1. I chose the case where a client reached out to their social worker on Facebook. I chose this example because it feels common and realistic in today’s digital world. Many clients may want to connect online, but doing so risks blurring personal and professional boundaries. My assessment of the situation is that while the client’s request may have been harmless, accepting it could compromise confidentiality, expose the client to unintended information, and weaken the professional relationship. The remedy should involve the social worker kindly declining the request while explaining professional boundaries. The worker could also use this as a teaching moment to discuss why those boundaries are important for maintaining trust and confidentiality.
2. The boundary dynamic I want to focus on is role boundaries. Online spaces make it really easy for personal and professional roles to overlap, especially on social media. I’ve seen examples of this when clients message workers outside official channels or when workers accidentally see clients’ personal posts online. It can get messy fast. I also found an article by Barsky (2017) that talks about these risks. He points out that workers need clear policies and self-awareness to avoid crossing lines online. This showed me that boundary-setting in the digital world has to be proactive.
3. Reamer suggests that agencies create a social media policy and share it with clients. I think this is a great idea. It sets expectations right from the start and avoids messy situations later. A strong policy could explain that workers will not accept friend requests or follows from clients, that communication should only happen through official and secure channels. It should also make clear what to do in emergencies and when digital communication is appropriate. I think this kind of policy would be very effective because it clears up confusion before it starts. Clients know the expectations upfront.
References
Barsky, A. E. (2017). Ethical issues in social work practice with digital technology. Journal of Social Work Values and Ethics, 14(2), 33–40.
Reamer, F. G. (2013). Social work in a digital age: Ethical and risk management challenges. Social Work, 58(2), 163–172. https://doi.org/10.1093/sw/swt003
Nia,
Your response to the first question makes sense, but I have one other question. I think if you are working with clients in a clinical relationship you have to ask yourself whether or not it makes sense for you to be participating in an online forum at all. I agree with your solution, as the social worker is active and the client asked to friend her. But I would also recommend that the social worker get off the platform.
i think your second question was basically a repeat of your firstl. Even though you are looking at a similar problem, you could have expanded on that response, And you don’t really talk about the article at all. Your single sentence doesn’t really tell me much about what you learned from your reading of the article and how it informed your opinion on this issue.
Fine on Question three.
Dr P