Case Study: Personal Boundaries In The Workplace

The case scenario allowed me to appreciate the principle theme of working with working with elderly PT’s who have experienced trauma and making the worker feel like a grandchild. Other surrounding themes presented in the case which included, transference and countertransference, intergenerational, Ageism and boundaries.
My initial reaction to this case scenario was that I felt that there was some sort of connection between Mr. Hansen and I, and that I felt that I was essentially crossing personal boundaries with him. These boundary crossings were manifested by checking up on him many times a day and answering personal questions related to remembering the Jewish history of Holocaust. Additionally, after leaving the Mr. Hansen’s room I would
The fact that the PT and I shared this bonding, I felt that I crossed certain professional boundaries in doing everything in my power to make things easier during his ICU admission. I questioned myself many times asking myself “am I doing the right thing?” As I knew that checking up on the PT 3 times a day and buying a menora was not something I provided to all my PT’s. However, I felt that I was and my gut feeling told me that despite crossing these boundaries I provided the Mr. Hansen with best service before his last moments in this world. Reamer (2013) states that “a clinical social worker’s modest self-disclosure or decision to accept an invitation [...] may prove in some special circumstances to be therapeutically useful to a client” (p. 123). Alternatively, “boundary crossings are harmful when the dual relationship has negative consequences for the social worker’s client or colleague” (p. 123) And for me to have shared those final moments with him was both an honor and a learning experience. A learning experience that I took from saying that even though I did cross SW boundaries, it was appropriate because I felt that I provided him the best service he needed at that time and our social context allowed us to