Recognizing and Managing Personal Values
Integrative Paper
Sherisse Irizarry
Nyack College
Social Work and Christianity (SWK 562)
Professor James Long
Due Date: November 1, 2019

ABSTRACT
The objective of this integrative paper is to examine how to recognize and manage personal values while applying the NASW Code of Ethics practice. Implementing social services can, at times, be a challenging responsibility, wrought with ethical ambivalence and difficulties. The Social Work Code of Ethics encourages social workers to navigate these hurdles throughout their profession and gives a structure for the policies and measures that they must uphold. Being mindful of a person's spiritual value without imposing one's own requires a level of respect and disciple. Unfortunately, the case that will be discussed throughout this paper will demonstrate how a social worker discriminated against a client because of the social worker's belief system and the client's sexual orientation, which is a violation of the NASW Code of Ethics. According to the Code of Ethics, "Social workers should obtain education about and seek to understand ethnicity, national origin, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, marital status, political belief, religion, immigration status, and mental or physical ability" (Ethics and English, 2019). If social workers can not follow the guidelines of the NASW regardless of their religion, they should not be practicing. 

A current ethical dilemma that violates the NASW Code of Ethics standards is because of discrimination of gender and refusing to serve a client due to the social worker's religious practices. This ethical dilemma is far too common and contradicts what social workers stand for. As a professional, we must have a set of healthy boundaries and recognize that one will not always agree with the client's decision making process or belief system. If one practices respect then in all honesty, personal view doesn't matter. What holds value is what the client needs and how social workers can serve them. Keeping that in mind, social workers  must also be sensitive and mindful of what  the client  can handle, not what they want them to can  handle. 

The case that I will be discussing has to do with a young lady who is a twenty-one year old young adult who is a lesbian and was denied counseling services due to her sexual orientation. She was struggling with her personal relationship and what heighten the situation was her partner being a part of the leadership team. To avoid embarrassment, she sought counseling at her college campus and was told by the clinical social worker that she was not culturally competent to work with her issues. When she was made aware of the case the social worker refused to take it on  because of her belief system. Referencing this article, social workers commonly decline LGBTQ clients and justify this by their lack of competence, which is a smokescreen of the true reality. "In fact, the real reason is often a personal belief system rather than a question of competence" (Counseling Today, 2019). This is a clear violation of the NASW Code of Ethics. 

"Social workers should promote conditions that encourage respect for cultural and social diversity within the United States and globally. Social workers should promote policies and practices that demonstrate respect for difference, support the expansion of cultural knowledge and resources, advocate for programs and institutions that demonstrate cultural competence, and promote policies that safeguard the rights of and confirm equity and social justice for all people”. (Resources, Month and Action, 2019)
 In order for social workers to implement these goals, they must be willing to deny their own agenda, which would be a direct action of meeting the person where they are.
The hope is that time would allow for the client to find another therapist eventually; however, because the social worker refused to serve the LGBTQ client, she did a disservice not only to the client but  to her professional growth. Social workers should ultimately strive to be well versed with all types of clients. Granted, at the start of a person's career, this may not be feasible because of one's past personal experiences or traumas. However, for social workers to stay on the cutting edge of the profession, they must continuously strive to learn and apply their knowledge for constant development. About the client, in this case, she was in school and actively participated in church, and based on the article, her support system was limited. Taking those factors into consideration, she may have  considered the rejection poorly, which could have resulted in a negative outcome. Thankfully, this was not the case. When social workers serve their clients, they should not assume anything but consider all the facts.  At times, it can be a life or death situation. What is said and done can make a massive difference in the outcome.	

	In this particular case, the counselor was not penalized and went under the radar; however, thankfully enough, another counselor who was new to the staff was able to take on the case and assist the client. Even though the struggles in the client’s relationship did not go away completely, the counselor was able to help the client process her thoughts and set a plan for the future. The counselor was a Christian believer, and this did not hinder how she serviced the client, which demonstrated how a professional should handle the case. 
Dignity and the worth of a person is a perfect ethical standard to apply in this case. The social worker in this scenario did not meet the person in her environment but instead displayed a selfish behavior. An alternate approach from the social worker could have involved seeking guidance from a fellow professional on how to assist the client without showing her own biases. When social workers hold themselves accountable, this protects the client as well as the professional and also allows room for development.

	As an emerging social worker, I have already connected with seasoned professionals who can hold me accountable professionally and spiritually. Maintaining a healthy balance with work, family, and self-care will be beneficial at every level. Being consistent with boundaries will avoid burn out, which is all too common in the social work profession.  Continually striving to learn new approaches will also benefit the client.  Mastering the skills that I am already confident in practicing while integrating new interventions will also prove to be a great success.

This article was very enlightening and demonstrated how making the decision to refuse a client would pose as a negative outcome both ways. Social workers  risk jeopardizing their careers and missing out on a learning opportunity to further allow room for professional advancement. Also, because they do not know their clients mental status, until that first face to face contact, they can potentially position the client for failure without realizing it. Their belief systems should not be used as a negative reason to avoid the client, but all the more to help. Social workers should always consider the clients’ well being. Networking with other professionals in the field can  shed light and provide another perspective that will help the case overall. 

References

Counseling Today. (2019). Ethics, religion and diversity - Counseling Today. [online] Available at: https://ct.counseling.org/2018/02/ethics-religion-and-diversity/ [Accessed 28 Oct. 2019].

Ethics, C. and English, C. (2019). Code of Ethics: English. [online] Socialworkers.org. Available at: https://www.socialworkers.org/About/Ethics/Code-of-Ethics/Code-of-Ethics-English [Accessed 28 Oct. 2019].

Resources, E., Month, E. and Action, 6. (2019). 6.04 Social and Political Action. [online] Socialworkers.org. Available at: https://www.socialworkers.org/About/Ethics/Training-and-Education/Ethical-Standard-of-the-Month/Social-and-Political-Action [Accessed 28 Oct. 2019].