Ethical Dilemmas
Ethical Dilemmas
Working in a supported
accommodation for young people commonly involves managing various
emotional, behavioural and safeguarding challenges. As a support worker in this
environment, reflection, alongside critical thinking, is essential when dealing
with dilemmas and ensuring decisions are guided by professional values,
ethical principles, and relevant legislation. In this reflection, I will use
Gibbs’ Reflective Cycle (1988) to explore a situation where I came across a
young person displaying an increase in aggression and disobedience. I will
analyse how I applied my skills of critical thinking to balance respect for the
resident’s independence with the responsibility to sustain a safe environment
for everyone around them.
Over time, a young person began to display unprovoked aggressive behaviours, including verbal outbursts and
refusal to complete simple daily tasks. This involved failing to attend key
appointments with their GP, disregarding safety protocols such as curfew, and completely
ignoring requests from staff, including myself. When staff attempted to engage
the young person in a conversation about their behaviour, this service user refused to
comply and frequently became defensive and withdrew from various conversations.
This situation created a dilemma: enforcing strict rules risked further worsening
the service users' trust and engagement, but taking a lenient approach could jeopardise the safety and well-being of others. As an experienced support worker, I
needed to thoughtfully evaluate the most appropriate decision to address the
behaviour without escalating the situation.
In this challenging situation, I
felt both frustrated and concerned for the young person and everyone else around. I felt frustrated because the young person's non-compliance started to affect everyone in the accommodation, making it increasingly difficult to ensure a safe
environment for all. At the same time, I was also concerned for the
person’s well-being and any underlying issues that might be triggering this
behaviour. I felt sympathy for their potential struggles, but I also had a duty of
care to protect the other service users and staff. My values of respect and
discipline were both challenged. While maintaining respect for the resident’s
autonomy was important to me, discipline and boundaries were also
needed for safeguarding purposes. I was mindful of how my Christian faith calls
for compassion and forgiveness, which motivated me to approach the situation with an understanding mindset rather than focusing on punishment. I also recognised that without clear boundaries, the environment could eventually become
extremely unsafe for all.
Reflecting on my actions I took
in this situation, I believe I handled it quite well, although there
were still areas for improvement. On the positive side, I made an effort to engage with the service users respectfully, while also aiming to avoid aggressive
language and provide appropriate options whenever possible. This helped maintain open lines
of communication, which is essential for building a trustworthy
foundation in a challenging situation. However, I recognise that my initial
response may have lacked clarity in enforcing house rules, which could have
potentially worsened the resident’s disobedience. According to
This challenging situation required
a balance between addressing the service user's needs and ensuring the safety
of others within the accommodation. By using critical thinking skills, I simplified the situation into key elements: the service user's behaviour, the
risk it posed to others, and any underlying issues that may have triggered this unusual behaviour. Instead of reacting with emotion or immediately resorting to punishment, I carefully considered various options and the potential consequences of different approaches. During my decision-making process, I also
took time to review relevant legislation. The Children Act 1989 strengthens the
necessity of safeguarding and promoting welfare
In future situations, I intend to be more proactive in establishing clear behavioural
expectations from the beginning. I also plan to communicate the consequences of persistent non-compliance, while still providing the necessary support and opportunities for the resident to reflect and improve. Additionally, I aim to enhance my understanding of behavioural support strategies designed for young people in
supported accommodation. Staying informed about policy changes and regularly
participating in training will enhance my professional reasoning and
confidence when addressing complex behaviours. Moving forward, I will continue
to apply a critical thinking framework whenever necessary. Combining this with a deep, honest reflection allows me to make decisions that are both considerate and professional.
References
CQC (2022) Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014. Care Quality Commission. Available at: https://www.cqc.org.uk/guidance-providers/regulations-enforcement/regulations-service-providers-managers (Accessed: 22 July 2025).
Legislation.gov.uk (1989) Children Act 1989. Available at: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1989/41/contents (Accessed: 22 July 2025)
Turner, M. and Beresford, P. (2017) User involvement, authority and the social work relationship. The Guardian. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/social-care-network/2017/jul/04/user-involvement-authority-social-work-relationship (Accessed: 22 July 2025).
This reflection shows good self-awareness and uses Gibbs' cycle well. You clearly understand the challenge of being kind while keeping everyone safe. It's honest that being too understanding at first may have made things worse. You used the right laws to support your thinking. For improvement, give more specific examples of what you actually did and explain the "structured plan" you made with your team. The writing could be simpler and clearer in some parts.
ReplyDelete- The reflection effectively balances empathy and professional responsibility, showing a mature application of critical thinking rooted in legislation and ethical values.
ReplyDelete- For improvement, Add more detail about how the structured plan was implemented and what specific outcomes followed, to give clearer insight into the effectiveness of your approach.
Your blog presents a thoughtful reflection using Gibbs Reflective Cycle and connects personal values with legislation and professional responsibilities. You have effectively incorporated relevant legislation like the Children's Act and CQC guidance. Some sections could be more concise with smoother transitions. Also a bit more depth in analysing the impact of critical thinking on the outcome, would serve to strengthen the reflection further.
ReplyDeleteThis reflection provides a clear application of Gibbs' Reflective Cycle, demonstrating strong self-awareness and a professional approach. Ethical principles like autonomy and safeguarding are well balanced, though a few grammatical errors—such as "extremely safe" instead of "unsafe"—should be corrected. The use of legislation like the Children Act 1989 adds credibility, but reference formatting could be more consistent. The reflection could also benefit from slightly more detail on how improvements were measured. Personal values are well integrated, though emotional language could be more concise. Overall, the work is thoughtful and demonstrates a solid grasp of ethical practice in supported accommodation.
ReplyDelete