DISCUSSION PAPER:
SOCIAL WORK PRACTICE ON MULTIMEDIA PLATFORMS
Social Work Students
University of Newcastle
Australia, NSW 2308
(Introduction)
· (Remembering- this discussion paper will be distributed in the district to encourage staff to consider the opportunities and challenges a multimedia platform can offer)
Challenges
· (Literature review of challenges to social work practice over the web)
· (Include examples of OOHC, child protection, or similar fields)
Solutions
· (Literature review of possible solutions to social work practice over the web)
· (Include examples of OOHC, child protection, or similar fields)
(Conclusion)
· (Remembering- this discussion paper will be distributed in the district to encourage staff to consider the opportunities and challenges a multimedia platform can offer)
Bibliography
Social Work, Technology, and Ethical Practices: A Review and Evaluation of the National Association of Social Workers' Technology Standards
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Social Work in Health Care
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Social Work, Technology, and Ethical Practices: A
Review and Evaluation of the National Association
of Social Workers’ Technology Standards
Amy Lopez
To cite this article: Amy Lopez XXXXXXXXXXSocial Work, Technology, and Ethical Practices: A Review
and Evaluation of the National Association of Social Workers’ Technology Standards, Social Work
in Health Care, 53:9, XXXXXXXXXX, DOI: XXXXXXXXXX/ XXXXXXXXXX
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Social Work in Health Care, 53:815–833, 2014
Copyright © Taylor & Francis Group, LLC
ISSN: XXXXXXXXXXprint/1541-034X online
DOI: XXXXXXXXXX/ XXXXXXXXXX
Social Work, Technology, and Ethical
Practices: A Review and Evaluation of the
National Association of Social Workers’
Technology Standards
AMY LOPEZ, PhD
Graduate School of Social Work, University of Denver, Denver, Colorado, USA
Information and communication technologies (ICTs) are becom-
ing essential to social work practice by providing increased treat-
ment possibilities and reducing ba
iers to service. While recogniz-
ing the importance of ICTs in practice, social work practitioners
have had concerns about ethical use. In response, NASW compiled
the Standards for Technology and Social Work Practice. While the
guidelines set the groundwork, they were not embedded in a process
that would allow them to adapt to the swift pace of ICT changes.
This article reviews the cu
ent Standards, evaluates how these
have been implemented by practitioners, and offers suggestions fo
updates.
KEYWORDS technology, ethical practices, NASW Technology
Standards
INTRODUCTION
Through their Facebook and Twitter feeds, the National Association of Social
Workers posed this question to their friends and followers: “What are you
thoughts on online therapy and virtual clinical social work practice? Legal
and ethical concerns? What technology would be best to facilitate social work
practice online?” (National Association of Social Workers [NASW], Novembe
4, XXXXXXXXXXWhile the responses from Facebook friends and Twitter followers
Received April 1, 2014; accepted June 26, 2014.
Address co
espondence to Amy Lopez, PhD, University of Denver, Graduate School of
Social Work, 2148 S. High Street, Denver, CO XXXXXXXXXXE-mail: XXXXXXXXXX
815
816 A. Lopez
were mixed, those responding acknowledged the potential benefits of being
able to provide services to remote or disenfranchised populations. Despite
positive support, there were also several statements about concerns about
ethical practices when using technology, such as maintaining confidentiality
or concerns regarding social work clients who may not have the financial
esources to participate in technology based activities. In addition to these
comments, the friends and followers on the social media sites acknowledge
they have been using technology based communications, but without much
guidance as to how to proceed.
Since NASW is communicating with a social media audience concerning
elevant practice questions, one must assume that NASW believes that a siz-
able portion of the audience who would respond to questions about “online
therapy” and “virtual clinical practice” regularly use Facebook and Twitter.
It is clear that there are two issues embedded in this example. The first issue
is a social work practice issue. In other words, there are pressing needs to
examine the principles that will guide social workers in their use and applica-
tion of ICTs in the various fields of practice (i.e., in mental health, substance
abuse, child welfare, administration, community organization). The second
issue relates to the ubiquity of ICT use in American life. In other words, ICTs
are in use in everywhere and in every field of practice, including professional
organizations like NASW, despite legal and ethical issues.
As ICT practices have increased over the past ten years, concerns have
een raised by mental health professionals about their use in the therapeutic
encounter. Several different mental health practice organizations have devel-
oped Codes of Conduct related to the practice of “online therapy” (Recupero
& Rainey, 2005; Ross, XXXXXXXXXXSocial work responded to the need for guidance
with Standards for Technology and Social Work Practice (NASW & ASWB.
2005). In this document, NASW and the Association for Social Work Boards
(ASWB) developed eight specific standards to address issues related to the
use of technology in the social work field. While these standards provided
a foundation for ethical ICT practices and address many concerns, they
are ambiguous, abstract, and increasingly out of date. This article outlines
the standards as they are now, provides studies related to how these stan-
dards have been implemented, and provides suggestions for revisions of the
guidelines based on new and emerging technologies.
FEDERAL AND STATE LAWS REGULATIONS OF ONLINE SOCIAL
WORK PRACTICES
While there are laws and policies that provide some guidance about mental
health treatment and social work services in general, there are no specific
Social Work, Technology, and Ethical Practices 817
federal laws directly related to the provision of online treatment services
(Cwiek, Rafiq, Qamar, Tobey, & Me
ell, XXXXXXXXXXAlthough bills have been
introduced requesting both funding and co
oboration of states regarding
licensing rules, there is not cu
ently a statute that addresses national o
international provision of medical or mental health services online (U.S.
Department of Health and Human Services, Health Services and Resource
Administration, XXXXXXXXXXThe provision of online services has received sup-
port from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, allowing fo
eimbursement of psychiatric telehealth, including mental health therapy,
for Medicare and Medicaid patients (Centers for Medicare and Medicaid,
2013).
Although some therapy practices have some federal guidelines, fo
the most part, each state is responsible for creating and enforcing laws
and regulations related to the provision of social work services and psy-
chotherapy practices, including online therapies (Beahrs & Gutheil, 2001).
The first of the states to address online therapy practices was California.
Under the Telemedicine Development Act of 1996, a health care practitione
was permitted to provide medical services using interactive audio, video,
or data communications without person-to-person contact with the patient
(CA Assembly Bill 116, XXXXXXXXXXHowever, it was not until 2003 that mental
health practitioners, including, psychologists, ma
iage and family therapists,
and clinical social worker were included as eligible providers of telehealth
services (Centers for Technology and e-Health, XXXXXXXXXXOnly 10 other states
also regulate technology based medical practices, but the levels of regulation
vary greatly by state (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Health
Resources and Service Administration [HRSA], 2013).
When issues are of importance, but not yet addressed by state or federal
policies, practice organizations may choose to address such issues in thei
Codes of Ethics. As state and federal policies vary in terms of regulations
of the practice of online therapy, practice organizations are addressing the
issue (Recupero & Rainey, 2005; Santhiveeran, XXXXXXXXXXThe NASW and ASWB
determined the need to acknowledge the use of technology within social
work practices. The NASW/ASWB Standards for Technology and Social Work
Practice XXXXXXXXXXwere created as a set of ethical guidelines and recommen-
dations on how the social work profession should proceed in this new area.
While these suggestions outlined in the Standards for Technology and Social
Work practice offer guidelines and recommendations for practice, at this
time, that is all they are—recommendations. As the NASW Code of Ethics
states, “A code of ethics cannot guarantee ethical behavior. Moreover, a
code of ethics cannot resolve all ethical issues or disputes or capture the
ichness and complexity involved in striving to make responsible choices”
(NASW, XXXXXXXXXXAs such, although ethical online social workers are expected
818 A. Lopez
to follow these standards of treatment, at this time, there is really no way to
enforce them. Reviews of e-therapy sites and surveys of online counselors
demonstrate that while some practitioners are attempting to follow ethical
guidelines, there are those who are not (Finn & Barak, 2010; Santhiveeran,
2009, Shaw & Shaw, XXXXXXXXXXDespite the fact that there is little way to enforce
these standards, they do offer guidelines to those who want to implement
these practices in an ethical and appropriate manner.
Evaluation of the Technology Practice Standards
In the development of these guidelines, several issues were raised as con-
cerns including possible technology failures, data security and management,
and credibility of those representing themselves as social workers. In addi-
tion, because through the Internet, social workers can have an international
client base, there were concerns about legal and cultural issues when prac-
titioners are able to do their work worldwide (NASW & ASWB., XXXXXXXXXXEach
of these concerns is addressed in a specific standard to provide guidance
and recommendations. The goals of these standards are “to maintain and
improve the quality of technology-related services provided by social work-
ers, to serve as a guide to social workers incorporating technology into
their services” (NASW & ASWB., 2005, p. 8). Through their eight areas of
interest, the NASW/ASWB have attempted to outline responsible practice
of social work in a digital age. While some of the areas of concern are
already areas may be addressed by state laws regulating psychotherapy,
some of the other standards remain primarily recommendations for ethi-
cal practice. By evaluating each standard individually, it can be determined
which standards have been useful, which need to be revised and which may
e covered, or should be, under stricter guidelines, such as state or federal
law.
STANDARD ONE: ETHICS AND VALUES
“Social workers providing services via the telephone or other electronic
means shall act ethically, ensure professional competence, protect clients,
and uphold the values of the profession” (NASW & ASWB., 2005, p. 4). This
standard simply reinforces that social workers engaged in online practices
should follow all guidelines already in place through the NASW Code of
Ethics (NASW, XXXXXXXXXXThis first standard sets the foundation for the rest of
the expectations and asserts that the values of social work practice. Although