Legal and Ethical Framework: Child Social Workers - Assignment Example

Child Social Workers Child Social workers provide services and assistance to improve the social and psychological functioning of children. A Child Social Service worker promotes the well being of those children who are in need and who are looked after by Social Services because of family problems. The Children’s Protection Act 1993 is relevant to the duties of the Child Social worker because the provisions of this Act provide for the care and protection of children, so that they can grow up in a safe environment. This Act was passed by the Parliament of South Australia and contains amendments to the Act of 2000 for child protection; it came into force on January 1, 1994. Since the main objective of this Act is to provide for the care and protection of children, it places the primary responsibility for such care and protection on the family. As a result, it provides for measures to support and assist the family in carrying out that responsibility. This act is relevant for the work of the Child Social worker because it enables her/him to notify the department of such abuse by using a written report in which observations, information and opinions are noted down. It also allows such a worker the power to remove a child from the situation of danger, including separating them from their guardians, to ensure their well being is protected. The Young Offenders Act of 1993 is legislation passed in South Australia, which came into force on January 1, 1994. The objective of this Act if to ensure that in the case of youths who violate criminal law, there is adequate care, correction and guidance provided for them to develop into useful members of the Community and to realize their potential. Social workers may therefore be required to present at family conferences that are convened when a young person commits a crime, in order to address the question of how their needs can be met through an appropriate community sentence. The Social worker who has been working with the child will be required to provide input to ensure that the best outcome is reached for the benefit of the child. The Privacy Act of 1988 is a piece of federal legislation, which is an amendment of the compilation prepared on 30 December 2006. The purpose of this Act is to ensure that the privacy of individuals is protected, so that there is no arbitrary or unlawful interference with their privacy, family, home or correspondence. This is relevant for Child Social Workers, when they are dealing with children who may be abused or neglected. They must take care to ensure that files containing information about the families of the children are not divulged to third parties without the consent of the child or families in question. Violation of such provisions of confidentiality could make these workers liable for prosecution under the provisions of this Act. Ans 2: In reviewing an existing piece of legislation to assess its impact on child social workers, the entire Act and its aim and objectives are first examined. After setting out the main objective of the Acts, the relevant provisions that apply to Social Workers are listed, with a description of the processes that are spelt out under it. This is then compared to the requirements that are revealed through compilations of individual case studies that are being tackled in the department. This process of comparison helps to identify the areas where shortcomings in the law exist and where reform is necessary, while also identifying those areas where the provisions of the law are adequate to deal with the problems that arise in the Social Services Department. In making new laws, the Australian parliament proposes changes and amendments to existing laws, or prepares Reports on which comments are invited from members of the public as well as relevant state and county Government organizations, professionals and members of the public. Based upon these recommendations, the law may be revised or reframed accordingly. In my view, the existing process for reviewing policies is quite comprehensive and allows for the application of the law to real life case scenarios and problems generated in individual case studies. By seeking input from members of the public, professional and community service organizations, the Government makes every effort to ensure that the law is relevant and applicable to the problems in the present and that laws are modified as necessary. Ans 3: In one particular case, there was an ethical dilemma posed between interference with family privacy vis a vis the protection of a child. In this case, a young girl whose mother was dead, complained that her father was sexually abusing her. The father was imprisoned on the basis of the child’s report to social workers, but the child’s grandmother disapproved of her granddaughter’s action and was cold to her. The father sent letters from prison, pleading with the daughter to withdraw the complaint, because it was bringing shame to the family, a position the grandmother also upheld. The child, facing such emotional pressure, withdrew her complaint, thereby removing the legal means that the social workers had at their disposal to continue prosecution of the man who had been sexually abusing his child. On the one hand was the question of emphasizing to the child the importance of not withdrawing her complaint and allowing herself to again become a victim of abuse by her father. On the other hand was the moral dilemma of undue interference with the family’s privacy and decisions, which could have construed an unacceptable degree of interference by the social workers into the privacy of the family. The child was already facing pressure from her family and had withdrawn her complaint, yet the social workers were aware of the dangers that she would be subjected to due to her father’s release. In this situation, as Social workers, we had been instrumental in taking the girl’s initial complaint and in following up action with the authorities so that the father was sent into jail. This was in accordance with the provisions of the Children’s protection Act of 1993, where a social worker has the authority to remove a child from a situation of abuse1. Once this action had been accomplished and the case was being processed with the authorities, we did not continue meetings with the child because we felt that the child was now safe because her father, the abuser, had been removed from the premises. However, during the process that the case was being heard, there was a need to continue to extend protection for the child. This is where, as social workers we were not able to achieve out full potential. We should have visited the child’s home every day after her father was imprisoned and talked to her, to ascertain whether she was having further problems. This would have helped us to become aware of the tense situation at her home and the grandmother’s disapproval which was impacting negatively on the child living with her. It would have also helped us become aware of the undue emotional pressure that the father was exerting from prison through his letters on his daughter. If the child had confided in us on a voluntary basis, we would have been able to take further action, such as removing her into a neutral environment where she could have been relieved of the emotional pressures she was facing. Moreover, allowing the father to communicate with the child was also a wrong move, which should not have been allowed. However, once the child had withdrawn her case, her rights to privacy under the Privacy Act of 1988 meant that we could not take further action on the case, without being accused of interfering unduly with the privacy of the family and the reputation of the father and family in the community. Therefore, this case raised legal and ethical issues that created a dilemma, as a result of which the social workers were helpless as the child was again placed in an abusive environment with her father released from prison and back at home. In another instance, a young boy was suspected of being a victim of domestic abuse, because the Child Social worker noticed a pattern of bruises and withdrawn behavior from the child, suggesting that he was experiencing some kind of personal trauma. The case worker moved for removal of the child from the home premises2 pending investigation3 into the other members of the family, so that a determination could be made as to whether the child was at risk and if so, from what elements in the home. While the child was under the protection of the State and while investigations were being carried out, the child was also examined and assessed in order to determine the extent of injuries and to provide necessary medical treatment.4 An examination of the child also revealed the possibility of sexual abuse and during the course of this routine medical examination, an HIV/AIDS test was also carried out and the child was found to be positive. This raised the ethical issue of privacy in relation to this child. Medical information is a sensitive area and the results of HIV tests are of a confidential nature. However, this information would be available in the child’s file. There was also the possibility that other members of the family would have to be tested, so that necessary treatment could be provided and those members not yet affected safeguarded from getting the disease. This information had to be made available to those Social workers and authorities working to assist and help the child, so that they could derive an understanding of the problems of the child’s environment and his emotional and health problems. Moreover, the Social workers also sought to compile this child’s file into a group with those of other children who had also developed AIDS at a young age in order to present findings in a conference, and highlight the need for urgent measures to tackle the problem of rising incidence of AIDS among certain sections of the community. However, by placing such information in the child’s file and by using this as a source at a conference, there was also the possibility of such information leaking out to unauthorized parties. Since the results of testing on family members were also to constitute a part of the file, the parents were vehemently opposed to such results being available, because they claimed that it violated their rights to privacy that were guaranteed under the Privacy Act of 1988. The child also did not consent to the release of such information, being so advised by his parents. The question before the social workers was whether to press for release of such information, since it would be used for a purpose that would be beneficial to other members of society. However, one of the principles upon which the Privacy Act is based is the limits on the use of personal information. While information may be maintained in an individual’s file and used for purposes of ensuring that the necessary social services are provided to the individual, the issue is different when the information is to be used for another purpose, such as in this case where the information was to be used to raise awareness about the growing incidence of AIDS. The Privacy Act specifically states: “A record keeper who has possession or control of a record that contains personal information that was obtained for a particular purpose shall not use the information for any other purpose unless the individual concerned has consented to use of the information for that other purpose.”5 Therefore, in this instance, the legal principle clearly contraindicated the release of such information, and the decision of the individuals concerned had to be respected. Ans 4: In dealing with children, especially those suspected of abuse and neglect, it is the duty of a Child Social Worker to speak to the child in private, in the absence of his/her family members and inform the child about their rights. The children are first provided assurance that the Social Worker seeks to help them and to find solutions to their problems. The children are then encouraged to speak freely about their problems and to let the Social Worker know whether they are unhappy or being hurt or abused at home by anyone. The Social Worker speaks to the child over several sessions, slowly gaining the child’s confidence and trust. In addition, the Social Worker may also visit the home of the child to observe the child’s interactions within the home and the conditions of the child’s family environment. In this way, the Social Worker arrives at a good understanding of whether the child is under tension or is being abused in the home. The Social Worker then sits down with the child and informs him/her that there is an existing right to complaint about the ill treatment and to remove the cause of such treatment, so that an effective solution can be found after necessary investigations are carried out. The Social Worker also informs the child of their right to not consult with their parents or guardians who may be the source of abuse and assures them of the state’s desire to protect them from any kind of bad repercussions of their disclosures. The children are encouraged to speak about the source of abuse and a written statement may be taken by the Social Worker, which can be used as a basis for further investigations and in pursuing police and other forms of corrective action. They are also informed of their right to be provided with the services of an attorney, who will be able to tackle legal issues that may arise in the situation and to be removed from the home of residence to be placed in a safer environment. They are also informed of their right to bring legal action and press legal charges against the person who is abusing them. However, while clients enjoy several rights, not all of them may choose to exercise it. For example, in many instances, the person abusing the child may be a parent or guardian and the children may have been threatened with dire consequences for divulging that such physical abuse is taking place. This may make children fearful of confiding in a Social Worker, because they are afraid that they will have to go back home someday and face the person who was abusing them. In other instances, when a potential abuser is removed and imprisoned pending investigation, they may still be able to exert subtle pressure on the child through other family members. The revelation of abuse within a family and bringing it to the stage of investigation and police action often means notoriety for the family and shame in their community. This makes most other family members antagonistic when a child presses for action against an abuser in the family. The emotional distancing of other members of the family from the child itself becomes a source of tension which may make the child reluctant to enforce their rights and continue with the prosecution of an abuser. This may be a factor even when the child is removed to a safe environment. There have been instances when children placed in foster homes in order to protect them from abuse in their own homes, have ended up being abused in the foster homes as well. This results in a loss of trust in the Social Worker and children may be unhappy at their new fate where they may be even more oppressed, and reluctant to speak out and press for their rights. This is the reason why the Children Act of 1993 emphasizes that it is better to find solutions that exist within the home itself by applying correctional, remedial measures and allowing the child to return to its own home. Read More