Social Work Ethics

Barbara Johnson is an experienced, down-to-earth social work manager with a strongly held belief that social work intervention should be brief and community based. Every day her social work values and ethics are tested when new dilemmas are brought to her attention and she has to weigh up the risks of what type of intervention is required, and much to her chagrin, what can be afforded in a political environment where funding is tight. She doesn't see clients as a problem, adopting a 'there is no us and them' approach to her work, rather 'there's only us', knowing a professional could become a client at a moment's notice. From child protection investigations to supporting young people in care and at home, her decisions have a life-changing impact on the clients she works with through her team. Do you agree with her style of risk management or would you have made other decisions?