Ethical Services Delivery

How do human service professionals provide ethical service delivery on both an individual
level and a general level in a diverse society?
Whether on an individual or general level, human service professionals provide “ethical
service delivery” by sticking to the profession’s ethical codes/principles and standards of
practice. The foundation of moral/ethical behavior for social service workers and other
professionals in the healthcare sector is founded on six primary principles: veracity, fidelity,
justice, beneficence, nonmaleficence, and autonomy (Woodside & McClam, 2019). The National
Organization of Human Service (NOHS) has also outlined a set of ethical standards and
responsibilities of social workers to the self, employers, the public & society, the profession,
colleagues, and clients. For example, when working with clients, human service professionals
obtain informed consent at the start of the helping relationship (standard 2) and protect their
client’s right to confidentiality and privacy (standard 3).
These standards and responsibilities are founded on the six ethical principles and the
fundamental human values of acting with objectivity, genuineness, honesty, and integrity;
championing social justice; honoring cultural diversity, encouraging self-determination; and
respecting the welfare and dignity of people.
The unintentional bias of the human service professional may be harmful to the helping
relationship. What personal values or self-bias could potentially impact your ability to
work effectively with diverse client populations?
I believe “sexual orientation bias” against LGBTQ people can potentially affect my
ability to work effectively with diverse client populations. As a Christian and heterosexual, I
have grown up knowing homosexuality is a sin and immoral, meaning homosexuals and queers

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are outcasts in the community. I also naturally disdain LGBTQ people and find it challenging to
work with them due to my religious background.
Self-care strategies help to ensure ethical human service delivery. What self-care strategies
would you practice to respond to ethical dilemmas, conflicting values, and self-bias to
provide effective human services to diverse clients?
From self-bias to conflicting values to ethical dilemmas, the work of human service
professionals can sometimes be intricate and, if not handled carefully, can result in errors,
lawsuits, and mental issues for helpers. This makes self-care a fundamental requirement for
helpers to guarantee ethical service delivery. As a professional in the helping industry, I would
apply the following self-care strategies to address self-bias, conflicting bias, and ethical
dilemmas, including getting training on cultural diversity and inclusivity, consulting colleagues
and supervisors to effectively navigate ethical dilemmas, reflecting on personal beliefs and
values to identify potential conflicts and biases, reading local/state/federal laws and regulations
on ethical practices, applying NOHS standards of practice in decision-making, and engaging in
activities that enhance psychological, emotional, and physical well-being to avoid burnout.

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References

National Organization for Human Services. (2015). Ethical standards for human services
professionals. https://www.nationalhumanservices.org/ethical-standards-for-hs-
professionals
Woodside, M. R., & McClam, T. (2019). An introduction to human services. Cengage Learning