Reflective Reflection In Social Work

Throughout the class, many aspects of the curriculum were seen as useful in future social work practice. Before this course, in other course work, treatment planning and goal setting was often something that was reviewed briefly, yet within the coursework of the capstone seminar this matter had been gone over in more detail. Within this course, it was possible to gain more insight into a more balanced way of setting treatment goals that included conversations with the client concerning what they desired out of treatment in addition to what was needed. This aspect of the course was particularly useful when it came to working towards the development of the treatment plan with the client who was presented during the case presentation, Sarah.

I started my placement with a very intensive and well organised induction. This involves reading and familiarising myself with the policies and procedure of the organisation after the learning agreement has been set out. Knowing the policy and procedure and how to apply it in practice is very important knowledge in social work. I referred to this policy when I was giving a service user a warning and when I was reading part of the license agreement for a young person moving into the hostel (PCF1). This enhances my knowledge on how to practice in this type of setting and how to keep myself, the young people and the visitor on the premises safe (PCF domain 7 and 8).

Being willing and available to share and implement thoughts and suggestions to others about unexpected life situations are a major part of being of social worker. For myself, being available to offer solutions to people of all genders, backgrounds, religions and more engenders a sense of purpose and accomplishment. My social work experience thus far has taught me how valuable communication is from both the person needing assistance and the individual offering help. Generally speaking, most people prefer individuals that will listen to them attentively as they share their thoughts. I have realized that during this process, both parties are given the opportunity to intake the information, before releasing any suggestions. Communication is essential, in order to properly identify and fix the problem.

I have a good level of education that is evident through completing a BSc Social Work Degree. Through completing the degree, I have developed experience working with older adults and adults with mental health problems. Also, my knowledge of services, legislation and mental health needs has developed through my continuous professional development. I have a good knowledge of mental health legislations including the Mental Health Act 1983 and its amendments (2007), Mental Capacity Act 2005 and Care programme approach. Throughout my experiences, I developed a sound understand of sections under the Mental Health Act 1983 including service user discharge and aftercare arrangements (Section 117 aftercare) and various sections that service users can become detained under.

making Practice-Based Learning work Reflection on PRACTICE A resource commissioned by the Making Practice Based Learning Work project, an educational development project funded through FDTL Phase 4 Project Number 174/02 and produced by staff from the University of Ulster. www.practicebasedlearning.org Author Patricia McClure School of Health Sciences, University of Ulster www.practicebasedlearning.org contents Reflection on Practice 02

I had been working with a child where I needed to conduct an assessment. Before the meeting to share the information with the parents, I sent them a copy of the completed assessment to enable them to gather their thoughts so that at the meeting I was able to answer any specific concerns. The mother had rang me the day she received the assessment as she was not happy about the comments written. I explained to the mother that we could discuss the matter at the meeting but, although she did not respond, I could sense that the mother was still irate.

Today’s session was conducted by second year placement social work students and service users. The issue they covered was about the relevance of working in partnership within the social care profession.

A good way to let a client know you are listening is by the use of minimal responses including expressions and non verbal responses that occur in our everyday conversations (Geldard & Geldard, 2001). For example at the beginning of the session my client said “..., Sometimes I feel I choose my job or something else in my life over my uni...” I replied by nodding and made use of the expression “Mm-hmm”. I demonstrated this skill to allow the client to speak without interruptions and to verbally express my interest in her issue.

This essay will look reflectively over my first year as a student social worker and will describe my personal and professional development over this time. I will also reflect upon the communication skills required in relationship based practice, as well as considering emotional resilience and its importance with service users and other professionals.

At the beginning of the course, I feel that I was naive about my professional knowledge about the field of social work. I had a false knowledge about what the field entailed

Self-reflection and correction in social work practice is important for continued learning and professional development. Without self-awareness, social workers cannot separate their personal feelings, values, and attitudes from their professional. This is important because we need to focus on the needs of the client, not what we think they need. Knowing how to separate our personal feelings and values from our professional feelings and values will prevent us from getting burnout and help us maintain professional boundaries.

Entry 1 On this module you have explored what might have led you to join the social work profession. Why is it important to think about your motivations for becoming social workers and how might this affect the way you practice? Why is self-awareness important in social work practice? Given your own unique background, what areas of social work might you find challenging and why?

This essay will demonstrate an understanding of the theory of reflective practice within healthcare and nursing. Furthermore, the essay will identify and analyse the different models of reflective practice, the effectiveness of the models and how healthcare professionals can apply this within their profession. Also, the barriers that may prevent a healthcare professional from reflecting will be discussed in this essay and how it will impact the quality of care delivered to patients.

* Differentiation and elaboration of experience. Clients start back seeing things in a very black and white manner with no grey areas. This change during the counselling process.

Self-awareness and the use of self is a key component in social work practice. Depending upon how one integrates their personal being and accompanying thoughts, experiences, emotions, and consciousness into the helping profession has a profound impact on whether that integration is positive or negative, particularly when it comes to that of one’s relationships with their clients. While remaining impartial is often critical to effective social work practice, the complete separation of self from one’s professional practice is not only impossible to realize, but would arguably have less of a meaningful impact with one’s relations with clients as well as self. Understanding the use of self and the importance of self-awareness in the social work profession is the first step in establishing a healthy means of practicing and the impact that our own individuality has when interacting with clients. In this paper I will analyze, and further critically reflect upon, four academic journals on the topic of the use of self in social work; later applying this learning to an experience from my field placement.