Introduction
As a matter of fact, mental health may be regarded as a state that affects how individuals think, feel, and act. It includes the psychological, emotional, and social well-being of a person. At the same time, ethics is a system of moral principles that affect how people make choices in their lives. It is concerned with what is good for the individual and society at large. Mental health and ethics are associated with particular social justice issues, which may be geared by the separation of families at the border and cyberbullying. Moreover, ethics and social justice in mental health systems will help society to understand that a patient’s suffering is caused by a mental health disorder that can be treated. Finally, mental health is a social problem that affects everyone globally and derives from multiple associated issues, including street fights, drug abuse, and many others.
Ethical Dilemmas
Patients with mental health issues are more likely to have ethical concerns due to the peculiarities of their health condition. According to the ethical standards of the NASW Code of Ethics, “social workers should provide services to clients only in the context of a professional relationship based, when appropriate, on valid informed consent” (NASW, n.d., para. 3). However, the mental health patient is frequently not in a position to make sound decisions for themselves, and these peculiarities are in conflict with appropriate and ethical mental health care delivery. In addition, ethical principles presuppose a respectful and non-judgmental attitude toward patients, however, DSM-5 is inevitably connected with assessment and judgment for appropriate diagnosis (NASW, n.d.). Another ethical dilemma is the values of the intended beneficiaries that may clash with the ones of the humanitarian institution. For instance, a social worker should consider a patient’s values, beliefs, and interests, however, they may be in conflict with the principles of health care delivery, negatively impacting this process (NASW, n.d.). In addition, ethical conflicts may be perceived within a hierarchy of moral obligations. Clinicians have moral duties and moral codes to the mental health patients acting in their interests, however, specialists’ personal values may contradict their responsibilities.
Social Justice Issues
Many developing countries lack the infrastructure, labor force, and resources necessary to manage mental health issues. Caregiving responsibilities for those with mental health issues typically fall on women and children in poor nations (Ngui et al., 2010). A major obstacle to seeking mental health care is stigma. Unfavorable views, scientifically meaningless diagnoses, and prejudices have a big influence on the patients and create stigmas (University of Liverpool, 2019). They are significant obstacles that hinder managing patients with mental problems.
According to the ethical principle of social justice, social workers must fight social injustice. In general, social workers aim to initiate social change by helping oppressed and marginalized populations, including people with mental disorders (NASW, 2017). In addition, patients with mental problems face severe discrimination in the labor market. As a result, a considerable number of them are particularly vulnerable to social problems such as drug abuse, disability, crime, and unemployment. Mental health professionals have a specific obligation to recognize these injustices and act to promote mental health equity on behalf of patients and their families. They work to guarantee everyone has an equal opportunity to participate effectively in decision-making.
Social Workers as Advocates
The NASW Code of Ethics includes the ethical concept of service, which demonstrates how social workers enhance service to others. This runs counter to how mental health services are delivered, which offer services that are (Ngui et al., 2010). They offer thorough, inclusive, egalitarian, and stigma-free care considering the needs of every individual, regardless of culture, age, religion, or language. The social worker can promote social work ethics and values in connection to DSM by addressing some of the ethical issues listed below.
As previously mentioned, one of the most essential ethical issues is respect. Ethics principles, including being nonjudgmental and focusing on clients’ strengths, should be associated with the social worker’s value of respect, worth, and dignity for all individuals (Barsky, 2017; NASW, n.d.). For example, in relation to addiction, calling a person an alcoholic may be regarded as a moral judgment that indicates flaws like apathy, moral weakness, or irresponsibility. Thus, social professionals who utilize diagnoses ought to refrain from using phrases that reduce the individual to a diagnostic out of respect.
Another ethical issue that occurs when making a decision is empowerment. According to Barsky (2015), giving clients the time, space, support, and other assistance, clinicians should realize that patients need to have more control over their life. Empowerment is a sign of respect for the value and dignity of customers as independent beings with the ability to make their own decisions. By teaching the client about the diagnosis process and giving them the opportunity to participate equally in identifying potential conditions, a social worker may allay their fears.
Professional competence or having requisite knowledge is one more ethical issue. Client diagnoses should only be performed by employees who have received the necessary training, attributes, supervision, knowledge, skills, and abilities that are specifically valued by the professional associations as well as a license. A worker should send a client to a suitably certified mental health expert in the event that the client requires a formal diagnosis for medication.
There are a number of ethical principles that may be in conflict with the mental health system. One of the principles is beneficence – the physician’s obligation to act in a patient’s interests on the basis of moral rules to benefit his mental health and prevent harm. The main aim is to promote the welfare of the individual, for example, through paying for bills of the patients. Another ethical principle is non-maleficence, the obligation of the physician not to harm the patients. For instance, the physician is not supposed to kill or induce pain or cause harm or suffering rather than to relieve the suffering. The last principle is autonomy which presupposes individuals’ freedom and power to make moral choices and rational decisions.
Social workers serve in the mental health systems as advocates to uphold social values in a number of ways. A social worker works to uphold a person’s dignity and value, for instance, by lobbying government authorities, working with them to effect change, or forming coalitions around specific concerns in the community to advocate for change. Regardless of skin tone or cultural variety, they make sure that everyone is appreciated. Social workers provide mental health services to anybody in need in the community and strive to solve social issues without favoring any group over another. For instance, they advocate for increased social justice in a variety of important areas. In particular, they battle racism, injustice, gender inequity, and prejudice by fighting for more power for marginalized populations and providing health care delivery for them.
Conclusion
To conclude, ethics and social justice play crucial roles in the mental health system and should be upheld to ensure a safe society for all taking into consideration the existence of multiple social issues and ethical concerns. Addressing the latter and protecting all populations, social workers will provide equality in offering medical services without discrimination. Everyone has a right to equality despite their health status, ethnic community, color, and social status. Mental problem is not a taboo that is faced in certain communities, but it is a social problem that can affect anyone.
References
Barsky, A. (2015). DSM-5 and the ethics of diagnosis. The New Social Worker Online. Web.
Barsky, A. (2017). Ethics Alive! The 2017 NASW code of ethics: What’s new. The New Social Worker. Web.
Edition, F. (2013). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders. American Psychiatric Association, 21(21), 591-643. Web.
NASW (2017). NASW Code of Ethics. Web.
NASW (n.d.). 1. Social workers’ ethical responsibilities to clients. Web.
Ngui, E. M., Khasakhala, L., Ndetei, D., & Roberts, L. W. (2010). Mental disorders, health inequalities and ethics: A global perspective. International Review on Psychiatry, 22(3), 235-244. Web.
University of Liverpool. (2019). Psychiatric diagnosis ‘scientifically meaningless‘. ScienceDaily. Web.