Social Worker Month: Is It Time to Talk About Competency?

 By Donna De Loera, Nancy Lemus, Daisy Gomez and Janette Garfias

Despite the recent implementation of the Law and Ethics exam, social workers continue to hold preconceived notions that affect the services that clients receive. Even though the exam was designed to create a standard of competency in ethical practices and values, not all social workers are abiding by them.

According to the NASW Code of Ethics (2008), competency in the field of social work involves only working within our scope of practice. This also involves paying close attention to new areas that might emerge in our field, all the while ensuring client safety. This competency is achieved by receiving supervision by a licensed social worker, training and education. In addition, our formal education constantly encourages us to self reflect on our personal biases, so as to not let them counteract the work that we do with our clients, and what we stand for as professionals. A social worker’s competence also involves their knowledge of the field’s law and ethics.

Though the exam might provide a step to assure that social workers are knowledgeable and aware of ethical practices, we believe that other factors should be set in place as well. These should include trainings—thorough supervision—and formal education.

In addition, these elements shine a light into the importance of title protection of the social work profession. Therefore, we believe that these components are necessary due to the unethical practices that have previously occurred and tainted the field of social work.