Ethical Dilemmas that a Social Worker Working in Child Protection would Encounter - Essay Example

Ethical dilemmas that a social worker working in child protection would encounter Introduction Social workers around the globe face numerous ethicalchallenges even though their intention is not at all profit-motive. Recently published statistical data indicate that child abuse rate is getting worse in Australia despite the extensive intervention and prevention techniques adopted by the Australian government (Early childhood Australia, 2006). In order to support the governmental efforts to curb this issue, many social workers have already actively involved in child protection activities in Australia. However, Australian social workers face a number of ethical dilemmas while trying to address the needs of struggling children. Studies show that such ethical concerns reduce the scope of child protection social works since those issues prevent social workers from obtaining grip over various underlying causes of child maltreatment. This paper will analyze major ethical dilemmas a social worker would commonly experience while engaging in child protection works. The paper will also identify ethical issues in indigenous contexts separately and discuss core ethical principles of social work and community welfare practices. Ethical dilemmas in child protection Social workers cannot meet desired objectives of child protection unless they can separate the child from harmful parents and move it to monitoring and surveillance facilities. However, it is not so easy for a social worker to separate the child from his parents even though they are maltreating it. The Australian federal government allows its citizens to exercise various decision rights over their children regarding religion, schooling, medical treatment, and where their child lives etc (Government of South Australia, 2010). When a child is separated from his parent, the parent cannot exercise his legal rights over his child. In addition, a parent has the fundamental right to take ultimate decisions on his child’s matters as long as the child is a minor. Therefore, separation of the child from his parents is the most ethical dilemma involved in the child protection social work. As Kumar (2004, p.34) points out, child protection social workers’ role is often coercive even though they may possess adequate skills and capabilities to work supportively. They are expected to take potential decisions to save children from abuse and negligence, and therefore social workers’ acts are considered unavoidable even though they use some brutal intervention tactics to address the problem. Hence, many of the people believe that social workers have been given the choice to behave oppressively. Such misperception among public would adversely affect the effectiveness of child protection activities. Although social workers have a great role to play in preventing child abuse and maltreatment, they may not have their own surveillance facilities to admit the child. Hence, social workers often move maltreated child to external rehabilitation facilities such as private childcares. Under such a situation, a social worker cannot be in continuous touch with the child and hence he cannot ensure that the child is treated properly. Reports indicate that children are physically and mentally abused in childcare settings too. Ethically, a social worker is liable to take care of the child once the child has been separated from his parent. A social worker will be answerable if it is found that the separated child does not get proper treatment and care (Harris 1985). In short, post-separation care of children appears to be an important ethical dilemma social workers face. Similarly, child protection social workers often fail to identify maltreated children as those children may not have the freedom to communicate to the external world. Social workers certainly have many limitations in investigating the welfare of children who reside with their parents or guardian. As parents or guardian have many legal and ethical rights over their children, social workers cannot interfere much with a child’s care unless abuse or maltreatment is evidently proved. Furthermore, social workers often do not get proper support from the government and other local authorities as those institutions often undermine the roles of social workers. Such issues significantly reduce the scope of social work related to child protection activities. Recommendations In order to resolve the identified ethical dilemmas, social workers need to think and implement their plans proactively and thoughtfully. Once a child maltreatment case is reported, a social worker has to critically evaluate the nature and intensity of the abuse. If the reported child abuse issue is not serious, the social worker should not demand separation of the child from the parents. Under such circumstances, the social worker must give proper counseling to parents and make them aware of the legal consequences they may face if they continue the abuse. In contrast, if the abuse is seemed to affect the wellbeing or future of the child, the social worker may demand the separation of the child because such parents do not have the ethical right to exercise any of their parental rights over the child. Referring to the view of Bowles et al (2007, p.6) it is recommendable for social workers to ensure active involvement of the public in child protection. Such a situation would allow people to understand the working styles and practices of social workers engaged in child protection. In other words, public participation would assist child protection social workers to convince people that they never use coercive intervention tactics unless if it is really necessary. Ultimately, active public involvement may assist social workers to eliminate many ethical dilemmas and thereby improve the level of their performance. In addition, once a social worker took the custody of an abused child, he must document the relevant details of the child and periodically produce it to the authorities concerned (All Psychology Careers.com, n.d). This policy may benefit the social worker to defend himself in case of a future lawsuit. This way, he can also meet his ethical obligations effectively. It is advisable for the Australian Association of Social workers to ensure government participation and guidance in its all child protection programs. Ethical issues in indigenous contexts The ethical issues reach its next level when social work is performed in indigenous contexts. Various ethical elements of cultural competence raise a number of potential ethical issues to social workers engaged in indigenous child protection in Australia. The Australian Association of Social Workers (AASW) has members from all around Australia. Since Australia is a culturally diverse country, cultural multiplicity is observable among the country’s social workers. As a result of this cultural diversity, many social workers find it difficult to address the needs of abused children from indigenous population effectively. Indigenous Australian populations lag behind other Australian populations in areas of health, education, and economic development (World Health Organization, 2012). Hence, many of the indigenous people are not aware of the better child treatment practices, and hence they cannot be blamed ethically for child exploitation. Furthermore, indigenous children’s poor family situations may force them to find jobs in the early childhood. Since majority of the child abuse cases among indigenous populations can be attributed to their underdeveloped cultures, it is ethically wrong to separate indigenous children from parents as part of child protection. Therefore, awareness programs may be the only potential method available to address child abuse issues in an indigenous context. AASW or AIWCW code of ethics The AASW and AIWCW (Australian Institute of Welfare and Community Workers) code of ethics define the core ethical principles of social work and community welfare practicing. According to the AASW code of ethics, “respect for persons, social justice, and professional integrity” are the major social work values or core ethical principle of social work. The first principle states that every individual has a unique and inherent value and equal rights to wellbeing, self-fulfillment, and self-determination (Australian Association of Social Workers, 2010). Hence, this principle specially requires social workers to respect individual autonomy and dignity; rights of individuals and groups; and collective needs of particular communities. The second principle states that social workers must promote protection and extend maximum services for their audience. In addition, specific focus must be given to the needs of disadvantaged and vulnerable population. Finally, the third ethical principle of professional integrity indicates that social workers should pay particular attention to values like “honesty, transparency, reliability, empathy, reflective self-awareness, discernment, competence, and commitment” (Australian Association of Social Workers, 2010). The AIWCW code of ethics (n. d.) also gives some core ethical principles for social workers. According to this, it is stated that every human being has the right to maximize his potential providing. The principle of social justice is highlighted in the AIWCW code of ethics also. This code indicates that social workers have to use their maximum skills and capabilities to promote wellbeing of the whole society (ibid). Finally, it is stated that every social worker has an ethical obligation to enlighten his community on various socially important matters (ibid, n.d). Conclusion From the above discussion, it is clear that the separation of children from parents and post-separation care of children are the major ethical dilemmas social works tend to face while working for child protection. Since many people believe that social workers adopt a coercive approach to promote child protection, social workers are likely to obtain negative responses from the public. Undoubtedly, social workers are ethically obliged to take care of a child once the child is separated from the parent. Through effective counseling programs and documentation practices, those ethical issues can be eliminated to a great extent. A social worker faces troublesome ethical challenges while addressing the needs of abused or neglected children in indigenous contexts, because most of the indigenous populations are unaware of better child treatment practices. Indigenous people do not have sufficient resources and other facilities to treat their children in a better way. Hence, awareness programs are best advisable for social workers to address the needs of maltreated children in indigenous communities. Individual respect, social justice, and professional integrity are the major ethical principles set for social workers. References All Psychology Careers.com., n.d. Child welfare social worker: Learn about the child social worker career, [Online] Available at: [Accessed 11 August 2012]. Australian Association of Social Workers., 2010. Code of ethics, pp. 1-55, [Online] Available at: [Accessed 11 August 2012]. AIWCW Code of Ethics., n.d, [Online] Available at: [Accessed 11 August 2012]. Bowlers, W, Collingridge, M, Curry, S and Valentine, B., 2007. Ethical Practice in Social Work: An Applied Approach. Singapore: Allen & Unwin. Early Childhood Australia., 2006. Jan 2006- statistics show sholdhood abuse in australia is getting worse, [Online] Available at: [Accessed 11 August 2012]. Government of South Africa., 2010. What about parents rights?: Parent easy guide 74, pp. 1-3, [Online] Available at: [Accessed 11 August 2012]. Harris, J., 1985. Child abuse and neglect: Ethical issues, Journal of Medical Ethics, 11, pp. 138-141, [Online] Available at: [Accessed 11 August 2012]. Kumar, H., 2004. Social Work. New Delhi: Gyan Publishing House. World Health Organization., 2012. Australias disturbing health disparties set aboriginals apart: Bulletin of the World Health Organization, [Online] Available at: [Accessed 11 August 2012]. Read More