“A clinical social worker in private (independent) practice communicated with
several of her clients via text messages and email. Some messages concerned
administrative matters, such as scheduling; others included clinical content,
especially when clients contacted the social worker remotely during a crisis.
The social worker received an increasing number of electronic messages on
her personal smartphone account from clients after traditional working hours,
sometimes late at night and on weekends. The social worker wondered whether
communicating with clients outside of traditional working hours was
introducing boundary issues in his relationships with them.” (Reamer, 2023)
I am choosing the first case example to answer because it is an issue that is very common amongst various helping professions in our current technological age. In the example, a private practitioner decided to communicate with their clients using their personal communication device. They began to struggle with setting boundaries with clients about appropriate times for communication. My assessment of this situation is that giving clients access to you outside of work by using your personal phone number can blur the lines of boundaries which can have a negative impact on your professional-client relationship. My remedy to this situation would be that the professional should end communication with their client on their personal phone and set up either a work cell phone or a separate number on their personal phone. This way the professional can set office hours, and the client can be aware of when they are able to reach them. For emergency situations, the professional can add emergency resources on their voicemail for when they are away from their work device.
Unanticipated circumstances are a very common form of boundary dynamics because sometimes dual relationships are unavoidable. For example, I had a family member who worked in a psychiatric hospital in Atlanta decades ago. That family member also happened to be a very active member of the city’s largest church at the time. There were many times that she had to excuse herself from a patient’s case due to knowing them or their family members from church. I can only imagine how much more common that can be now given the availability of everyone’s lives on social media. Most research surrounding unanticipated circumstances concern rural social work, where dual relationships may be unavoidable. They also note that positive experiences may come from dual relationships in rural areas, due to “The desire of many service users in rural areas to ‘place’ the worker” (Pugh, 2007). Due to the size of rural towns, many service workers cannot avoid interacting with clients in their personal lives. It is important that social workers in rural areas are aware of the various social norms of their communities and how to pair them with ethical social work policies.
I think a social media policy could be helpful for current and potential clients. It sets a boundary between the client and professional about online communication. I think with my social media policy I would add hours that I cannot be reached on my phone as well as who to contact when I am unavailable. I think this could be very helpful because setting a boundary in the beginning is easier than having to address it later, which can be uncomfortable or harmful to the relationship. I think it can also protect clients from potential unwarranted communication with their social worker, that way both parties are protected.
The image I have chosen to attach today is a photo of Dr. Sharon Fieldstone from the show Ted Lasso. She is the team’s sports psychologist and therapist. In one episode, she gets a call from Ted while he is having a panic attack and rushes to his home to help. When she arrives he asks if she will charge him for the session, and she replies that she will definitely charge him. I think this was an interesting example of boundary setting because if was not being charged for the house call, I think the lines between therapist and friend could be blurred.
References
Pugh, R. (2007). Dual relationships: Personal and professional boundaries in rural Social Work. British Journal of Social Work, 37(8), 1405–1423. https://doi.org/10.1093/bjsw/bcl088
Reamer, F. G. (2023). Artificial Intelligence in social work: Emerging ethical issues. International Journal of Social Work Values and Ethics, 20(2), 52–71. https://doi.org/10.55521/10-020-205
Hey Ally! I really like the example you chose because it highlights one of the biggest challenges in practice today. technology has made it so easy for clients to reach out anytime, but that constant access can definitely blur professional boundaries. I agree with your assessment that using a personal phone for client communication creates unnecessary complications. Setting up a separate work phone or number is a great solution, and I like the idea of providing emergency contacts on the voicemail so clients know where to turn if you’re unavailable. That creates clear expectations without cutting off support.
Your point about unanticipated circumstances is also important. Even outside of rural areas, it feels like social workers have to navigate dual relationships more often now because of how visible and connected everyone is through social media. I think your family member’s experience really shows how complicated this can get in practice and why self-awareness and ethical guidelines are so crucial.
I also agree that having a social media policy is helpful. Like you said, it’s much easier to set boundaries at the beginning of the relationship than to backtrack later. It protects both the client and the social worker by making expectations clear from the start.
And I loved your Ted Lasso example it’s such a relatable way to illustrate boundaries. Dr. Fieldstone’s response showed that maintaining professional roles, even in moments of crisis, is what keeps the therapeutic relationship healthy and avoids confusing it with friendship.
hey 🙂 I really like the example you chose and how you broke it down. You’re right that using a personal phone can definitely blur boundaries, and I think your solution of having a separate work number and clear office hours makes a lot of sense. Your story about your family member in the psychiatric hospital was also such a good connection. It really shows how unanticipated circumstances can happen in so many different ways. I agree that setting boundaries upfront, like with a social media policy, is easier than trying to fix things later.