Week One - IT and Ethical Considerations

Information technology is “the study, design, development, implementation, support or management of infotech". Information technology is a general term that describes any technology that helps to produce, manipulate, store, communicate, and/or disseminate information” (Wikipedia, 2010).

Information technology is very prevalent in today's society, it is everywhere you turn and very common place. It is forever changing, adapting and getting more and more advanced. This causes demands on society to continue updating or improving their technology to keep up with the changes.

I use many IT devices in my day to day life, most commonly my laptop and phone, but am also have an Ipod and digital camera, and commonly use social networking sites and emails.

A form of technology that I have noticed is used a lot during my fieldwork placements has been a digital camera. I have so far done community physical and neuro rehab, both of which have used digital cameras commonly for housing modifications. Therapists find it easier to take a photo of the original area and draw the plan on top rather than drawing the area themselves, this also saves time for the therapist. The other form of technology that is commonly used in practice is a computer. They store and write client notes, used during meetings, stores resources and can be used as part of an intervention.

Even if IT systems and devices are helpful there can also be ethical implications that need to be addressed when using them, the main being privacy. Common privacy issues that can be overlooked is did a person agree to that information being taken, what will it be used for and who else has access to it. This is common with photographs.

Definitions
Computer Ethics - “is a branch of practical philosophy which deals with how computing professionals should make decisions regarding professional and social conduct” (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Computer_ethics)

Intellectual Property - “is a term referring to a number of distinct types of creations of the mind for which property rights are recognised--and the corresponding fields of law. Under intellectual property law, owners are granted certain exclusive rights to a variety of intangible assets, such as musical, literary, and artistic works; discoveries and inventions; and words, phrases, symbols, and designs. Common types of intellectual property include copyrights, trademarks, patents, industrial design rights and trade secrets in some jurisdictions” (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intellectual_property).

Social Justice - “is the application of the concept of justice on a social scale” (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_justice).

Informed Consent - “is a phrase often used in the law to indicate that the consent a person gives meets certain minimum standards” (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Informed_consent).

From these definitions it is important to recognise the use of ITC in practice, as every therapist needs to be aware of how information is being used, where it is going and who has access to it. Without this it could lead to individuals privacy being broken.