ABSTRACT
Many social workers subscribe to a code of ethical conduct, as do professionals in many other fields. This chapter explains how Human Immunodeficiency Virus/Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (HIV/AIDS) relates to the social worker's code of ethics, that is, the requisites for ethical conduct for social workers dealing with clients with HIV/AIDS and their families. In many areas of social work practice, ethics and law come together: legal practice is ethical practice and vice versa. While most of the actions taken by social work professionals are both ethical and legal, some acts that are ethical may nonetheless be illegal; some acts that are legal still may be unethical. The National Association of Social Workers code of ethics cites a number of broad ethical principles based on social work core values of service, social justice, dignity and worth of a person, importance of human relationships, integrity, and competence. Several of these directly relate to those with HIV/AIDS.
