Social Work Practice Theory Paper

In order to work effectively and appropriately with vulnerable and marginalised groups in society such as individuals with mental illnesses, it is fundamental for a social worker to have a comprehensive knowledge base and proficient skills.

When thinking about my core values and beliefs that underpin my social work practice framework the first value that comes to mind is human dignity and worth. I believe that all people are created equal and should be treated as such no matter their background or differences in beliefs. When working in this profession, I may come into contact with individuals who don’t agree with my own perspectives but this is something where I would be able to put my differences aside and work together towards a common goal. This aligns with multiple of the CSWE Advanced Social Work Practice in Trauma Standards including 2.1.5 “advance human rights and social and economic justice” (2012, p 9). Understanding that every person within the community has basic

Thesis Statement People think that putting their loved ones in senior home centers or assisted living centers will benefit them due to the way they think they're going to be treated. When in reality most of the time it's not that way. Many are very unorganized,they abuse the elderly, and patients aren't getting the attention they need. Senior homes are meant to make the patients feel like they're at home.

We live in a day and age where most Canadians do not concern themselves with the odds of them being placed in a long-term care facility due to the presence of our health care system, however, a greater number of individuals should be more cogitative about the possibility of needing to be put in a home and that not being an immediate option. According to the Ontario Long Term Care Association (2015) over 40% of the long-term care homes in Ontario are small, with 96 or fewer beds. With the aging of the baby boomers within the next couple of years, 96 beds are simply not enough. The hardship of leaving the comfort of one’s home is stressful enough, without having to worry whether or not there will be open availability in the local nursing home. This report examines

In my opinion, a lot of how elders adapt to living in a LTCF depends on the choices they make. If they sit around, and think poor pitiful me, they will have a much harder time adapting to their new environment. If the elder becomes engaged in their new environment, they will adapt more efficiently. As Parker (2013) mentioned, she stays heavily involved in activities that the LTCF provides, but also performs a multitude of other activities in her apartment

There have been problems within Long-Term Care and many of these abuses were turned over to the patients, there was hardly any direction on how to handle Long-Term Care. “Poor houses and Almshouses and developed in response to an impoverished, aging, and

Currently there are over 3.2 million individuals living in nursing homes or long-term-care facilities. It is estimated that approximately forty percent of the United States' population will at some point in their lives enter a nursing home (“Nursing Home Abuse”). Whether or not an individual is placed in a nursing home, with these numbers, the likelihood of having a friend or family member in one of these facilities is relatively high. As shown by this statistic alone, there is already a good portion of the population in nursing homes. Establishments, due to the number of patients, struggle to keep their staffing numbers at an amount that allows them to properly care for their patients. A 2010 census brought to light that, soon, due to the Baby Boomers, nursing home numbers will increase even more. According to the census "within two decades they [Baby Boomers] are expected to comprise more than 20 percent of our entire population" (Landers). By the end of the 2020s, the number of individuals in their mid-eighties and older will hit eight million, nearly tripling the elder population in 2002 (Scott 115). With these increasing numbers, the already understaffed nursing homes will almost seem to be nonexistent and more and more abuse will

Residing in a nursing facility provides seniors with a built-in social network of their peers. Senior residents can enjoy the company of others who are living in the same facility and share their experiences. Many senior citizens suffer from depression due to feelings of isolation from living alone and not having access to social outlets. Gatherings within the nursing homes give the patients an opportunity to enjoy one another.

The American culture glorifies being young and our members chase youth and pretend to be young for as long as possible. Aging is seen as somehow wrong and embarrassing. This is easily seen in the ‘anti-aging’ creams, pills, potions, exercises, etc. In our society, the cultural norm is to live in your own home as long as possible, thus proving your independence and your right to continue to be part of society. When you can no longer take care of yourself due to medical and/or financial reasons you move (or are put into) a nursing home. Once in a nursing home it is ‘out of sight, out of mind.’ Typically people in nursing homes aren’t viewed as being members of our overall society. Many elderly patients are seldom, if ever, visited by

In this article, Kane challenges many of the assumptions about long term care and about nursing homes. He begins with the premise that effective long-term care has to meet three different needs which may not be compatible with one another. These three needs are personal care, medical care, and housing. He also discusses a significant indictment of the current nursing home system and his belief that it simply is not appropriate for most elderly people because it strips far too many personal liberties. He believes that this can be traced to the history of the nursing home, which evolved as a type of quasi-hospital, but the trade-off of freedom for access to care that exists in a hospital is not the same underlying social contract that should exist fin a long term care environment. Instead when people seek out nursing homes they are seeking out care and housing, so that the environment is supposed to be one of the benefits, not something to be endured in order to get the benefit. Furthermore, because many nursing homes do both long term care and rehabilitation, he believes that they are overextended.

Studies have shown that this type of care brings about the best results. The use of

In nursing homes, no one is asked they prefer to do their daily activities so there is resentment because residents are not considered as a partner in care. This can lead to patient’s disorientation and confusion. Also, mortification due to confusion leads to further loss of independence.

The research question is focused on emotions and attitudes of older adults residing within a CCRC, therefore a qualitative descriptive design was chosen for this study. Qualitative descriptive research supports the researcher remaining close to the words people use to describe their event or situation (Sandelowski, 2000). Focus groups will used to answer the question, what are the emotions and attitudes that prevent residents in a CCRC from accepting the guidance of professional staff in regards to transitioning to a higher level of care or receiving assistance in their home? Focus groups by design support hearing from a group of people with a specific focus or interest, specific characteristics, will provide data of a qualitative nature to support answering the question of interest (Krueger,1988). The participants will state what the attitudes and thoughts are when facing the possibility of accepting assistance in their apartment or transitioning to a higher level of care such as AL or NC, and what the barriers are through open ended questions.

For this critical commentary, I will be looking into the article written by Janice Keefe and Pamela Fancey which is called “ The Care Continues; Responsibility for Elderly Relatives before and after Admission to a Long Term Care Facility. The article is made up of information regarding their research into 214 family members who have put their loved ones in these long-term care facilities. The overall result from the research had shown that these families had only put their loved ones in these homes due to their declining care (Fancey and Keefe,1). From here, the article looks into several points that reflect on the family members continuing care even when they are in these homes or not.

People think that putting their loved ones in senior home centers or assisted living centers will benefit them due to the way they think their going to be treated. When in reality most of the time it's not that way. Many are very unorganized, messy, and patients aren't getting the attention they need.