The ethical context

Abstract

This chapter will include exploration of ethical issues for AMHP practice including: proportionality; types of ethics; the ethical nature of the existence of mental health legislation and how this is reflected in reviews of it; vicarious liability; Guiding Principles; and the concepts of good faith and reasonable care, including the Bolam test. Robert Johns’ opening chapter in his book exploring ethics and law for social workers (Johns, 2016) is titled ‘But I want to be a social worker, not a philosopher!’ This exclamation captures the ultimate challenge faced by all social workers, which is perhaps brought into sharp relief for AMHPs, who must practise within a legal and ethical context, especially when dealing with the accompanying dilemmas that can arise. Ethics, a subdivision of philosophy, is concerned with moral issues, including the concepts of right and wrong. AMHPs make decisions, taking into consideration all the circumstances of the situation, which means that they must know how to weigh up ethical dilemmas proportionally when applying the law while also ensuring that they can account for their decisions. In doing so, AMHPs must follow their relevant professional codes of conduct or standards. These include: the Health and Care Professions Council’s Standards of Conduct, Performance and Ethics (HCPC, 2016), which apply to registered social workers, occupational therapists and psychologists; the Nursing and Midwifery Council’s The Code (NMC, 2018); the Mental Health Act 1983: Code of Practice for Wales (Welsh Assembly Government, 2016), which applies to social workers in Wales; the College of Occupational Therapists’ (2015) Codes of Ethics and Professional Conduct; the British Association of Social Workers’ Code of Ethics for Social Work (BASW, 2018); and the British Psychological Society’s (2018) Codes of Ethics and Conduct.