Ethical Conflict Involving Social Work Interactions

Social Work Values and Ethics Paper
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Description of the Ethical Dilemma
The ethical dilemma I face is that I have a client who came to the residential treatment facility where I work. I work as a counselor at a substance abuse facility and am a social work major. Upon the client's arrival, I found that he knew me from outside the treatment facility, and based on this relationship, he knew that I was going to bring him cigarettes into the facility. There is the prohibition of carrying or allowing clients on treatment to abuse drugs within the drug abuse treatment facility, as this affects their treatment plan, schedule, and outcome. Also, as a social work major and a counselor, I should ensure that I maintain the value of human relationships, which is essential in therapy (Scarvaglieri, 2020). The dilemma is that I am obliged to maintain a relationship with the client, which will affect the outcome of the counseling sessions, and also have integrity in protecting the ethical standards of the institution, which is the prohibition of allowing or bringing substances for clients, especially those under treatment for substance abuse disorder. This paper highlights the National Association of Social Workers (NASW) Code of Ethics concerning the ethical dilemma and opposing code of ethics. It explores various values associated with the moral dilemma, agencies and laws regarding the ethical dilemma, actions to the ethical dilemma, and consequences of the activities and then recommends a solution to the problem.
NASW Code of Ethics
The NASW Code of Ethics can be theorized as a combination of ideals and principles that guide the conduct of social workers in their professional setting. The behavior is usually between the social workers and their professional work, clients, colleagues, practice settings, and the broader society (NASW, 2021). The NASW Code of Ethics provides ethical canons anchored on social work's fundamental values and ethical standards that assist in dealing with ethical issues or dilemmas in the social work profession. More specifically, fundamental social values, including service to humanity, social justice, an individual's self-worth and dignity, the value of human relationships, integrity, and competence, guide the ethical canons. In this vein, the abovementioned dilemma proves relevant to the NASW's ethical codes. For instance, the first challenged ethical value is the service. The moral principle for the value of service claims that social workers aim to help people in need and address their social problems (NASW, 2021). As a social worker in the substance abuse treatment setting, I am expected to be of service to the clients and the community population at large. The client requires cigarettes, and according to the ethical value of service, I should not bring such a detrimental substance to him. Nevertheless, in the practice setting, social workers should ensure that they do not get substances to abuse the clients, which brings an ethical dilemma. The moral value of integrity is also affected and opposes the action to bring the cigarette to the client.
According to the honest value of innocence, the ethical principle claims that soci...