Moral Ethic Dilemma

What would you do if you worked at a social services agency and suspected that one of your clients abused their children ? Would you report these abusive parents to Child Protective Services (CPS ? What a more difficult scenario ensues because your agency holds ethical standards that requires you to warn the client ahead of time that you intend to report them ? Why would you , or anyone for that matter , need to warn an abusive parent that they will have an impending complaint d with the CPS ? The idea , as unfathomable as it may

seem , comes from an ethical theory called deontology . Deontology derives from the Greek word deon , meaning duty , and refers to points of view in which actions are viewed as inherently ethical or not . Teleology derives from the Greek teios , or goal , and is used to label theories in which what is ethical or moral is determined by the effects or consequences of the actions (Lefkowitz , 2003 ,

. 40 . To better understand the implementation of this theory and its usefulness in the world of social services , a closer look at an account that occurred to a psychosocial rehabilitation worker (PSRW ) employed by health and welfare

Janet had just finished her bachelor 's degree in psychology and went to work for the Health and Welfare Agency of her local county . As a social services worker who had limited experience in the field and had only her book learning and the insight of her clinical supervisor to guide her Janet found herself overwhelmed in the day to day difficulties that her clients presented . Many such clients had mental handicaps or mental illnesses and struggled with everything including their basic life skills

The client 's impairments and inabilities to hold stable jobs compounded and left them in low income situations with little to no resources available to them . Often drug use and alcoholism acted as crutches to these individuals who would rather drown their problems in substance abuse rather than struggle to cope with them in a healthy manner Children of such clients had as much trouble as their parents . Their own despair and shortcomings left them with depression and behavioral problems such as Opposistional Defiant Dis (ODD . While these behaviors did not merit a call to CPS , Janet finally stumbled across some things that did

A female client of Janet 's had low cognitive functioning abilities and was plagued with depression . As such , her children often fell to the mercy of their stepfather while the client locked herself up in her bedroom for days at a time . While visiting the client one afternoon Janet noticed the children running around with bruises on their arms bruises that had noticeable fingerprint patterns it was as if someone had held onto them tightly enough to cause damage . Later during the session , the client 's son ran through the house without a shirt on since he was running late and trying to change for soccer practice . Janet saw gashes on the boy 's back...