Real-Life Decision Making
Strong ethics and a good sense of humor are two important parts of being
a home support worker. You need the sense of humor to remain cheerful and
good-natured with your clients every day. Your ethics will be tested quite
often because you may learn detailed information about a person's finances
or family situations -- and that's information that you can't share with anyone.
Sometimes finding out this sort of information can present a dilemma.
Imagine you're a home support worker and one of your clients is an elderly
gentleman, Mr. Markham. He lives alone, doesn't get out very often, and has
very few visits from friends or relatives. You see him twice a week. When
you are there, you cook some meals, clean his house and see to his personal
needs.
One day, Mr. Markham tells you he has hidden some money in one of the flowerpots
by the door. He says he trusts you not to tell anyone -- not even your supervisor.
This puts you in an awkward situation. You know you should probably tell
your supervisor about the money. But if you tell your supervisor, your client
may feel betrayed. You need the trust of the client in order to get the job
done.
If you don't tell your supervisor and the money goes missing,
you're the prime suspect. If your supervisor finds out accidentally, she may
not trust you in the future. What are you going to do?