Private Practice: The Role Of Social Work In Social Care

I. Introduction
Across America, social workers can be found in a wide variety of settings, working with a vast population of people. One such setting in which social workers provide service is through private practice. Private practice social workers work outside an agency of government facility to provide services through their own established practice. Many people associate private practice social work with the work of psychologists, counselors or therapists initially. While they each provide similar services, educational requirements often differentiate the fields of practice and ultimately allow them each to make varying contributions to their clients.
"Psychiatrists can prescribe medications, psychologists administer and interpret psychometric

They may provide individual, couples, family therapy, group therapy, play therapy, crisis intervention, bereavement counseling, and more services (NASW, 2011). One study with a sample of 1,000 randomly selected social workers in private practice found that the largest population seen was Caucasian (88%). Following Caucasians were African Americans who accounted for 7.5% of the clients seen and Latino and Hispanics who accounted for 2.3%. In regards to age range, those between 21 and 59 encompassed 71% of the clientele, those 60 or older accounted for 12%, adolescents accounted for 11%, followed by children under 13 who accounted for roughly 6% (Lord & Iudice, 2012). Also, a majority of the social workers (86%) stated that they typically saw clients individually; that is in a one to one session. However, 48% reported that they offer family therapy, 20% reported doing group work, and 10% said that they offer clinical case management (Ibid). Roughly two-thirds of social workers in private practice work in a solo setting while 14% work in a group practice, 16% work in a home office, and 6% work in some other setting

A recent requirement in every state is that a private practice clinical social worker must acquire licensure (Brauner, 2015). Clinical social workers in private practice also move through levels of professional competence. The first level is the postgraduate practice level, or the Masters in Social Work (MSW) level. An MSW will provide students with a wealth of information about clinical social work, but it does not qualify them to immediately work in their own practice. The general consensus is that MSW graduates must work in a supervised environment for at least two years before becoming licensed to work privately. The second level is the autonomous practice level or licensure level. Autonomous practice means unsupervised practice, inside or outside of an agency. Social workers who are at this level have completed at least two postgraduate years of supervised clinical work. They should be competent in diagnosing and treating clients, establishing intervention plans, and working within the parameters of the law. They can apply to be licensed and move on to independent practice. The next level is the advanced practice level or diplomate level. In order to get to this level, the social worker must have at least five years of clinical work post-MSW graduation and have achieved the autonomous practice level. These social workers are advanced and are now typically