Civil Commitment and the Mental Health Care Continuum: Historical Trends and Principles for Law and Practice (2 credit hours)
Program Summary: This course examines involuntary civil commitment in the US and includes a history of civil commitment and the evolving standards for civil commitment. Four ethical principles are examined: respect for autonomy, maleficence, beneficence. and justice. Ethical arguments and counterarguments are given (e.g. civil commitment limits autonomy vs civil commitment restores autonomy for the longer term.) Key legislation is explained and concepts of parens patriae, dangerousness, grave disability, and serious deterioration are discussed.
This course is recommended for social workers and is appropriate for beginning and intermediate levels of practice. This course does not qualify for NBCC ethics credit.
Publisher: The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration
Course Objectives: To enhance professional practice, values, skills, and knowledge by identifying key ethical principles related to civil commitment.
Learning Objectives: Describe the evolving standards for civil commitment. Identify Beauchamp and Childress’ four main ethical principles and describe how each of these principles apply to involuntary commitment. Give examples of ethical arguments and counterarguments as related to civil commitment.
Review our pre-reading study guide.
Free State Social Work, LLC, provider #1235, is approved as an ACE provider to offer social work continuing education by the Association of Social Work Boards (ASWB) Approved Continuing Education (ACE) program. Regulatory boards are the final authority on courses accepted for continuing education credit. ACE provider approval period: 9/6/2021 - 9/6/2024. Social workers completing this course receive 2 ethics continuing education credits.
Free State Social Work has been approved by NBCC as an Approved Continuing Education Provider, ACEP NO. 6605. Programs that do not qualify for NBCC credit are clearly identified. Free State Social Work is solely responsible for all aspects of the programs.
G.M. Rydberg-Cox, MSW, LSCSW is the Continuing Education Director at Free State Social Work and responsible for the development of this course. She received her Masters of Social Work in 1996 from the Jane Addams School of Social Work at the University of Illinois-Chicago and she has over 20 years of experience. She has lived and worked as a social worker in Chicago, Boston, and Kansas City. She currently practices in the area of hospital/medical social work. The reading materials for this course were developed by another organization.