THE SAFE HAVEN for ABANDONED BABIES ACT
A.K.A
DANIEL'S LAW
My internship is being done at the Orangeburg County Department of Social Services (DSS). The policy I will be referring to in this policy paper will be section 20-7-85, which is the safe haven for abandoned babies act. This act is better known by the name of Daniel's Law. Daniel's Law is relatively new policy at DSS and new law in South Carolina; it's designed to provide a safe haven for abandoned babies. Its name derives from a nurse whom cared for an infant boy, that she named "Daniel," as he recovered in the hospital. Daniel survived after being buried in a landfill soon after birth.
Similar to Daniel, other babies are born to women in calamity. Some …show more content…
Common social work values include promotion of client well being and individual dignity, self-determination, the right to have basic needs met, and client empowerment. Ethics involve principles that specify what is good and bad. It's all about choices either way and if it's what the mother feels is best for the present time, than that is her values and ethics and according to the NASW, the six core values includes 1. Services and this policy offer help and resources. 2. Social justice in where every member of society has the same basic rights, protection, opportunities, obligations, and social benefits. 3. Dignity and worth of the person, it holds the mother in high esteem to feel she made the best choice. 4. Importance of human relationships, 5. Integrity, and 6. Competence. Social workers always have an ethical responsibility to their clients and to the broader society. 1.01 is about commitment to clients, 1.02 self determination states that each individual has the right to make their own decisions, 1.03 informed consent is stated clearly in "Daniel's law" and is reinforced upon the receiving of the …show more content…
I learned that the effects of policies on families and service delivery are very important because it is not the government who implement policies it is everyday people like the nurses who cared for Daniel, parents who have lost their child to a drunk drivers (MADD), and most importantly Social Workers; by the way that is soon to be me. Individuals and families needs someone to seek justice for their equality and rights. As a generalist practitioner one has to advocate for clients to prove the need for some service and to succeed in making that service available to people who really needs it. The GIM emphasizes that the potential to make improvements in agencies, organizations, and systems should never be forgotten as one means of effecting positive change for clients and non clients alike. A difference could be made available to American families if policies geared towards family were improved. It is my duty to seek the social justice of all my clients by using all available resources including lobbying and taking advantage of any opportunities to implement, enforce, and change policy for the empowerment of all who can benefit from the