Practising ethically during COVID-19 : social work challenges and responses

Banks, Sarah (author), Cai, Tianxin (author), De Jonge, Ed (author), Shears, Jane (author), Shum Hei Yan, Michelle (author), Sobočan, Ana Marija (author), Strom-Gottfried, Kimberly (author), Truell, Rory (author), Perman, Maria Jesús Uriz (author), Weinberg, Merlinda (author)

This article draws on findings of an international study of social workers' ethical challenges during COVID-19, based on 607 responses to a qualitative survey. Ethical challenges included the following: maintaining trust, privacy, dignity and service user autonomy in remote relationships; allocating limited resources; balancing rights and needs of different parties; deciding whether to break or bend policies in the interests of service users; and handling emotions and ensuring care of self and colleagues. The article considers regional contrasts, the "ethical logistics" of complex decision-making, the impact of societal inequities, and lessons for social workers and professional practice around the globe.

• Language: English
• Keywords: COVID-19, ethical logistics, ethics, inequities, pandemic, social work
• Typology: 1.01 - Original Scientific Article
• Organization: FSD - Faculty of Social Work
• Publication status: Published
• Publication version: Version of Record
• Year: 2020
• Number of pages: Str. 569-583
• Numbering: Vol. 63, iss. 5
• PID: 20.500.12556/RUL-124558
• UDC: 36:17
• ISSN on article: 0020-8728
• DOI: 10.1177/0020872820949614
• COBISS.SI-ID: 27632387
• Publication date in RUL: 02.02.2021

Record is a part of a journal

• Title: International social work
• Shortened title: Int. soc. work
• Publisher: Sage Publishing
• ISSN: 0020-8728
• COBISS.SI-ID: 25666048

Licences

• License: CC BY 4.0, Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International
• Link: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
• Description: This is the standard Creative Commons license that gives others maximum freedom to do what they want with the work as long as they credit the author.
• Licensing start date: 02.02.2021

Secondary language

• Language: Slovenian
• Keywords: COVID-19, etična logistika, etika, neenakopravnost, pandemija, socialno delo

Projects

• Funder: Other - Other funder or multiple funders
• Funding programme: Durham University (UK), Economic and Social Research Council Impact Acceleration Account
• Project number: ES/T501888/1