Explain How Different Social, Professional and Cultural Contexts May Affect free essay sample

FamilyUnderstand legislation, policies and procedures for confidentiality and sharing information, including data protection 3. 1, Summarise the main points of legislation and procedures covering confidentiality, data protection and the disclosure of information As a teaching assistant in a large primary school I hear of situations or learn information regarding children I come into contact with. Morally, I deal with this information sensitively whilst around other adults and the child concerned but I am also very aware that I have a duty of confidentiality that is stated under the ‘Data Protection Act 1998’. This act ensures that confidential information of a child and/or their parents/carers are properly recorded and stored in a filing system, be it manual or computerised, and in a place that no unauthorized persons may gain access to it. In cases where I learn of abuse, neglect or problems at home from a child I know that my school has guidelines in place so that I know when this information has to be logged in writing, which type of ‘concern form’ to put it in, who it goes to next and where it will be stored from there onwards. These are the guidelines everyone in my setting is aware of. My responsibilities are to make sure I do not pass on any information, unless to my superiors. If I am unsure that it warrants being logged, I would usually check with either my teacher, learning mentors, head of year or members of the schools senior leadership team. Schools ask for certain relevant information from parents or previous schools so that professional care can be given to their child. This information is usually; Names, contact details of family members/carers Medical/health information Allergies/dietary needs Academic abilities Everything to do with S. E. N Reports from previous schools. All information that a parent/carer gives to my school is only shared with people that need to know. For instance, I would only be told of a child that has lived with abuse if I worked directly with that child. If a child had allergies or a medical condition such as epilepsy, everyone within the setting is made aware of this, as this is for the childs safety. Both of these are with the parents’ consent though. If information is disclosed and confidentiality is broken, this would result in the individual responsible being disciplined or if the situation was bad enough they would lose their job and could go on to even face legal action. 3. 2, Explain the importance of reassuring children, young people and adults of the confidentiality of shared information and the limits of this Children, young people and adults have to feel reassured that their personal information is being kept confidential. Violation of this trust could have awful repercussions. For children and young people this could cause teasing or bullying in the playground from other children. For parents, this could mean gossip or shunning from other parents. As I work within a primary school it is my job to respect their privacy and not to violate my position of trust. Children, young people or adults must feel safe and secure in the knowledge that I represent my school in a professional manner and would not divulge any knowledge I have of them to anyone other than the relevant people within my school and that the information they supplied to the school is being used solely for the use it was gathered for. This is in accordance with the ‘Data Protection Act 1998’. Information that is shared throughout the school on a child would only be dietary, allergies or a medical problem that could be life threatening. In this instance the school would have gained signed consent from the parent/carer that this was acceptable. Any information that is shared with outside agencies must first have the parents/carers written permission giving them full details of what will be shared, why and with whom. Parents are aware that any information they pass on to us is kept confidential unless its severity means that we have an obligation to pass it on to any relevant agencies, i. e. social services. We would not divulge to them that we have done this if it unsafe to anybody’s wellbeing to do so. An incident highlighting this came to light recently in my class. A 9 year old girl came in one Monday morning with her mum and spoke to the teacher in a private room for some time. I was told later in the day that mums cousin had stabbed and killed someone in an argument over the weekend. I know this to be true as it had been reported on the local news. The girl in my class and her mum were petrified that there was going to be reprisals against them from the dead mans family. My school agreed to be extra vigilant watching out for her daughter, especially at home time, and that the learning mentors would counsel the girl each day so she could air her worries. Mum knew that what she had told us would be kept confidential and not divulged to any other adults or children around the school and that was why she trusted us enough to bring us in on her problem. Although, social services were also informed on the basis of possible harm from others to the girl. Some children, on the other hand, tell you their problems like you are their friend or if questioned about a cut or bruise they don’t think twice before telling you how they got it. If I believe that what the child has told me is severe then it must be pointed out that the information they have given us cannot be kept a secret and it must be brought to the head teacher or Deputy Heads attention immediately and a written report made of the conversation. For instance, I have a 9 year old boy in my class who has been in and out of social care for the last 4 years but is currently living with his grandparents. He has confidence and anger issues but is generally a friendly boy. The school has regular meetings with social services about him as he is on their ‘watch list’. Whilst changing for swimming lessons my teacher noticed a long deep graze on his collar bone. When asked about it he matter of factly said ‘granddad did it. He tried to grab me when I was running from him. He was angry at me because I wouldn’t eat my dinner’. The swimming instructors also noticed it and he again told them with no hesitation that granddad had done it. The boys’ grandparents were called into the school to discuss this. Notes were made on his file and the notes were referred to on the schools monthly meeting with social services. Confidentiality must be maintained at all times unless we believe a child or young person is at risk of harm from abuse, physical or mental, or they have said they will cause harm to others. Thankfully it is rare for us to breach but we must report to the Safeguarding officer as a minimum who will assess fully to ensure the authorities, if involved, are engaged meaningfully. 3. , Justify the kinds of situations when confidentiality protocols must be breached People like me who work in a childcare setting have to do everything in their power to keep information regarding children, young people and their families confidential, safe and secure. We understand that their details can only be divulged to relevant authorities and agencies once the parents/carers written confirmation has been given and even t hen we will only give information that is relevant to their cause. Without the consent, the school cannot pass anything over, even if it was for a special needs therapist. However, our main priority is the safety and wellbeing of the child or young person. So, if ever we have a genuine cause for concern where we believe they are at risk of harm,i. e. being abused at home, then we have a duty to pass this information on to the relevant person within our setting, in my case the Head Teacher or Deputy Head, who I know will follow it up complying with correct procedure and adhering to policy of escalation. This could mean discussing situations and personal details of the child or young person to social services or even the police. These are the types of authorities we can discuss confidential information with without first getting written permission from the parents/carers. Inform the person to whom the report refers to that you are sharing information on them only if it is safe to do so and will not cause further harm. A recent example could be used of an 8 year old Romanian girl. She has only been with us about 6 months and speaks little English, she has had run ins with other children as she could be quite spiteful to others at times and teachers had had to speak to her as she would disappear to the toilets for 20 minutes or so at a time. I would regularly notice that she had bruising on her body whilst changing for P. E. When I asked her about it she would always have an answer ready, such as, fell off the swing or fell off my bike. When speaking to mum later she would say the same as her daughter. I filled out a ‘concern form’ anyway so that the school would have a record but kept a conscious eye on her when changing as it did worry me. A few weeks ago she came in to school with an awful bruise on her forehead. When questioned she told me she had banged her head falling over, but It was uite plain to see that it was an imprint of a heel of shoe. I completed a ‘pink concern form’ (which is for worst cases) and went straight to my head teacher and waited while he read it. From there onwards it was taken out of my hands, but I was later told that the girl had a meeting with my head teacher and our head learning mentor where she admitted her mum had hit her with a shoe for not eating all her di nner. First Response were called (who are the emergency social carers) and by 4pm that day she was in a foster home. After that day, I have not been involved or been told of what is happening behind the scenes, but I know that for the last 2 weeks I have seen a changed little girl. She is happy and making friends. Just how it should be. Another example is of school photographs. We are only allowed to display photographs around the school, on our website or in our school prospectus if we have written permission first from their parents/carers. However, if social services or the police request photographs as part of an investigation we are duty bound to pass them over even if no permission has been given. Any information or photographs that have been passed over should be recorded on the child or young person’s notes of who it was sent to, what you divulged and for what reason. Confidential information can be shared if there is sufficient public interest. The question of whether there is a sufficient public interest must be judged by the practitioner on the facts of each case. The pros and cons of what might happen against what might not happen have to be weighed up before deciding to disclose facts. Even then, it should only be accurate, up to date facts that are appropriate to the subject matter and never opinion. Confirmation of the Identity of the person you are speaking with should always be sought as unscrupulous people will lie to get information they want. This could be used in an example of a journalist pretending to be a court official, contacting the school on a pupil that is testifying in court, just to get some back ground gossip. We should always ensure that any information that is being faxed or emailed will be seen only by the intended person, so ensuring of secured lines is imperative.