Confidentiality In Professional Social Work

Professionalism

During placement I have been solely responsible for organising my diary and managing my caseload. I feel I have completed this task well as I have remained punctual and not double-booked appointments. My caseload has, at times, been fairly heavy and demanding, yet I have still ensured that I have been reliable and competent at meeting deadlines. I achieved this by being organised, prioritising work and recording information accurately.

I predominately have good awareness of professional boundaries as I abided by the agency rules, including not transporting service users, despite being asked by child R. I now, however, recognise how easy it is, when you are too emotionally involved with a case, to lose sight of professional

Maintaining confidentiality has been massively important with all the service users I have worked with, both adults and children alike as BASW (2012) guidelines stipulate that information should not be disclosed without the service user’s consent. One example within my practice where this become evident, was child J.B. This particular child felt sad and unable to discuss feelings surrounding the mother’s absence for fear of upsetting the carers who refused to have the mother’s name mentioned in their presence. With the child’s permission, I attempted to help break down this barrier by explaining to the carers, as the main source of comfort, the importance of them listening to the child’s thoughts. By me highlighting the point of putting the child needs first, the carers have now started to acknowledge and encourage the child to off-load his thoughts and feelings to help him understand his

The family were in need of safety equipment to keep their home safe for their baby, yet they were unable to afford these items. To enhance the family’s economic status, I liaised with other agencies and attempted to obtain these items on their behalf. With this same family, under the Working Together to Safeguard Children agenda (2015), I identified that the family’s needs were too numerous for me alone to contend with. With support, I made an early intervention referral as it was felt that it would be useful for ensuring the children’s needs were being met adequately. However, the Early Help referral was made by working within the principles of human rights where permission was sought beforehand as involvement was entirely