Examining Social Work Values: The Nova Scotia Long-Term Care Crisis

This essay examines the violation of core social work values, specifically advocacy for social justice and upholding human dignity, within Nova Scotia's long-term care system, as highlighted in a news article. The author identifies how the current system fails to provide adequate care and appropriate facilities for physically disabled individuals, leading to a violation of their social justice rights. The essay further discusses the compromised dignity of these individuals due to their placement alongside elderly patients with dementia and the provision of only minimum standards of care. Reflecting on these issues, the author expresses a commitment to enhancing competence, upholding human dignity, and advocating for changes that prioritize the best interests of clients within the social work profession. The author concludes by emphasizing the importance of observing individual dignity and social justice to enhance public trust and advocate for change in the best interest of clients in the social work profession. Desklib offers a wide range of solved assignments and study resources for students.

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1. Social work values are important part of social workers and social services workers
profession and form basis for codes of conduct for members (Smith, 2014). On the article
“It’s basically a warehouse for the dying’: Nova Scotians call for overhaul of long-term
care homes...” I have noted two core social work values that have been violated. These
values of advocacy for social justice and upholding human dignity. The Nova Scotians
who have physical disabilities feel that that the long term care homes only meet their
basic needs and there is need for the government to overhaul the system (Keefe, 2019).
Joanne Larade, a 47 year old who has lived in the long term care for 6 year explanation
outlines issues of social values concern that need to be addressed. The physically disabled
Nova Scotians do not have own facilities and they have to share with elderly people.
Their social justice core value has been violated by denying people with physical
disabilities in need long term care a facility and privilege of their own. This situation has
been in happening for years until the physically disabled come out to demand things to be
done sooner. In this case, a social service worker or social worker should be responsible
of advocating for change for the best interests of physically disabled people in need of
long term care for the benefit of the society and global community (OCSWSSW, 2018).
Secondly, there is violation of dignity of physically disabled who need long term care.
They are placed together with elderly people and have dementia that degrades their
human worth. This situation is embarrassing even to the patient’s families. They feel the
nursing homes are dying warehouses and they need to live a normal life. They also feel
that they are provided minimum standards of care instead of high quality care to enhance
their normal living. The patients also felt they lacked emotional and recreational support.
This situation violates the eighth Core Ethics that requires social service workers and
social workers not to provide their profession in a manner discrediting the profession or
diminishes public’s trust.
2. The issues on the article of Nova Scotians with physical disabilities overhaul long term
care homes have challenged me. First, I realized that people want to be treated to the
highest standards possible. This entails that it not enough to just meet minimum standards
but rather enhance competence to uphold human dignity when practicing social works.
Therefore, I am challenged to not only meet standards but strive to enhance the need to
live a normal life. Secondly, I have been challenged to be observant when making

placement to avoid violating social justices of people. For instance, people of different
age group should have different placement for better delivery of social works. The article
shows that placing patients with long term care needs together with adults who have
advanced age undermines their dignity. People of different age group need different
emotional and recreational support and should be handled differently. Therefore,
individuals’ dignity and social justice has to be observed to enhance social work or social
service work public trust and advocacy for change in the best interest of clients in the
social work profession.

References
Keefe, J. (2019). ‘It’s basically a warehouse for the dying’: Nova Scotians call for overhaul of
long-term care homes. [online] Global News. Available at:
https://globalnews.ca/news/5016989/nova-scotians-overhaul-long-term-care-homes/
[Accessed 15 Mar. 2019].
OCSWSSW. (2018). Code of Ethics and Standards of Practice | OCSWSSW. [online] Available
at: http://www.ocswssw.org/professional-practice/code-of-ethics/ [Accessed 15 Mar.
2019].
Smith, S. (2014). Ethics and Values in Social Work. Ethics and Social Welfare, 8(4), pp.423-
424.