Assignment task:
You are a social worker employed in a community behavioral health agency. You are a therapist who sees children and families in their homes. You are working with a family to implement a behavioral plan for a 4-year-old diagnosed with autism. Through a series of events, you discover that the family does not have running water in the home because the landlord shut the water off to the entire apartment building which includes 18 apartments. The family informs you the entire building has been without water for 6 days with no end in sight. You arrived at the home today intending to focus on the behavioral plan, but are concerned the family and apartment building residents' basic need of access to water is not being met.
1.) What ethical considerations and potential challenges do you foresee when engaging with colleagues and other professionals to gather information about the water crisis and its solutions in this scenario?
2.) How would you ensure that the transition of responsibility from addressing the water issue to the caseworker or competent authority is seamless and that the family feels supported throughout this process, considering the dignity and worth of the individuals involved?
3.) How do you plan to balance the immediate needs of the tenants who lack water with the ongoing work on developing a behavioral plan for the child with autism?
4.) What steps should the social worker take to ensure a balanced approach to address both the immediate water crisis in the apartment building and the child's therapy needs while upholding the core values and principles of the social work profession?