St. Vincent DePaul Mission of Bristol, Inc.
ETHICS POLICY
This policy is intended to provide Board, staff and volunteers with guidelines for professional behavior that will provide a positive service experience for our clients, maintain good working relationships between colleagues, and present a positive image to the people in the communities that we serve. These guidelines apply to volunteers, students, and trainees as well as to regular employees and Board members. When there are questions about how this policy may be interpreted or apply in a given situation, staff members should direct their questions to their supervisors or to the Executive Director for guidance.
I. The Human Rights of Consumers
All clients of the Agency’s programs and services will be treated with respect for their dignity and their human rights without regard to gender, age, race, national origin, cultural background, religion, sexual orientation, disability, marital status, or financial resources. All staff is expected to be familiar with this policy and its intent in order that they do not violate the human rights of consumers, and so they can protect and preserve the dignity and personal safety of persons served.
Under no circumstances will employees of the Agency engage in any of the following behaviors in the course of their duties:
Under no circumstances will employees of the Agency engage in any of the following behaviors in the course of their duties:
¨ corporal punishment of any kind
¨ mental or verbal abuse (name calling or other insulting verbal behavior)
¨ encouraging a consumer to mistreat another consumer
¨ economic exploitation or use of a consumer to advance one’s own interests
¨ transfer or threat of transfer of a consumer for punitive purposes
¨ retaliation against a consumer or staff person for their reporting of a violation of this policy
¨ purposeful breaches of consumer confidentiality
Procedures for the reporting, investigation and resolution of human rights complaints are explained in the Agency’s policy on Grievance Procedures.
II. Professional Duty and Behavior
All staff are expected to perform their duties with integrity and with courtesy and respect in their interactions with clients of the Agency, internal and external, and with their colleagues. They shall observe the ethical standards of their professional discipline, and behave in a way that befits a professional person and reflects positively upon their profession and the Agency to the communities we serve and to our funding sources. Staff who provide direct services to consumers do so within the limits of their skills and competence and seek to constantly improve their ability to serve through study and supervision. Staff shall seek consultation and guidance from colleagues and their supervisors when they are not certain of their competence to carry out a duty in a satisfactory manner.
St. Vincent DePaul Mission of Bristol, Inc
Ethics Policy(con’t)
Staff provides service without discrimination on the basis of factors enumerated above in Section I of this policy, and refrain from any of the behaviors proscribed there. Staff should discourage and help to correct unethical and/or inappropriate behavior among their colleagues, and are encouraged to report such behavior to their supervisors. Conversely, staff shall defend colleagues unjustly accused of unethical behavior.
III. Professional Duty as an Employee and Corporate Duty as a Board Member
As professionals, staff shall not confuse their personal interests with those of their employer: they shall not use their positions for personal gain or advantage to themselves, their relatives, or third parties with whom they share interests. Staff will not engage in independent economic activity that may create a conflict of interest or the appearance of a conflict of interest with their employer’s interests.
Board members, employees and volunteers may not solicit or accept personal gifts or gratuities for their personal benefit.
No employee, officer, board member or agent shall participate in the selection, award or administration of a contract supported by Federal funds if a real or apparent conflict of interest would be involved. Such a conflict would arise when the employee, officer, board member or agent, any member of his or her immediate family, his or her partner, or an organization which employs or is about to employ any of the parties indicated herein, has a financial or other interest in the firm selected for an award. The officers, employees, board members and agents of the recipient shall neither solicit nor accept gratuities, favors, or anything of monetary value from contractors or parties to sub-agreements.
Board members and staff shall not conduct personal business or use Agency premises to promote or sell products or services for their own profit without permission from the Executive Director.
Staff shall not engage in, nor condone, any form of harassment, including that of a sexual nature, of other staff, students, volunteers, or consumers.
Staff shall not engage in, nor condone, any form of threatening or violent behavior.
IV. Professional Duty to Colleagues
Staff shall conduct themselves with honesty, courtesy, and civility in their interactions with colleagues, internal and external, to the Agency. Where differences of opinion arise, staff shall address their opinions in a forthright manner and with respect for those of others, making amends when they fail to do so in order to keep lines of communication open for the benefit of consumers. When such differences cannot be settled to the satisfaction of both parties, staff will seek the help of their supervisors to reach resolution.
St. Vincent DePaul Mission of Bristol, Inc
Ethics Policy(con’t)
Staff shall respect the privacy rights of colleagues. They will not engage in, nor condone, the unauthorized sharing of personal information about colleagues in the form of gossip, rumor, or innuendo. When staff find themselves in possession of information about a colleague that they believe may interfere with that person’s ability to perform theirduties, it is incumbent upon them to address their concern, to theirsupervisor, or to the Executive Director.
V. Professional Duty to Consumers
Staff shall treat consumers, their families, guardians and advocates, and the general public with courtesy and respect both in person and on the telephone.
Staff shall protect the confidentiality and privacy rights of consumers and shall be careful not to jeopardize these rights by discussing confidential matters in public or in other places in which persons with no right to know about those matters might overhear them. All staff will receive training on the subject of confidentiality at their employee orientation, and are expected to be aware of and observe Agency policy on the subject at all times.
Staff shall follow Agency policy to secure case records against loss, defacement, tampering, and access by unauthorized individuals.
Staff shall not engage in dual relationships which may be detrimental to their ability to perform their duties or which may impair their objectivity and professional judgment. In particular, staff will not engage in sexual or emotional intimacies with consumers or their family members, nor encourage friendships with consumers outside of the workplace.
Staff shall not perform assessment or treatment services for their friends or relatives. The treatment of colleagues or their families poses a threat of dual relationship and should be avoided wherever possible by referral to alternate treatment sources. Staff will not misrepresent their professional responsibilities or qualifications to consumers nor to the public. They will not accept gifts or gratuities of more than token value from consumers, or from other clients of the Agency.
VI. Professional Duty to External Colleagues and the General Public
In their contact with other colleague agencies, referral and funding sources, and with the general public, staff shall share information about the Agency in a positive and factual manner, avoiding speculation, exaggeration, sensationalism, and other forms of misrepresentation.
When working in a situation involving several non-Agency parties, staff will disclose fully the nature and scope of their responsibilities, and limitations or requirements imposed upon them by Agency policy and by legal or other binding considerations.
VII. Violation of Ethics
Violation of the above stated policy will be subject to disciplinary action up to and including discharge. Individuals bringing forward information of known or suspected violation of this policy will not be subject to retaliation. Procedures for reporting and the investigation process are outlined in Violation of Ethics Policy.
Violation of the above stated policy will be subject to disciplinary action up to and including discharge. Individuals bringing forward information of known or suspected violation of this policy will not be subject to retaliation. Procedures for reporting and the investigation process are outlined in Violation of Ethics Policy.
