2005 South Carolina Code of Regulations § 110-20. — Principles of Professional Ethics

DEPARTMENT OF LABOR, LICENSING AND REGULATION-- STATE BOARD OF SOCIAL WORK EXAMINERS

(Statutory Authority: 1976 Code Section 40-63-10)

ARTICLE 1.

CONTINUING EDUCATION

110-1. Continuing Education Requirements.

A. The Board recognizes that social work is a practice of a profession which must conform to the public's expectation of professional competency. It further recognizes that structured programs of continuing education will provide licensees with opportunities for maintaining and improving competency as well as the satisfaction of new professional development.

B. As a pre-requisite for annual renewal of the practitioner's license, the licensee must complete annually a minimum of 20 clock hours of accepted professional continuing education. This requirement becomes effective during the one-year period following the January 1, 1990, license renewal date, and during each year thereafter.

C. The general guidelines for completing the twenty (20) clock hours of instruction are:

(1) Accepted instruction will be those courses, conferences, seminars, etc., as approved by the Board pursuant to subsection D below.

(2) Only student class hours or the equivalent will be counted as credit.

(3) Services, in hours, as a lecturer or discussion leader may be counted to the extent that they contribute to the maintenance and development of a licensee's professional competence.

(4) Except in unusual circumstances, credits will not be given for repeating an instructional course.

D. Approval for continuing education credit:

(1) Approval for continuing education credit shall be provided by persons designated by the Board upon guidelines and standards established by the Board pursuant to these Regulations.

(2) Application for continuing education credit approval shall be in the manner and form designated by the Board.

(3) Application for approval shall be processed at times, and in the manner, designated by the Board up to the date of submission of the continuing education report. The risk of disapproval shall be borne by the sponsor or applicant for continuing education credit.

110-2. Continuing Education Advisory Committee.

A Continuing Education Advisory Committee to recommend continuing education requirements shall be appointed by the Board so as to be representative of educators in the field of social work and licensed social workers.

110-10. Fees.

The Board sets, determines, establishes, prescribes, and levies fees for license applications, examinations (which do not include any fees paid to any organization other than the Board administering any examination required by the Board), temporary licenses, license renewals, license reinstatements, annual licenses, and review of continuing education submissions in such amounts as are estimated to generate the minimum percentage of the anticipated appropriation or expenditures of the Board for the coming fiscal year required by applicable South Carolina law, including appropriations acts.

Section 40-63-40, of the Code of Laws of South Carolina, 1976, as amended, provides:

Revenues and Income; assessments, fees, or licenses; annual reports.

All revenues and income from licenses, examination fees, other fees, sale of commodities and services, and income derived from any board source or activity must be remitted to the State Treasurer as collected, when practicable, but at least once each week, and credited to the general fund to the State. All assessments, fees, or licenses must be levied in an amount sufficient to at least equal the amount appropriated in the annual general appropriation act for the board, plus any additional funds allocated by the Budget and Control Board for implementation of the State's Personnel Compensation Plan.

As of March 12, 1989, the Appropriations Act requires the Board to set fees to try to generate 115% of its appropriations, and the Board's initial license and annual/renewal license fees are $50 for Independent Social Workers, $45 for Master Social Workers, and $40 for Baccalaureate Social Workers.

110-20. Principles of Professional Ethics

1. The social worker shall not exploit relationships with clients for personal or business advantages, other than the proper, reasonable and agreed upon compensation for his services to the client.

2. The social worker shall not solicit the clients of his employing agency for private practice.

3. The social worker will inform clients of any possible or apparent conflict of interest and shall terminate service to clients, and professional relationships with them, when such service and relationships are no longer required or in which a conflict of interest does arise, in such a manner which does not endanger the client's life.

4. A social worker shall not engage in any sexual act with a client or with a person who has been a client to whom services were provided within the past twelve months.

5. A social worker shall not exploit his professional relationships with clients (or former clients), supervisor, students, employees, or research participants, sexually or otherwise. A social worker does not engage in sexual harassment. Sexual harassment is defined as deliberate or repeated comments, gestures, or physical contacts of a sexual nature that are unwanted by the recipient.

6. The client/social worker relationship shall be presumed to continue to exist for a period of six months after the last provision of services except where circumstances such as, but not limited to, selection of a new therapist shows otherwise.

7. A social worker will give precedence to his professional responsibility over his financial interests.

8. A social worker shall not commit fraud and shall not represent that he performed services which he did not perform.

9. A social worker will not divide a fee or accept or give anything of value for receiving or making a referral.

10. A social worker should provide clients with accurate and complete information regarding the extent and nature of the services available to them.

11. A social worker shall not participate in or condone fraud or any other misrepresentation. A social worker shall not misrepresent professional qualifications, education, experience, affiliations, or services performed.

12. In connection with his work as a social worker, a social worker shall not practice, condone, facilitate or collaborate with any form of discrimination on the basis of race, color, sex, sexual orientation, age, religion, national origin, marital status, political belief, mental or physical handicap, or any other preference or personal characteristic, condition or status.

13. A social worker shall not repeatedly fail to keep scheduled appointments.

14. A social worker who anticipates the termination or interruption of service to clients shall notify such clients promptly and seek the transfer, referral, or continuation of service in relation to the clients' needs and preferences.

15. A social worker shall respect the privacy of clients and hold in confidence all information obtained in the course of professional service except for compelling reasons. Compelling reasons shall include, but are not limited to:

a. Consultation with another professional on behalf of the client;

b. Duty to warn;

c. Child abuse and sexual molestation;

d. Statutory requirements.

16. The social worker shall obtain informed consent of clients before taping, recording, or permitting third party observation of their activities.

17. The social worker shall report to the appropriate authorities any incident, of which he has personal knowledge, of unethical social practice by any individual or organization.