● Be diligent stewards of agency resources. In general, mental health practitioners should support their agency’s mission, vision, and values and also its policies and practices – in essence maintain loyalty to the organization or agency they are committed to. That is not to say one should disregard the profession’s standards and ethical codes of conduct. When an employer engages in unethical practices, whether knowingly or not, the worker still has an obligation to voice those concerns through proper channels and advocate for needed change, while conducting oneself in a manner that minimizes disruption. But what does the worker do when faced with an ethical dilemma in the workplace that is not easily solved? Reamer’s (2006) review of the NASW Code of Ethics discussed the challenge a social worker may have in deciding whether or not to continue honoring a commitment to the employer: This broaches the broader subject of civil disobedience, that is, determining when active violation of laws, policies, Labor-management disputes Mental health practitioners are generally allowed to engage in organized action, including the formation and participation in labor unions, to improve services to clients and working conditions. When involved in a dispute, job action, or strike, workers should carefully weigh the possible impact on clients and be guided by their profession’s ethical values and principals prior to taking action. Professional competence The following guidelines discuss professional competence in mental health practice: ● Accept responsibilities or employment only if competent or there is a plan to acquire necessary skills. ● Routinely review emerging changes, trends, and best practices in the mental health field, and seek ongoing training and educational opportunities. ● Use empirically validated knowledge to guide practice/ interventions. ● Disclose potential conflicts of interest. ● Do not provide services that create a conflict of interest that may impair work performance or clinical judgment. Burnout and compassion fatigue An area receiving increasing attention is that of burnout and compassion fatigue. The consequences of burnout and compassion fatigue (or any other form of professional impairment) include the risk of malpractice action. Resulting from the effects of day-to-day annoyances, overburdened workloads, crises, and other stressors in the workplace, burnout and compassion fatigue can be serious and may be considered similar in many ways to acute stress and post-traumatic stress disorder. Burnout According to Maslach and Leiter (2016), burnout is “a psychological syndrome emerging as a prolonged response to chronic interpersonal stressors on the job.” This syndrome is characterized by “overwhelming exhaustion, feelings of cynicism and detachment from the job, and a sense of ineffectiveness and lack of accomplishment.” Burnout occurs when gradual exposure to job strain leads to an erosion of idealism with little hope of resolving a situation. In other words, when mental health practitioners experience burnout: ● Their coping skills are weakened. ● They are emotionally and physically drained. ● They feel that what they do does not matter anymore. ● They feel a loss of control. ● They are overwhelmed.
and regulations is justifiable on ethical grounds. Most social workers acknowledge that certain extraordinary circumstances require social disobedience. Reamer believes that it is possible to provide clear guidelines about when it is acceptable to break one’s commitment to an employer. He poses several questions that must be explored before taking action: 1. Is the cause a just one? Is the issue so unjust that civil disobedience is necessary? 2. Is civil disobedience the last resort? 3. Does the act of civil disobedience have a reasonable expectation of success? 4. Do the benefits likely to result clearly outweigh negative outcomes, such as intra-organizational discord and erosion of staff respect for authority? 5. If warranted, does civil disobedience entail the least disruption required to rectify the targeted injustice? In 2013, Morgan and Polowy, attorneys for the National Association of Social Workers, wrote that: When social workers engage in union activities on their own behalf they are expected to do so in a professionally responsible manner so that work-stoppages may be avoided if possible and/or to provide the legally-required notice so that dispute resolution mechanisms may be employed to lessen the potential impact on clients or patients. In addition to education and experience, mental health practitioners need to be cognizant of their personal behavior and functioning and its effects on practice: ● Refrain from private conduct that interferes with one’s ability to practice professionally. ● Do not allow personal problems (e.g., emotional, legal, substance abuse) to impact one’s ability to practice professionally or jeopardize the best interests of clients. ● Seek appropriate professional assistance for personal problems or conflicts that may impair work performance or critical judgment. ● Take responsible actions when personal problems interfere with professional judgment and performance. Burnout manifests as “physical and emotional exhaustion,” “cynicism and detachment,” and “feelings of ineffectiveness and lack of accomplishment” (Carter, 2013). Within these overall symptoms are feelings of apathy and detachment, which are disastrous for anyone in a helping profession and for his or her clients. According to the Mayo Clinic (2018), causes of job burnout include: ● Lack of control : Being left out of decision making that directly affects the individual’s schedule or workload, for example. ● Unclear job expectations : Feeling unclear about what is expected or one’s degree of authority. ● Dysfunctional workplace dynamics : Bullying and micromanagement or feeling undermined by colleagues. ● Extremes of activity : Encountering monotony or chaos. ● Lack of social support : Feeling isolated at work and at home. ● Work-life imbalance : Too much time spent working and not enough enjoying other aspects of life. The Mayo Clinic puts working in a helping profession in a list of risk factors for job burnout. Other risk factors are: ● Identifying so strongly with work as to create a work-life imbalance. ● Having a high workload.
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