Table of Contents
An opening
Faith
Personal resilience
In conclusion
This is an introduction.
Every day, social work can lead to many ethical dilemmas. Doel (2016) recognizes the possibility of these ethical dilemmas arising from conflicts between personal and professional values. These dilemmas can arise from a conflict between our personal and professional values. Social work students are taught how to recognize and be aware of their values. This is done from the beginning of their social work careers. I will be reflecting on some of my personal values and how they have impacted my life. These values may conflict with or complement my professional values in social work. I will also examine how these values could impact my social work practice. I am a believer and was raised to live by biblical principles. One of my values was that marriage is sacred, and that it is forbidden to have sexual relations prior to marriage. This value is important for a happy and balanced family life. I was also taught that homosexuality was wrong and should not be practiced. This, as well as having sexual relations with someone before getting married, is considered a sin. In university, I found it quite distressing to see pictures of homosexual couples. The group member asked me if my homophobia was real. I then questioned whether it was. This session allowed me to see the impact of my beliefs on me. I don’t consider me homophobic. The images were still a bit too graphic for me. It made it clear to me the difficulties that different faiths can cause. There are many issues that my faith can cause, but I chose to concentrate on homosexuality. It was one I was surprised to feel uncomfortable with (the photos), and something I expected to see more often in my work as a social worker. BASW readiness for immediate practice tells social workers to “apply Anti-Discriminatory and Oppressive Principles in Practice.” This framework requires social workers to understand and accept diversity and the impact it has on individuals’ lives and identity. This was the first thing we were taught as social workers. Social workers must not only understand and support diversity but also recognize it. It raises important questions like: How can I promote homosexuality in a person I hold to be moral? How can I show service users that my sexuality is acceptable? I am passionate about working with families and children, especially in foster care and adoption. Let’s assume, for instance, I’m asked to help a couple adopting a child who is the same sex as me. My values and practice would be in conflict. From a young time, I was taught that a person’s head should be the man and that a wife should support him. It is totally contrary to my upbringing to believe that the same sex couple can have sex. Social workers must promote and practice equality. Thompson (2019), reminds that equality requires that we work to make sure that no one is treated unfairly. Equality doesn’t necessarily mean we must believe all that is said. We are not robots, and we don’t have to accept everything we’re told. But, equality means that people or groups of people are treated equally regardless of their protected characteristics, such as race, gender and disability. Social workers must adopt the person-centered care values. This means we must respect and uphold the rights and equalities of all people and not put our personal beliefs or values aside. As I said, when placing a child in a home with a same-sex couple, it is important to forget about my religious beliefs and to focus on the child’s well-being. As long as there’s no safeguarding concerns, my decision as social worker whether to place a child with that couple should not be affected. Being a Christian and having a spiritual life are two things that can help me in my work. Matthews (2009) states, “Spirituality can be used to show our worldview and action.” It’s shown in how we interact with others, how we build relationships, and how we feel responsible to other people. Spirituality can help us develop relationships with others. Spirituality helps me mentally re-connect to myself, my emotions, and my hope for the future. This allows me to revive myself when I feel like giving up. As social workers, we are likely to have a lot of cases and a heavy workload. This spirituality will help me to recharge and heal myself. Personal resilience is my next priority. In my previous relationships, I suffered from financial, emotional, domestic and sexual abuse. This was a very difficult time in my life. I find the good in all things, so I found it very difficult. I have learned to see the positives in everything and that has helped me build my personal resilience. This is something I consider an important value in life. This personal resilience will be a great asset to my social work practice. Domestic abuse is a growing problem in social work, particularly when it comes to working with families and children. According to current news reports, domestic abuse in Britain is at its highest levels for five year. Domestic abuse does not discriminate. It can affect anyone, regardless of race, culture, status, or geography. It is clear that domestic abuse will be a part of my social work practice. I will also be working with families, children, and men who have been affected. Safelives.org.uk (2019), reveals that social workers are familiar with domestic abuse victims. The role of social workers is not fully understood, even though it has been many years. Recent research shows that many social worker find this field too overwhelming. They cannot meet the victims’ legal, housing, and child-care needs. My personal experience of domestic abuse has shaped my belief that I could be an effective advocate to those who are or have suffered from it. My personal resilience will allow me to help victims to not only survive but to also to heal from the abuse. Because of this experience, I was inspired to become an social worker. BASW offers a code that encourages social workers to empower individuals. This empowerment is especially important for domestic abuse victims. Social workers would help victims feel empowered to flee and avoid their abuser. Social workers should have the ability to use their own resilience and experiences to support victims in building their resilience. Drumm M. (2013) discovered that telling your personal story can be therapeutic for service users. It can also empower, promote personal growth, build resilience, and help you to grow. Domestic abuse victims must be helped to survive. The social worker must promote social justice, and work with victims to ensure that their lives are as fulfilling as possible. The questions I might ask are: “Would my emotions react to this case in practice?” and “How could my experience make it a positive rather than a negative practice?” It is important to recognize that situations involving domestic abuse can bring up many feelings inside me, which will cause my reactions to be triggered. I will be able to draw strength from my years of experience in building my emotional resilience and integrate these positive experiences into my social worker practice. Although social work can be rewarding, it can also prove to be extremely stressful and emotionally draining. Personal resilience is important for our health and helps us manage stress. This resilience will allow me to deal with various situations in my social practice. This can be done in a variety of ways, including mindfulness. Mindfulness can help us deal with our difficult emotions more effectively. Mindfulness helps you to be calm, courageous and clear about your emotions. Meditation can help me manage the stresses I face in practice. It helps me develop emotional resilience and help me focus on the rewarding part of social worker. It can help me remain motivated and focused on service users’ positive outcomes. Conclusion. The practice of social work will present many ethical dilemmas. Personal values can sometimes clash with professional ones. In this assignment, I examined the impact of my faith on social work practice. Additionally, I looked at how my personal resilience can help me in social work practice. It is important to regularly reflect on and use my values in my practice. As social workers face many difficult situations that will put our values under pressure, it’s not an easy task. Examining my professional frameworks, like the BASW, constant learning and professional growth will allow me help develop my ethical decision-making skills and help identify areas where I can focus to improve my practice.
