Confidentiality and accessing information
Learning Objectives
After considering this resource, you should understand the responsibilities in relation to sharing and withholding information.
Confidentiality marks an important juncture between the ideas of partnership and protection in social work. Depending on the work you are carrying out, protecting a service user's interests or protecting the wider public may mean you are either required to share information or keep material confidential.
The following article has been written by Michael Preston-Shoot and Suzy Braye and is based on material from their chapter 'Frameworks for partnership working' in Practising Social Work Law, 3rd edition (Palgrave Macmillan, 2009). In it, the authors explore the responsibilities social workers have in sharing and withholding information, a key professional task.
Reflective Questions
- Have you faced any conflicts in sharing information on placement? How did you approach these?
- What is your agency's or local authority's protocol with partner organisations for sharing information?
- In what ways can sharing information lead to better planning and intervention for service users?
- Consider how confidentiality and the professional value base can help to build relationships with service users.