to practice in the field of Social Work. These services can include, but are not limited to, addressing social problems, helping those in need, and volunteering their knowledge to those who cannot otherwise afford such help. Social Justice is also an important core value for a Social Worker to develop. As a Social Worker one will encounter many people from several different walks of life, no two cases will ever be exactly the same. Some of these walks of life can leave a client vulnerable, defenseless, exploited, oppressed, and troubled. Therefore it is important to learn what Social Justice is, and how to help people from falling victim to injustice. Dignity and Worth of the Person is one of the most important values that one should uphold. People who need the help of a Social Worker many, but not all, times feel powerless, embarrassed, and worthless because they feel as though they cannot control aspects of their life an...
According to Missouri's Department of Health and Senior Services, there are three things that elder abuse can be classified as. It can be classified as abuse, neglect, or likelihood of serious physical harm. While all of these classifications sounds quite similar, there are some subtle differences. The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services defines abuse as " the infliction of physical, sexual, or emotional injury or harm including financial exploitation by any person, firm, or corporation" ("Protective Services For Adults," n.d., para. 4). Elder neglect is "the failure to provide services to an eligible adult by any person, firm, or corporation with a legal or contractual duty to do so, when such failure presents either an imminent danger to the health, safety, or welfare of the client or a substantial probability that death or serious physical harm would result"("Protective Services For Adults," n.d., para. 4). Abuse, neglect, as well as likelihood of serious physical harm are all reportable by law. ("Protective Services For Adults," n.d).
A situation from my practicum where I may experience an ethical dilemma is if I needed to visit a patient I knew. If a patient was identified as potentially having social work needs and I knew them personally it may be uncomfortable for them to discuss sensitive issues, especially if I wasn’t aware of the issues prior to reading their medical history. The patient may not be as honest with me because they wouldn’t want an acquaintance to know about sensitive subjects they are experiencing. The agency requires a social worker to visit patients that lack support, are low-income, have a history of substance use, or a mental illness. Visiting these patients is consistent with the social worker’s responsibility to clients.
Elder abuse and neglect in nursing homes or any other setting is a delicate topic and the use of a questionnaire can keep the participant and their answers confidential (Leedy & Ormrod, 2013). In addition, a variety of elder abuse research articles that have been read had used some type of survey, questionnaire, telephone or in-person interview (Anetzberger, 2012, Castle, 2012, Castle, Ferguson-Rome, & Teresi, 2015, & Payne & Fletcher, 2005). Therefore, the use of a survey will allow for answers that are more honest from the nursing home administrators and/or authorities on this delicate topic. Consequently, the use of the survey research design will allow the respondents to provide close-ended
Many seniors around the world are being abused and harmed in some substantial way often by people who are directly responsible for their care (Robinson, 2016). Neglect of all forms causes harm to a patients overall well-being. Neglect happens in 60% of people and physical abuse happens to 15% of people (Franklin, 2013). There are three different types of neglect that can happen especially to the elderly. The three types of neglect are mental, emotional and physical neglect. Mental neglect, is basically ignoring or just not showing care or love for the patient. Emotional neglect is not only ignoring, but isolating the patient from others. Physical neglect which is causing physical injury to the body from rough handleing or non-supervision. Neglect is damaging not only to a body but also to the mind and over all
Older adults are a very knowledgeable population and have had a lot of life experiences. As people age, things start to change physically, mentally, and socially. It’s important to understand the process of aging, so that older adults can be taken care of properly. I interviewed P.R. who is a 71-year-old male that lives alone in his home. P.R. is a retired coal miner, and is currently living off his social security and savings. He lives close to both his daughter and son, who frequently help him out with things that are needed. P.R. was able to give me a lot of insight about specific challenges that he has experienced in his life that is associated with aging. I will be discussing challenges that P.R experienced physically, mentally,
Reamer explains that values are important in regard to “The nature of social work’s mission; the relationships that social workers have with clients, colleagues, and members of society; the methods of intervention that social workers use in their work, and the resolution of ethical dilemmas in practice” (p. 15). Reamer discusses the importance of ethical decision making and ethical risk management in regards to any ethical dilemma a social worker may face. Reamer also explores how our values can challenge our profession; opposing or conflicting personal, professional, cultural and religious values in particular. Other ethical issues include confidentiality, privacy, divided loyalties, professional boundaries, dual relationships, conflicts of interest, and a client’s free will or determinism (Reamer,
As a social worker who specializes in aging, I will have the opportunity to work in senior centers, mental health clinics, hospitals, long-term care facilities, or private agencies that offer a number of different services. I would be able to implement individual counseling and support groups aimed at improving quality of life for older adults, their families, and their caretakers. Such services will be instrumental in providing these individuals with community resources, offering a safe environment to vocalize their feelings, work through challenges, and learn new ways of coping with the stresses of such challenging chronic illnesses. As a social worker, I am determined to make macro-level changes through community organization and political action. It is my belief that Fordham University will provide me with the appropriate resources to develop the necessary skills to serve this aging
“Social workers behave in a trustworthy manner. Social workers are to be aware of this profession missions, values ethical principal and ethical standards and practice in a manner consistent with them”. (NASW, 2008, p.6). Social workers are to be sure their practice is embedded in the NASW Code of Ethics.
Personal values: A key ethical principle in the NASW Code of Ethics states the following: "Social workers respect the inherent dignity and worth of the person. Social workers treat each person in a caring and respectful fashion, mindful of individual differences and cultural and ethnic diversity. Social workers promote clients ' socially responsible self-determination. Social workers seek to enhance clients ' capacity and opportunity to change and to address their own needs. Social workers are cognizant of their dual responsibility to clients and to the broader society. They seek to resolve conflicts between clients ' interests and the broader society 's interests in a socially responsible manner consistent with the values, ethical principles, and ethical standards of the profession." Briefly discuss how your personal values and beliefs coincide or conflict with this ethical principle. How will you resolve any conflicts between your personal values and the requirements of the
There are certain ethics that social workers must follow and is a guidance for professional standard of work. However sometimes people are not aware of their own values, though the more fully conscious someone is about their values, the more people are able to ensure that their actions are consistent with the values. As a social worker it is vital to know the dangers of not taking account of values and the ethical dimension of practice. A social worker should see their client for who they are and not just another object that is unclear by their own emotions hence why self-awareness is a key to