That Others Matter: The Moral Achievement—Care Ethics and Citizenship in Practice with People with Dementia

Abstract

There are opportunities in practice for practitioners to sustain the citizenship of the people with whom they work. These opportunities arise as a matter of everyday decision-making, in the ways that service users and their families are facilitated to participate in decisions affecting their lives. Citizenship also hinges on the organisation of services to meet the needs of service users and carers. In this article, a care situation which fails to meet the needs of one family is examined using an ethics of care. A social worker reflects on her role in the decision-making and the eventual lack of commitment from a wider team to provide good care. To answer yes to the question of whether others matter, we need to consider whether the moral acheivement has been accomplished; that is to show in practice, that others do matter.

Keywords:

• Ethics of Care
• Marginalised People
• Participation
• Practice
• Citizenship

Acknowledgements

Thanks are due to Joan Orme and Annette Huntington who commented on earlier drafts of this article.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Tula Brannelly

Tula Brannelly has an interest in the effects of social policies on marginalised groups, particularly people who experience mental health problems. Research areas include practices and status associated with citizenship and the facilitation of citizenship through practice