Interview With Social Work

In this paper, the role of a social worker will be addressed. A Human Service professional has, in its hands, the responsibilities in the life of the clients and families they meet. The tremendous and arduous responsibilities they take on include, but are not limited to, the well-being and care of people and their communities. Such roles can be helping others manage the care of a family member, assisting individuals experiencing problems with family relations and conflicts, dealing with changes that come with growing old, aiding those suffering mental illness and or those individuals struggling with addictions. Briefly

I have often exaggerated the workplace and lifestyle of a social worker. After meeting with a fellow social worker, I am now able to understand their busy lifestyle. A social worker has to consider the struggles clients have experienced and hear their narratives. At the same time, these social workers need to keep their life in order in a professional and healthy way. A social worker I had the chance to meet, has endured four years of training at Thompson Rivers University: he received a bachelor degree off social work with a child welfare specialization, and two practicums, as well as regular training introduced by the government; that broadened his understanding on domestic violence, child welfare, and interview training. He stated six particular duties: provide child safety, child welfare, family care, community development, assisting individuals and being a go-to person to fellow clients (personal communication, January 27, 2016).

When working in a field of expertise the experts in that area need to know what defines that field. Social work, with its roots over a hundred years old, started out simply offering assistance to others, has grown and changed, and is currently reconnecting with its roots (Bisman, 2004). Bisman (2004) emphasizes the importance of being an advocate of justice and keeping the field focused on the “social” part of social work. This push to keep social work focused on the needs of others defines social work today. Social work focuses on providing aide to the needy and increasing awareness of those that are oppressed.

As part of our preparation for placement, we were required to make a role play on a given scenario in pairs. Each of us had to play the role of the social work student and the service user. We chose to use Miss Allen’s scenario, because we both had experience of working the adults. In preparation for this task, we met twice to clarify our roles and discussed the scenario as we understood it. We also discussed how we were going to assess Miss Allen, and what help we would offer her. The preparation was an important part of our task because it challenged us to think of the interview within its widest context, taking into account the particular needs of Miss Allen, agency policy and procedure and ourselves as student social

Social work professions need to understand the importance of how individuals interact both with other people and their environment, to have an understanding how individuals are affected by these interactions (Rogers, p. 2). According to Rogers (2016), “Social workers are knowledgeable about human behavior across the life course; the range of social systems in which people live; and the ways social systems promote or deter people in maintaining or achieving health and well-being. Social workers apply theories and knowledge from the liberal arts to understand biological, social, cultural, psychological, and spiritual development (p. 2). Their work with clients begins with assessments to evaluations of intervention and is based in and supports of the core value system of the profession.

For this assignment, I decided to interview my aunt because she has been a social worker for about thirty years, and has a lot of experience. She attended Dominican college in Orangeburg, New York where she graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Psychology. She then went to graduate school at Montclair State in New Jersey where she received her master’s in psychology. After this, she decided to go back to school for her MSW, which she received from SUNY Albany. Since she graduated, the only profession she has worked in is social work, and she is now a licensed clinical social worker. She loves what she does and is glad that she made the decision to become a social worker.

With a strong interest in child welfare, there was no question that my interview with a social worker would involve someone who is involved in this area of practice. I did a small amount of internet research and discovered the All Nations Coordinated Response Network (ANCR) in Winnipeg. I discovered that within the Child and Family Services system this agency is generally the first point of contact. With an interest in front line work, I decided to make contact with this agency in hopes of scheduling an interview. I made a phone call to ANCR and spoke to a receptionist with the agency about what I was looking to accomplish. I was more specific than I had originally planned and requested a recent graduate for the interview if possible.

According to the National Association of Social Work, “The primary mission of the social work profession is to enhance human well-being and help meet the basic human needs of all people, with particular attention to the needs and empowerment of people who are vulnerable, oppressed, and living in poverty. A historic and defining feature of social work is the profession’s focus on individual well-being in a social context and the well-being of society. Fundamental to social work is attention to the environmental forces that create, contribute to, and address problems in living.”

I interviewed a social worker named Keri who enjoys her job, but it does have difficult situations. While working with her cases she knows her tolerates. In the field she continues to refresh the information to make sure no law or guidelines has changed. She was asked question about crisis and how she approaches the problem when they appear. She gave her preferences on certain type of crisis counseling. I asked her about the mental illness on the nature of crisis, what multicultural considerations when providing crisis services, and the future as a social worker and how crisis services are implemented.

During the mock social work interview process I have discovered a lot of interesting facts about the process, myself, and the differences between how the interviewer and the interviewee experience the interview. The opportunity was unexpectedly very informative and has shown me how I want to grow as an interviewer for my clients as well as myself.

Medical Social Work is an important part of all of our health systems. Medical social work is a type of social work that is usually located around settings such as hospitals, outpatient clinic, hospices, long-term care facilities and also community health agencies (Morrow, 2012). Medical social work can require you to work in broad setting but also with specific populations. Most of medical social workers need to have a Master’s degree in order to qualify for that job. I interviewed a medical social worker Shavon Slack from Washington who has a degree in Social Work and is currently working at a Lise Carecenter in Kennewick. Her phone numbers are (509)586-9185 (work) and (509) 440-0435 (cell) if you need to reach her. Shavon’s main roles and

On Wednesday, September 20, 2017, at approximately 3:15pm, I interviewed Julia Dressler, a peer in my Social Work Interviewing class. The purpose of the interview was to become comfortable being recorded, increase my experience using the interviewing skills learned in class, and to be able to analyze my strengths and weaknesses, leading to a greater learning opportunity. Julia and I met in study room 308 in the George R. White Library at Concordia University in Portland. The study room was a quiet place and we had no interruptions.

Social workers provide professional support and wide variety of services to people who have social difficulties, and are trained to address human needs. They can work in different settings and can specialize in working with people, groups and communities, at all stages of life, from young children to older adults. The role of a social worker varies depending on what setting they are working in, like a hospital or a school.

Captain Rob Geis agreed to be interviewed and share his experiences with the next generation of Social Workers. Native to Ohio, he graduated High School in 1979, he continued his education at Ohio State University from 1982-1986, completing his Masters in Social Work. For the past 24 years, he has served as a Social Worker in the United States Army. In his current position he is responsible for the Department of Social Work Services. Previous positions have included: two assignments as a Division Social Worker, Medical Inpatient Social Worker, Chief of Social Work, Division Chief of Mental Health, Clinical Director of Army Substance Abuse Program, Combat Operation Stress Control Commander, and General Staff

Social Work’s core philosophy and values are centered around social justice and social well-being. Oppression, injustice, discrimination, and violence are antithetical to the social work profession. Social Work believes in strength-based approaches and the person-in-environment perspective to cater the needs and welfare of individuals, families, groups, communities, and society at large. Generally, the target populations for social work are vulnerable, marginalized, and oppressed people; however, social workers provide services to people with a wide range of problems, such as poverty, addiction, mental illness, etc. to empower them to meet their own needs. Historically, the social work profession started its operation by providing neighborhood