5a - My first thoughts on my own ethics.

In considering the ethics that are present in my working communities I understand that the ethics that we are expected to follow to allow us to function as our employers might wish us to, are not always inline with the morals that we stand by in order to live our lives. I have had experience of this, and even left jobs previously as I didn’t feel that the ethical standpoint of the company was inline with my own, I was expected to work simply for the financial gain of the company at the expense of the personal experience of the customer, and for me this was uncomfortable, as I consider there are more important things in life than financial gain. I therefore think in order for us to get on well and achieve in a certain position there must me a similar set of ethics that guide the work that we are doing.

I personally find it very difficult to separate my personal ethics and morals from the workplace. To me personal ethics are not something that you can detach yourself from, if they were then they would not be ethics at all and just simply wishful thinking of how we should behave.

The work I do now I believe has an ethical standpoint of being for the benefit of the clients/ service users/ students. Therefore there must me certain standards that are maintained in order to achieve this.

Understanding - It is necessary in order to benefit the people that I work with that I actively seek to understand their needs and how best I can serve these needs.

Commitment – In order to meet need then there must be a commitment to the work and the people for whom we work. If some one is relying on us then we should be trustworthy and reliable.

Respect – In a learning environment if we feel respected then we will feel safe and able to take the risks that will allow us to grow and develop. Respect and respectful treatment and language should be of high importance.

Safety – When working with vulnerable adults or children then we should be held responsible and accountable for providing a safe, clean and pleasant environment whilst they are in our care. Especially if they are unable to judge these risks for themselves.

Professional Boundaries – We should be clear about the relationship that we have with the people we work with, especially if they are young and/or vulnerable. There should be no doubt about what our role is, although we can conduct ourselves with care and respect there should be no crossing of emotional or physical boundaries. This can only serve to benefit both parties.   

These are my initial thoughts on the ethics that I believe guide my practice and my work place. I’m sure that as I continue to work on this then more aspects will become apparent. I am not naive; I understand that we must all work for some personal gain, money, experience, career progression, but for me I have to work in an environment that is about more than that, something that has the potential to effect others in a positive way and I guess this is dictated by my moral code, something that I have developed as I have grown up as a result of the way I have been taught and treated.