Sara Parker and Ethics

Sara Parker and Ethics
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Sara Parker and Ethics
The social worker treating Sara Parker violated several ethical mandates by suggesting Sara as a qualified candidate for research on potential interventions for individuals with hoarding disorders. The National Association of Social Workers (NASW) directs that all social employees must exercise confidentiality of their clients (National Association of Social Workers, 2008). More so, the social worker suggests Sara to her colleague without her consent. She is shocked when she is handed an appointment card forcing her to talk to a social worker who is conducting research. The therapist coerces Sara to participate in the research by mentioning that her colleague is paying participants. Additionally, it is the ethical mandate for a social worker to have the consent of a client before placing them in a study. In this case, the social worker assumes she has the consent of Sara by giving her a colleague’s business card for an appointment. Besides, she ignores Sara’s concerns about participating in the research by telling her that there is nothing to worry about.
The unethical behavior by the social worker in the case of Sara Parker was avoidable by adhering to the NASW ethics guidelines (National Association of Social Workers, 2008). For example, the social worker should have talked to Sara about the research on the possible interventions of hoarding by a co-worker. At the same time, the therapist would have then got permission from Sara or respected Sara’s need for privacy.

Additionally, she should have avoided mentioning pay for participation because it equals coercion, which is unethical.
The responsibilities of the social workers handling Sara Parker was to help her overcome her depression, hoarding behavior, and live independently again. In this case, the social worker arranged for Sara to get treatment from a geriatric psychiatrist to manage her depression. Secondly, she made plans to help Sara de-clutter her house. Sara was estranged with her daughters Jane and Stephanie because her hoarding tendencies were making her apartment inhabitable. Finally, the social worker had the mandate to live in her alone by finding home care services that would facilitate her remaining at her apartment.

References
National Association of Social Workers. (2008). NASW code of ethics (Guide to the everyday professional conduct of social workers). Washington, DC: NASW.