One of the more common questions we get at NASW Ohio is about writing letters for clients who are seeking emotional support animals as an accommodation for housing. This question connects with social work ethics as both an issue of competence and education as well as one of supporting access and disability justice. 

NASW Ohio recorded a webinar titled "Basic Competence in Verification of Emotional Support Animal Need" on March 10, 2021 as part of a webinar series offered to members and non-members. This webinar is a great way to develop your competence in the area of writing letters for emotional support animals. Anyone is able to watch the recorded webinar content for free. However, the 2 counselor and social worker ethics CEUs are available for purchase. The cost is $30 for non-members and free for NASW Ohio members (log in for member pricing). 

Basic Competence in Verification of Emotional Support Animal Need

About the webinar: 

Social Workers are ethically required to practice only in areas they are competent in.  According to the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE), social work competence is defined as “the ability to integrate and apply social work knowledge, values, and skills to practice situations in a purposeful, intentional, and professional manner to promote human and community well-being”.  When presented by a client with a request for a letter verifying need for an Emotional Support Animal (ESA), a social worker with competence in this area needs:

• Knowledge: ESA vs. other therapeutic roles of animals; policy/law relating to client eligibility for an ESA; and benefits and risks of human-animal interaction (HAI)
• Skill: integrating/applying the above knowledge to: 1) determine whether a client’s health/mental health condition is eligible for ESA consideration; 2) determine whether benefits of HAI are/can be expected to ameliorate impairment related to a client’s eligible health/mental health condition; and 3) write an appropriate ESA verification letter
• Social work ethics/values: awareness of social justice – accessibility, equity, participation, and human rights – and ethical issues relevant to clients seeking ESAs.

About the presenters: 

Janet Hoy-Gerlach, LISW-S, PhD is an Associate Professor of Social Work at the University of Toledo Social Work Program, with a Joint Appointment in the Department of Psychiatry.  She is the lead author of Human-Animal Interaction: A Social Work Guide, a book published by NASW Press in 2017, and Co-Chair of NASW Ohio’s Working Group on Human-Animal Interaction.  Her research focuses on health and mental health benefits of human-animal interaction for individual living with mental illness. She has worked extensively in community mental health settings as a case manager, therapist, clinical supervisor, and program developer.

Aviva Vincent, PhD is a graduate of the Mandel School. Her background in veterinary social work informs her practice as the Director of Program Quality at Fieldstone Farm Therapeutic Riding Center in Chagrin Falls, Ohio. She is an instructor of macro course-work at Case Western Reserve University, and teaches in the University of Tennessee in the Veterinary Social Work Certificate Program. Aviva's research focuses on the physiological impact that animals have on individuals, specifically in the reduction of fear and anxiety in stressful situations. Methodologically, her research interest is the integration of salivary analyte measures in social science research. Aviva is founder and co-chair of the human-animal interactions workgroup with National Association of Social Workers-Ohio, serves on the board of the International Association of Veterinary Social Work, and advisory board member for the Center for Human Animal Interaction research and Education at Ohio State University.

(Double click the video to expand to full screen)

Other resources

Counselor, Social Worker and Marriage & Family Therapist Board Guidance  go >>>

Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Guidance on ESAs under the Fair Housing Act (2020) go>>>

Disability Rights Ohio Self-Advocacy Resource Center* go >>>

Note: This page was published in 2016 and contains some outdated information re. air travel as well as information about service animals which are distinct from emotional support animals.

Ohio Civil Rights Commission Guidance go >>>