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Understanding the role of social work
Understanding the role of social work
Social services role and responsibilities
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Interning at the Jewish Adoption and Foster Center (JAFCO) was an exceptional experience. JAFCO is an agency which was originally created to meet an unmet need in the Jewish community. As of today, JAFCO serves abused and neglected children and those with developmental disabilities. JAFCO provides a host of services such as foster care, adoption, and etc. An emergency shelter, which JAFCO house children in crisis from birth to 12 years of age. After being placed in the shelter, my experience working with these young vulnerable children reminded me why I decided to pursue my Master degree in Social Work. Below, I will describe my experience at JAFCO, challenges I embarked, and implement an improvement plan to incorporate as I move through my field placement process. Experience in field My first field experience was by far the most challenging one yet, however, it was a great experience overall. I met new people, reconnected with old friends, I oversaw how agencies collaborate together, and I learned new things. In the beginning, I worked in the education center tutoring teens in the group homes. Consistently, I worked with three clients and two of which I was familiar with. Form a previous employment, we …show more content…
Although, I attempt to attend two of the clinical meetings, JAFCO did not inform me that one of the clinical meeting was cancelled and the other meeting was pushed up to a different time. By the end of the semester, I was only able to attend one clinical meeting. There was ineffective communication between the field educator and myself about my internship schedule and learning plan/tasks. As my first experience in field, the agency expectations of my knowledge was very high and most often I felt unease for not knowing as much as the other interns. Overall, the field educator made me felt uncomfortable and if I was not terminated, my plans was to change my placement for the upcoming
Personal statement. In contrast with the formal writing sample, we use the personal statement to get to know you a little better. The personal statement should be a maximum of 1700 words. Please use the personal statement address the following three questions:
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.
These factors have also been complemented by my second and third year placements where I completed case work and child protection duties where I started to learn how the child protection process is tackled nationally, locally and also by the individual.
In addition to this experience I have over 8 years’ experience in developing curriculums for adult learners in various sectors such as Arts, Small Business Management, Leadership, and Nonprofit among others. I know that CASA program are compiled of dedicated individuals who champion for the foster care youth. I know that youth they stand for are those without a voice and these individuals become their voice. In my professional career I have worked with the child welfare system and foster care system in providing education. I understand that juvenile courts are working to provide the best possibilities for youth
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.
While volunteering there, I was placed in a local long-term care home for the elderly. This experience was highly beneficial. Working along side, nurses, care aids and other health care professionals was my first view inside the “system”. Volunteering at the Care Home, did not necessarily make up my mind on the field of social work but solidified my desire to work in the field of human services. I learnt from this experience at the hospital how profound my compassion for others truly was. It was not until my first year of college, that I started to volunteer with an organization that I am still with today and absolutely adore volunteering with. That organization is the Vernon Women’s Transition House in Vernon BC. I started off by filling in for employees who met in weekly meetings. While on the floor, I met many women who were in a place of ‘in-between’ and safety. This experience was eye opening. After a brief stay out-of-town, I returned to Vernon and again volunteered with the transition house – this time in another program: Support to Young Parents. This is an incredible housing program where young mothers who have fled abuse (potentially without the resources or parenting skills they truly need) can live long term. This apartment consists of 6 units, with the 7th unit converted into a resource and common space. The program
"Do not become a social worker. You will not make any money and you will be stressed out all the time." My maternal grandparents were foster care parents from the 1980 's until April of this year. In that time they hosted over 250 children from a variety of cultural and ethnic backgrounds. As a child, I spent much of my time at my grandparents house and was exposed to the multiple aspects of the foster care system. I became close with the social workers who came to my grandmother 's house and when it came time for me to make a career choice, they all discouraged me from becoming a social worker. Despite their warnings I graduated with my Bachelor 's of Social Work from Saint Louis University in 2013 and began to work on my Master 's in Social Work in August of 2014.
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
After more than a decade in the field and now nearing the completion of my Social Service Worker Diploma; I have yet to truly carve out a defined career path. However, I have further examined my work style, needs and values. This examination has not only validated my thoughts on further career development, but lead to exploration of areas I had not felt open to me. An example of this would be in my work in the field of child protection. My feeling that this at most would be on the fringe of my future work was confirmed when looking at how I enjoy creative problem solving, freedom to make administrative decisions, and approaching my work in a nonjudgmental style.
This approach has much future promise particularly in the context of economic challenges and resource constraints. Since the African continent has problems with lack of resources it is wise that countries adopt this approach and move away from the remedial one which is costly. The developmental approach is highly friendly with social work’s historical values and commitment to achieving social justice and human rights (Midgley & Conley, 2010). However, there are limitations facing the developmental approach in social work.
The origins of social work in the United States mirror an ongoing growth of ideas put together from many different cultures. While modern social work here in the states were built on Christian idea many of its concepts are in part due to the influence of the Koran and the mutual aid practices of Native Americans, the African-American community, and immigrants from all over the world.
The career of a social worker is not as attractive to many because it’s not a field where you can make a lot of money right away. I want to make good living once I enter the real world, but I also want to have a purpose in life. I have always loved to help people. I am a very nurturing person and have always been passionate about helping others. I want to be able to make a difference in my community and the lives of other people. I also want to be a social worker because I want a career where I can have some diversity. I do not want a job where I must be confined to a desk to perform my job daily. Each day will be a different challenge as a social worker. I need to be involved in a field where I will not be bored and pushed to resolve the many
At our local Women's Employment Centre (WERC) a small group of women, including myself, meet every Tuesday morning for a Women Studies course. We study women past and present, and other affairs that are relevant to our modern-day lives. Such as, racism, economics, politics, family, ways to economize our households, etc. The goal in all this is to be better prepared to fulfill our roles in the community and reach our potential. Our local women's centre offers an 8 week course to help women build basic skills for entering and overcoming particular barriers to employment.
Introduction “HIV/AIDS is a complex infection that warrants an aggressive and holistic approach to management and treatment. While a diagnosis of HIV infection today may not carry the imminent fear of death that is has in the past, for many HIV-infected people, it does mean a restricting of their lives to face the future. They must contend with uncertainties, not only in relation to health status, but also with regard to financial security, alterations in relationships, and discrimination, all of which may impact quality of life” (Buseh, Kelber, Stevens & Park, 2008, p. 409). According to Peterson and Jones (2009), “The HIV/AIDS epidemic has exacted a devastating toll up upon Black men who have sex with men (MSM) in the United States, and
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