Monthly News & Updates

NASW-MO Member, Grey Endres, DSW, LCSW, co-presented at the NASW National Conference in Washington, D.C. on June 21, 2024. The presentation, “Connecting the Dots: All Violence is Connected” was presented with Dr. Tara D. Wallace, MSW, LSCSW, CTF-CBT, RYT, SLC. Both presenters focused on the way in which violence, ranging from domestic violence, child abuse, elder abuse, and human trafficking, interlocked and should be addressed on both the macro and the micro perspective in a unified perspective.



The audience of social workers from across the country asked questions of the two doctorate-level clinicians.

Left to right, Dr. Tara D. Wallace, Dr. Grey Endres, Cassie E. Brown, NASW-MO. Photo courtesy of Cassie E. Brown

Ethically Speaking



Our Duty to the Practice Setting and to the Clients We Serve

by Nicholas Simons-Bracken, MSW, LCSW, LSCSW  (He/Him/His)

This specific monthly ethics article is focusing on Social Workers’ Ethical Responsibilities in Practice Settings (3.0). With this said, I believe it is essential as Social Workers to focus on the needs of the client and our ability to evaluate our own skills in order to best support the clients we are serving or plan to serve. In looking at section 3.06 subsection (a) it identifies that the Social Worker should evaluate the clients needs before agreeing to provide services, also discussing with the client about their current relationships with other service providers and the implications, including possible benefits or risks, of entering into a relationship with a new service provider. So, to inform our practice, we should evaluate all of the clients that seek services in an effort to best support their needs within the scope of our practice. Understandably, if we are to provide services to clients that need more substantial care, then this should be a conversation we have with the client and determine the benefits and the risks associated with accepting the client and if we, as the practitioners, can provide the needed support or if the client should remain within the agency that they are receiving services. I believe that we, as social workers, want to help and support our clients to the best of our capacity and, oftentimes, too much so to the potential detriment of ourselves and the clients we wish to serve. Remember that the code of ethics is an essential guide to our daily practice. This tool is for us to provide reflection, make ethically sound decisions, and support our clients, agencies, and communities with the best outcomes possible with little to no harm. 

NASW-MO’s Fall Conference, October 10-13, will be held in Columbia at the Stony Creek Hotel. This year’s event will offer a new feature: a Job Fair for job seekers and students on October 10. We still have openings for employers and agencies to exhibit at the Job Fair.



“This is our first conference in the Columbia area, and we’re excited it’s more centralized,” said Jennifer Engelby, NASW-MO’s Professional Development Coordinator. “We expect to have more attendees because it’s centrally located.” Engelby went on to say, “We hope to attract more students, because we’re centrally located. We have volunteer spots open for students so that they can attend the conference as well as network with other social workers.”