Case Study Ethical Practice Paper - Essay Example

Social therapists and medical practitioners often face the predicament of having to make critical decisions in their experiential practice. Critical scenarios that pit the practitioner's decision making procedures and systems with other factors extrinsic to the logic of the medical and psychological therapy practice often culminate in ethical dilemmas. This paper presents a case study of one such case featuring an ethical dilemma setting characterised by the dissonance between my socio-cultural values and the subject's predicament.

The exploration of the ethical dilemma will take the form of a case study. A case study is naturally a qualitative study. A phenomenological study is "the type of research that examines the human experience (Beauchamp, T, & Childress, J, 1983, pp 43). The emphasis is on "experience and interpretation" (Neil T. Anderson 1998). Parton N (1998) continues "In the conduct of a phenomenological study, the focus would be on the essence or structure of an experience (phenomenon)". As such the case study model is perceived to be an ideal study model to meet the core objectives of this paper which entail illuminating the dynamics of an ethical dilemma scenario in a social therapy professional practice setting.

The anticipated scenario culminating in dilemma i. The crux of the scenario stems from the fact that I'm strongly against abortion and the client is very dependent on me as her close associate. What characterizes the ethical dilemma is that I need to spell out my values on abortion to her yet for objectivity reasons I must refer her to some one who can take a neutral stand on the issue and yet she views me as her anchor in the predicament that she is facing.Systems Theory ApplicationThe featured scenario has entailed the application of the Systems Social Therapy Theory by a practitioner dealing with substance abuse related case.

The core tenet and perspective of the Systems Approach; in close relation to the subject of depression related social therapy dwells on that the problem has to be placed within the broader precincts of the factors (social, political, economic, etc) that characterise the environment of the affected individual. The practical application of the model employs among other aspects the thrust of bolstering the subject's morale and self-concepts and recommending perceived solutions and remedies for the client.

The external factors surrounding the subject/client are identified and used to map a framework that constitutes the source of the individual's problems culminating in substance abuse. This perspective argues for the interventions that will focus on reducing the environmental and extrinsic stresses and pressures that push people to making certain decisions that may not suffice for the curtailing of ensuing problems and for the objective of coping with external forces. The systems approach strives for the contextualization of the subject's problems within the broader precincts of