Social Workers : A Rural Setting Face Each And Every Day Essay

After reading Alan Keith-Lucas’s book, “So You Want to Be a Social Worker,” I felt like I had found a lot of timeless truths. I say that because whenever I read it, I pictured being in a black and white movie listening to an old man talk about societal behaviors that still hold true today. The first two chapters discussed a lot about our beliefs and what those are, along with the common ground we share with non-Christians. Then the book goes on to discuss how we can use our beliefs to understand the nature of human beings. One of my favorite things he says is, “He or she doesn’t see people as “naturally good” or “naturally bad,” but as fallible creatures, who by the grace of God, are able sometimes to transcend themselves” (Keith-Lucas, 1985, p. 11). Keith-Lucas also mentions that social work and the Bible can connect to an extent that is useful to us. One way he mentions the two connecting is when he talks about love being the answer. In the second portion of the book there are a lot more Christian views applied to the social work realm of things, which include the views of sin, suffering, and the difference between spiritual and material needs. When discussing sin, Keith-Lucas added a lot of context to how the church use to view sin in two categories of “hot-blooded” and “cold-blooded,” which I thought was really interesting. I never knew the church use to have real categories for sin. And the sections about suffering and witnessing to others

“The life course is the progression and path an individual takes from conception to death, and considers that the whole life of the individual presents opportunities for development, change and growth” (Crawford and Walker 2010).

When thinking about social work, there are different avenues that a worker can explore in this vast field. Because a social workers job is multifaceted, workers can not only integrate themselves in an already created avenue, but can also tailor a field, specifically for a need in the community. Looking at the many different fields in the area of social work, the area of Social Workers in Mental Health facilities and outpatient clinics stands out as an area of depth and interest.

Culture has an effect on behavior based on the beliefs, values, and norms accepted in that culture. To understand a client’s behavior, it’s important to understand their culture and the influences it has on the client. By understanding culture and analyzing it through one or more sociocultural lenses, social workers can understand how society perceives clients and how clients view themselves (Rogers, 2016). According to NASW standard 1.01a (1999), social workers need to understand how culture influences human behavior and society. To efficiently work with clients and understand their behavior, a social worker needs to view a client through an applicable sociocultural lens.

Ms. Apple is a 45 year old African American woman who has been a widow for about 4 years. Ms. Apple has three children, whose ages range from 5-12 years old. Ms. Apple has been struggling to keep her family afloat since the death of her husband. Ms. Apple convinced herself that she would not require the extra assistance. However, she realized in attempting to provide alone has not only become very strenuous, but also quite costly. Expenses have become overwhelming for Ms. Apple to maintain, since her husband took care of the finances and was the breadwinner for the family. Ms. Apple has minimal education as she is able to read and write at grade school level. Ms. Apple also has never been employed as she was a home maker. At this

Field Supervisor, Mrs. Jackson and Intern are seated in a private office at Lee County High School, in Leesburg, Georgia.

In order to be a competent social worker one must know the community that he/she is serving. There is a need for cultural competence because knowing the families and communities you are working with is more important than ever. Where we live is growing and changing everyday, which can create a challenge but also great opportunities. This paper will examine a small little town in Montana called Helena and will show how different populations can be.

Modern social workers participate actively in helping people to obtain rights, services, benefits and opportunities that they might not otherwise obtain through micro policy advocacy, ?often prioritize the needs of vulnerable populations when they engage in advocacy? (Jansson, 2016, p. 21). Through community immersion, the social worker gains an understanding of the community attributes and desiderata, requiring them to utilize their experience and expertise to advocate policies that will satisfy the client?s needs (NASW, n.d.). Furthermore, when social workers immerse themselves in the community, it becomes an act of care and concern to serve the community. Compelling them to implement new changes, depict workable intervention schemes, and generate attainable treatment plans to satisfy the needs of the individuals, families and community.

Social workers observe first-hand the struggle the clients who lack the resources for maintaining the basic needs for themselves and their families face. As a future social worker, one would need to advocate for clients to receive access to social work services. Social workers will need to get the resources, work with other agencies whose responsibilities are to serve the needs of the population are ways to advocate for the rights of individuals. There are many of ways to advance, for communities and society as a whole social worker would need to advocate in another way. Through group advocacy and community organizing. As one people would come together and make up a plan of activities that address the social problems, improve services and enhance

John, age three illustrates tremors and cries uncontrollable. John look as if he is not speaking as he should for his age. His vocabulary is very limited as if he is behind for his age. He is at this time not walking on the level that he should be. John lived with both of his biological parents. In addition, John has not had much structure in his life because he did not have many rules to abide by. Due to the lack of structure, John did not have a set routine of what time to go to bed and he could wonder the house freely. John’s father has had several job. In addition, John’s father also stays out late at night, selling drugs and manufacturing methamphetamines within the home. Even though John’s father sold drugs, there is no reports on him using drugs. In addition, manufacturing drugs in the home may have lead John to be exposed to drugs, which can have an effect on the child’s development. Due to Johns father’s actions, he was arrested leaving John not having a father figure in his life.

A social worker has a very important job. Social workers help children and families in need of food, homes, and health care. They help children have a brighter future. There are many different types of social work. There are mental health, child and family, elementary, and high school social workers.

When I was seven, my family was involved in a head-on collision where our Chevy Nova hydroplaned into a Dodge Ram. Severe injuries that occurred both in this accident and a second one two years later (caused by a drunk driver), resulted in both of my parents being permanently disabled and piles of medical bills. By the time I was in the 5th grade my mom and I became heavily involved in various volunteer organizations for low income families, particularly Neighbor Impact and a similar group called Bread of Life. For years these two programs kept my family financially afloat.. I would like to pursue this career in order to help connect families like mine with various resources that will help them get back on their feet.

School social workers work within schools to provide a variety of social, emotional, and mental health services to students to support overall success. The intent of this research is to evaluate the significance of having a school social worker available to general education students within the Owatonna High School setting and to examine the gaps in services that may have appeared since removal of this position in 2009. Various related studies were examined to outline a range of ways in which school social workers are used to support student success. During this study, a total of seven employees of the Owatonna School District were interviewed regarding school social work. As a whole the participants identified a large number of gaps

Social Work is a field of interest to me because of the positive effort it contributes to society. Within the social work profession individuals are striving to improve the welfare of those in need of assistance. Social Workers assist a variety of individuals; from children, young adolescents, older adults, mentally ill, substance abuse individuals, and many other minorities; as in LGBT members, veterans, homeless people, and low socioeconomic status individuals. The broad mix population fascinates me because within this field one will always be able to work in a flexible environment. Social Work is used in multiple settings as in hospitals, nursing skilled homes, mental health and substance abuse clinics, schools, correctional facilities, community centers, child welfare agencies, employee assistance programs, and private practices.

As the saying goes, “Our children are our future” and who you are as a child can determine who you can be later on in life. It is important for a child to be in a safe, comfortable and loving environment during its development so that the child can have the full advantage to become the best he can be in his future. My future career as a social worker will ensure just that. I chose this profession because of my own history. Growing up, I’ve had my share of social workers in my house. I experienced them as people who helped my family during a hard time. This is a career where I can fight for people’s rights. I will also be able to protect