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Ethical Issues in Hospital-based Social Work During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Case from Uganda, with a Commentary

Adia, Denis; Banks, Sarah

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Authors

Denis Adia



Abstract

This paper comprises a case study illustrating ethical and practical challenges for a Ugandan hospital-based social worker early in the COVID-19 pandemic, followed by a commentary. The hospital was under-resourced, with staff and patients experiencing lack of information and panic. The social worker, Denis Adia, recounts his responses to new and ethically challenging situations, including persuading Muslim patients to stop fasting for the good of their health; deciding to keep a baby in hospital with parents although this was against the rules; and supporting a stigmatised former patient in the face of intimidation by colleagues. He reflects on the importance of recognising each person’s unique needs and circumstances, seeing this as a vital role for social workers. The case is followed by a commentary from a UK academic (Sarah Banks), who notes the cognitive and emotional effort (‘ethics work’) undertaken by the social worker to: see the ethical aspects of particular situations; take account of patients’ specific needs; ensure they are treated with respect; promote their well-being; and perform as a good social worker. Banks draws attention to the key role of the virtue of courage in pandemic conditions, which involves working with new risks and facing fears with confidence.

Citation

Adia, D., & Banks, S. (2023). Ethical Issues in Hospital-based Social Work During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Case from Uganda, with a Commentary. Ethics and Social Welfare, 17(1), 90-97. https://doi.org/10.1080/17496535.2022.2117014

Journal Article Type Article
Acceptance Date Aug 9, 2022
Online Publication Date Sep 15, 2022
Publication Date 2023
Deposit Date Sep 26, 2022
Publicly Available Date Mar 29, 2024
Journal Ethics and Social Welfare
Print ISSN 1749-6535
Electronic ISSN 1749-6543
Publisher Taylor and Francis Group
Peer Reviewed Peer Reviewed
Volume 17
Issue 1
Pages 90-97
DOI https://doi.org/10.1080/17496535.2022.2117014

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Publisher Licence URL
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/

Copyright Statement
© 2022 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group
This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/), which permits non-commercial re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited, and is not altered, transformed, or built upon in any way.




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