Peacekeepers NW upholds a strong commitment to high standards of professional conduct. In addition to offering opportunities for continuing education, PKNW ensures that chaplains are certified for their professional ministry. To meet the ethical responsibilities of a Certified Chaplain, the Board of Directors adopted a Code of Professional Ethics.
Foundational to the code is commitment to accountability for ethical behavior by professional chaplains. Through our Code of Ethics, the PKNW offers guidance to our membership and the professional community. Those we serve can expect the standards that the PKNW Code of Ethics holds before its membership.
The code and processes implemented to support it are motivated by concern for the safety and well being of members and those whom they serve. Neither is intended to "protect" the Association or its members from public scrutiny. Each is designed to guide the Association and its members in recognizing norms for ethical conduct and calling people to accountability when these norms are violated.
Ethical behavior is a justice issue. Honesty about competency, clarity about professional roles, and the ability to articulate and keep appropriate boundaries while still entering into empathetic pastoral relationships are critical to public respect for and trust in the work of professional chaplains.
The PKNW Code of Ethics and processes take a restorative rather than retributive view of justice making. Our goal is to renew the ability to live and work ethically.
The Code of Ethics represents much discussion and careful discernment on the part of the PKNW Board of Directors. These are statements of hope and belief in the ability of professional chaplains to assume their rightful place among other helping professions who hold certified practitioners to specific standards of accountability for ethical behavior.
The PKNW is committed to working with its members and candidates as they seek to demonstrate the ethical requirements necessary for responsible chaplaincy.
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