Local social worker to be brought before state board
By Lori Berglund — Daily Freeman-Journal EditorThe Iowa Board of Social Work is investigating a licensed independent social worker in Webster City. Thomas M. Follett, 1014 Boone St., was to go before the board on Monday to answer charges that include an alleged conflict of interest and breach of confidentiality.
The Iowa Attorney's General Office indicated this morning that Monday's hearing has been continued until a later date.
Follett was issued a license to practice as an independent level social worker Nov. 9, 1998. His license was set to expire at the close of 2008 and it's uncertain as to whether or not the license is active at this time.
The Iowa Board of Social Work has filed four separate counts against Follett, detailed on the agency's public website through the Iowa Department of Public Health.
The cases of at least four separate clients, all of whom are unnamed, are detailed in the counts set out against Follett.
The charges allege that Follett "engaged in a dual relationship with Client #4." The state alleges that Follett began seeing Client #4 around Oct. 1, 2007, while that person was in therapy. The two reportedly attended church together and she was included in family functions. Follett also is alleged to have visited Client #4 at a treatment facility and on one occasion checked her out of the facility and took her out for dinner. The documents allege that when Follett "returned Client #4 to the facility, she was legally intoxicated, resulting in her leaving the facility."
In a separate count, Follett is alleged to have "engaged in a dual relationship with Client #3 agreeing to provide social work services to Client #3 whom he knew personally and with whom he had an ongoing social relationship."
Another count alleges that "goals for treatment as articulated by Client #1 were different than the goals stated by (Follett) in court, and Client #1 was not given a clear understanding of the services to be provided to himself and his son."
Following up on that, the state alleges that Follett "failed to protect the confidentiality of Client #1 when he included confidential information regarding Client #1 in the record of Client #1's son without consent, and ultimately released the son's record to the Department of Health and Human and Services. The documents further allege that "given the dynamics of this family, treating individuals of the family was a conflict of interest."
It was also stated that Follett had met with Client #2 outside the office.
Finally, the state alleged that Follett "on numerous occasions... directed inappropriate, unethical, unprofessional sexual comments and gestures to female co-workers."
Messages left for Follett were not returned prior to press time this morning.
Contact Lori Berglund at editor@freemanjournal.net
