Reference no: EM132216440
Substance Abuse
Substance abuse is perceived in a variety of ways by different entities. The court system may view substance abuse as a criminal activity. The medical and social work fields may view it as evidence of a disease or disorder. Uninformed individuals may view substance abuse as a personal choice or weakness. Decisions about how to address and respond to this social problem influence the development of effective policies.
This week, you explore the impact of drug policies on clients and populations. You identify the ethical obligations of social workers in changing drug policies. You also identify a social justice issue for which you can advocate and write a letter to a legislative representative.
Drug Policies and Ethics
The NASW Code of Ethics provides social workers with guidelines and standards for interacting with clients, colleagues, communities, and society, as a whole. These standards govern interactions and professional behavior of social work practitioners. The NASW has also developed specific standards, which are published in the NASW Standards for Social Work Practice With Clients With Substance Use Disorders.
These standards emphasize the importance of the competence of social workers. The standards indicate that social workers should be knowledgeable of evidence-based interventions for substance disorders. The confidentiality standard becomes essential as social workers must be informed and comply with federal, state, and local laws about substance use, as well as third-party payee regulations.
For this Discussion, review this week's resources, including the case Working with Clients with Dual Diagnosis: The Case of Joe,and consider how social policies affect Joe's circumstances as described in the case study. Then, think about any gaps in service you found in Joe's case. Finally, reflect on how you might address these gaps or make changes to the policies that affect Joe.
Working With Clients With Dual Diagnosis: The Case of Joe
Joe is a 34-year-old, Caucasian male who came to the County Division of Social Services to apply for General Assistance (GA) benefits. The GA program provides cash assistance, Medicaid coverage, and housing for homeless single adults. Joe is in need of Medicaid benefits in order to remain active in his treatment program.
Joe is receiving treatment at the Mentally Ill Chemical Abuser (MICA) partial hospitalization program at the local community mental health center for clients who are dually diagnosed. Joe has a dependence on marijuana, although he has stopped using it for approximately six months, and has been diagnosed with major depressive disorder. He is being prescribed medication.
Joe reports that he is unable to work due to mental illness, and without an income or health insurance, he is unable to obtain his medication. Joe reports that while he was enrolled as a student at the state university, he would sell marijuana to other college students. Eventually, he was arrested and convicted of possession with intent to distribute a controlled dangerous substance (CDS) and served 3 years in prison. Joe has had no further arrests; however, he has not been able to secure permanent housing or employment since his release.
Joe reports that this event has ruined his life. His lack of employment results from an inability to pass most background checks. If he discloses that he was arrested, Joe reports that he is never called for interviews. But when he once failed to disclose the information to the prospective employer, Joe was terminated for lying on his application. Joe believes that he has little hope for future employment.
Joe has few natural supports in his life. He reports that following the incarceration, his family distanced itself from him and his girlfriend at the time broke up with him. He reports that his only supports are his local Narcotics Anonymous (NA) sponsor and his mental health counselor. Joe reports that his housing situation has been unstable and sporadic for the past 10 years.
Joe's mental health counselor from the MICA program has contacted me to advocate for Joe's approval for benefits. I explained that under the current state regulations, Joe is ineligible for benefits due to his CDS distribution conviction. The only program options that I can offer him are food stamps and access to a homeless shelter outside of the county. The counselor explained that relocation would cause a disruption to Joe's mental health treatment and would cause him to lose contact with his local NA sponsor.
In response to the counselor's concerns, I suggested that Joe contact the local faith-based organization for assistance. Although they do not house single males, they have an extensive network of volunteers, mentors, and donors who may financially support people in need. I referred Joe to a program that offers bonding to people seeking employment who have been previously incarcerated. Finally, I suggested that the counselor research Joe's ability to remain in treatment at the hospital despite his lack of Medicaid coverage. The counselor agreed to assist Joe with these suggestions.
Post an explanation of how drug policies affect Joe's circumstances, as described in the case study. Then, explain any gaps in service you found in Joe's case as a result of the drug policies described in the case study. Finally, describe a strategy you might use to address these gaps or make changes to the policies that affect Joe.
Assignment: Advocating with Policy Makers
In social work, advocacy is very important to promote social change. Letters are often used as an effective tool to bring attention to social justice issues. This assignment requires you to choose a social justice issue that is important to you, gather current research and data on the subject matter, and write a one page professional and formal letter to your elected local, state, or national representative responsible for your social justice matter you have identified.
Choose a social welfare problem that you believe is in need of change and write a letter to an elected local, state, or federal official regarding the issue you have chosen. You are not required to send the letter; however, it must be written in a professional, well organized, clear, and concise format.
Writing letters to public officials is a form of political advocacy for clients and social workers. For this Assignment, you will write an advocacy letter to public official about a problem and a policy. In addition, you will write a 1-2 page explanation of your letter. Your explanation will provide the rationale behind your chosen issue and the approach you took with the specific representative.
Assignment: In the same document, submit both Part I and II of the assignment (2-4 pages):
Part I: Letter to Representative
Your letter should include:
A description of the social welfare issue
An explanation of how you want the legislator to respond to the issue (vote, create legislation, hold public hearings, etc.) and why.
Support of your viewpoints with credible facts and research.
Part II: Explanation (1-2 pages, double-space, APA format)
For this part of the assignment, provide an explanation of:
Why you selected the issue
How the issue affects social work
The reason you chose the specific representative
The approach you took with the representative (consider the representative's voting history, political affiliation, and any other factors you considered)
Support your post with specific references to the resources. Be sure to provide full APA citations for your references.
Read a selection of your colleagues' posts.
Respond to at least two colleagues with a critique of the gaps in service they identified for Joe. Then, describe a substance abuse or drug policy that you believe is unjust or disproportionately affects a certain group or population. Finally, describe the ethical obligations of social workers to make changes to substance abuse policies.
Assignment: Advocating with Policy Makers
In social work, advocacy is very important to promote social change. Letters are often used as an effective tool to bring attention to social justice issues. This assignment requires you to choose a social justice issue that is important to you, gather current research and data on the subject matter, and write a one page professional and formal letter to your elected local, state, or national representative responsible for your social justice matter you have identified.
Choose a social welfare problem that you believe is in need of change and write a letter to an elected local, state, or federal official regarding the issue you have chosen. You are not required to send the letter; however, it must be written in a professional, well organized, clear, and concise format.
Writing letters to public officials is a form of political advocacy for clients and social workers. For this Assignment, you will write an advocacy letter to public official about a problem and a policy. In addition, you will write a 1-2 page explanation of your letter. Your explanation will provide the rationale behind your chosen issue and the approach you took with the specific representative.
Assignment: In the same document, submit both Part I and II of the assignment (2-4 pages):
Part I: Letter to Representative
Your letter should include:
A description of the social welfare issue
An explanation of how you want the legislator to respond to the issue (vote, create legislation, hold public hearings, etc.) and why.
Support of your viewpoints with credible facts and research.
Part II: Explanation (1-2 pages, double-space, APA format)
For this part of the assignment, provide an explanation of:
Why you selected the issue
How the issue affects social work
The reason you chose the specific representative
The approach you took with the representative (consider the representative's voting history, political affiliation, and any other factors you considered)