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Strengths and weaknesses in social work
Strengths and weaknesses in social work practice
Strengths and weaknesses of social work
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As an upcoming social worker I understand there are certain traits I portray that are strengths in the social work field. I also understand that were there are strengths, there are weaknesses. I did not realize what my strengths and weaknesses were until I began to practice in the field. Some strengths I have found in myself are good listening skills, ability to handle stressful situations, and time management skills. Along with those strengths I have found my weaknesses are speaking what I believe about a situation, procrastination, and taking on too much responsibility. I have demonstrated good active listening skills as long as I can remember. I pay attention and listen in class as well as outside of class with peers or at my internship. …show more content…
I never knew this was a quality I had until I interned at the Roanoke Rescue Mission, and had to handle plenty of stressful situations. For instance, when Alexis and I were alone at the front desk and a woman came in waving papers in our faces and was highly upset, I was able to address the issue calmly which got her to calm down as well. I think a social worker needs to be able to handle most stressful situations, seeing as to how they will encounter many different situations that will more than likely be …show more content…
For example, when someone is talking about children being whipped with belts, and saying it is abuse, I usually comment on it saying something along the line as, that’s what I would have done. I have been getting better about this and biting my tongue when what I was going to say was not appropriate. Occasionally I will say something that I believe in about a situation, but try to be more appropriate. I understand how this can potentially get me in trouble, especially if I say something to the wrong/right person and they see it as unprofessional and fire me or write me up for it. I am learning through DSS when it can be appropriate to do so, and I am also practicing holding my tongue when I know, or even think, it could be
Social workers address people’s problems every day, but it’s the identification of people’s strengths that provides clues for how to solve their problems and improve their life situations (Saleeby, 2013, pp.17-20).
I come to Fordham University with expectations of completing my Masters of Art degree in Social Service. As a single parent, I have faced many challenges raising my special needs child. My innovation to help disadvantaged children with social and emotional problems encompassed me to continue to pursue a career in the Social Service Profession. This will increase my chances of being a successful Child Therapist. I am aware, prepared and committed to devoting my time towards my studies at Fordham University as well as taking advantage of all the necessary resources that Fordham University has to offer. My personal, academic and profession experience has given me the opportunity
These strengths include the ability of communicating effectively, possessing a passion to help people, good listening skills, understanding needs others contain, and solving conflicts. Yet, my weaknesses consist of being too friendly or occasionally being impatient. As an African-American woman who is Christian, there may be some conflict with prospective clients. I could come across clients from different religions, races, sexual orientation, and cultures. He or she might see my religion or race as an issue, nonetheless I would be determined to help them to the best of my abilities, either with consulting a supervisor about steps to take or transferring him or her to another social worker. A previous life experience that could potentially affect my work is when dealing with people that are abusers or have been abused. Having faced this, I will have to discover some way to avert those personal experiences for providing services to those
This essay aims to explore the characteristics that make a good quality social work assessment in child care. Martin (2010) stated that there was “no single agreed definition of social work assessment.” Coulshed and Orme (2006, p24) did not offer a formal definition but they described assessment as “…a basis for planning what needs to be done to maintain, improve or bring about change in the person, the environment or both.” According to the Maclean and Harrison (2015) good assessments must be “purposeful and timely.” This is because practitioners need to be clear about why they are carrying out assessments and what it is they wish to achieve at the end of that assessment.
What does it mean to become a social worker? Why was I committing two years of my life to school after renouncing further education? I asked myself this after I applied, waited anxiously for my acceptance letter and scrambled to figure out the finances after I was accepted. I could not have guessed that the first day of the Micro Human Behavior Social Environment (SWG 510) would capture my attention and thrust me into the professional world of Social Work. As I learned more about what it meant to become a social worker, I found myself aligning to the National Association of Social Workers (NASW) Ethical Standards as reviewed through Foundation Course I’s first chapters.
In order to broaden my perspective on health care, I decided not to interview an occupational therapist. I wanted to hear the health perspective of another professional, therefore I chose to interview a social worker. I believed it would be interesting since social work is one of the disciplines that influenced occupational therapy. Claire Fultz was able to give me a glimpse of the social work profession and corresponding background during our interview. Fultz is a psychiatric social worker employed at Mindoula Health Inc. who began working in the human services and social work field back in 2001. Prior to her professional work experience, she completed two Master’s programs while majoring in four specializations. She explained how her experience
After completion of the social work program I would like to work in a clinical setting. I would really like to be in a mental health center or a hospital working with military members. I don’t have and preference on the kinds of issues that I would like to work with. As long as I am helping veterans, I will be happy. The reason that I prefer to work under these condition is because I have a passion for working with military members, since I am prior military I feel like I can relate to them and I understand what they are going through. I know that it is very hard for military members to talk to civilian about their problems because civilians just don’t understand, no matter what they say. I will be required to have a diverse set of qualities
I learnt that the use of words or expressions such as ‘that’s brilliant’ can be misinterpreted by some clients to mean that you agree with what they have done. I often use expressions like that in conversations. I am now aware that it can be misunderstood and would like to guard against it. We watched a Youtube video, two social workers called out to a service user flat for an initial assessment. They were refused entry by a friend because he had bad experience with social workers in the past and his child was taken away.
Being able to empathize with clients to understand and identify with their experiences, even if they do not describe their thoughts or feelings explicitly to you. A good social worker can empathize with a wide variety of people, understanding their choices and feelings even if, as a social worker you do not agree with them. I need to be emotionally attuned to individuals ' needs, and will also have to be able to help them identify and articulate their feelings. An angry person, for example, might be struggling with feelings of inadequacy that fuel anger. I consider myself to be a highly empathetic person, therefore, I will be better equipped to detect
Social workers play a very important role in many situations. Most people can only help an individual up until a certain point then they have no clue what to do to help the individual. A social worker comes up with a plan to help an individual that cannot help themselves. Without social workers many individuals will not know how to manage certain situations. They will come up with an idea that they believe is suitable and move on without thinking about it. Social work has come a long way from when it first began. Comparing then and now, social work is much better and very well organized. The people that are in need whether they are mentally ill or someone that cannot support themselves, are being taken care of properly. It is known that years
Theory is defined as “…”. In the social work profession, it is not enough to just understand the definition of theory, but rather be able to integrate theory into practice when working to plan interventions at multiple practice levels. This integration of theory into the social work practice is an emphasis of the profession as noted in the profession’s core competencies. Core competency 2.1.6 “engage in research-informed practice and practice-informed research” (NASW code of ethics) is the basis for theory integration within the social work profession. The profession’s practice behaviors state that social workers must “use research evidence to inform practice” (NASW code of ethics). In other words, social workers should “attend to findings
Strengths and Limitations of Social Work Practice in Colombia: A View from Canadian Social Work
Research is a necessity when it comes to providing services. Social Workers need it to be able to determine their clients ' needs, to see what resources/services they have access to and if their client doesn 't have much access where can they get it. Research is also used to see how effective an intervention is and whether it would be a right fit for their clients. It provides social service agents with ways to identify problems within their clients, communities, organizations, and the government. Also it helps them to create ways to aid in effective change. It is very beneficial when a social worker needs to "assess the needs and resources of people in their environments, evaluate the effectiveness of social work services in meeting people
My understanding about the social work profession is one that works with a diverse group of people to better their well-being in all aspects. Social workers requires: responsibility, passion, and knowledge. The social worker has to understand their own personal cultural values, beliefs, and appreciate the multicultural identities of different people. The profession of social worker requires a lot of skills because they have different tasks and responsibilities. They are aware of social policies and programs for the diverse clients advocating.
The social work profession is defined as “a practice-based profession and an academic discipline that promotes social change and development, social cohesion, and the empowerment and liberation of people (ISFW, ‘Global Definition of Social Work’, 2016).” The definition may be true about the profession but it is more in depth than just that. To me, the profession’s primary focus is to help others through life as much as we can while letting them make their own choices and guiding them. In society, social workers are utilized in many different nonprofit and government roles. They serve the community in many different ways from monitoring parent visits to helping people through mental illnesses. Human beings are so complex and things that happen