Sunday, September 29, 2013
i've always find it hard to explain to family, relatives, friends, or any random person about what my profession is all about. 
many times, people associate social work with voluntary work.
and some would think i'm studying to be a counselor.
yes, i do study about the skills of counselors but it is just a minor part of social work intervention.
social work involves much more about the broad-based study of human behaviours and social issues, and how to go about addressing them.
social work has been termed as a "helping profession".
it takes me awhile to respond when people ask what exactly my profession does.
there is just too much that i do not know how to verbally put in across to them.
until i came across this good read, an article written by CEO of National Council of Social Service (NCSS).
she basically summarizes in a nice piece on what the social work profession is about, and how "helping" it really is.
i've extracted parts of the article that i'm really impressed with.
if you're interested to know what my job is all about, have a quick read on this piece of sharing.
"Social workers do not choose their vocation for monetary gains. This is not to say they should be paid a pittance.
But for many of us, the thing that makes our day, that brings a smile to our faces, is the implicit nature of the work. The "reward" - call it satisfying moments - comes when a case results in a happy outcome.
Say we strive to reconcile children who had to be removed from their parents' care because of abuse and neglect. We smile when the family heals and smiles again.
Priceless too is the toothless grin that brightens the wrinkled face of an elderly woman formerly neglected, when we help her find shelter and care.
When young people hurting and in pain come to confide in us and want to change, we are humbled by that trust and energised by their hope. And yet we must remain tough as nails when it comes to protecting victims of violence and hard-headed as any businessman in seeking rehabilitation programmes.
Do social workers deserve competitive wages? Let me answer that elliptically.
While social workers do take intrinsic joy in their work, we also take risks - day in and day out - not dissimilar to that of the police, including, say, working with abusers and people who may turn violent unexpectedly.
Social work is a profession, and the work social workers do far outstrips what volunteers do.
It is true both perform some similar tasks, such as visiting distressed families and connecting them to help. But the social worker carries out a whole range of other "interventions" like working holistically with people and communities in a sustained way.
For example, a social worker may assess the complexity of a case, determining and executing a course of intervention and engaging the client or the community and significant others in a process that places a premium on "ownership" of the results. All this takes time and effort.
Social work is about looking for strengths in people, and bringing resources or making systems respond better to the needs of individuals. In instances where there is neglect, omission, avoidance and complexity, the social worker's code of conduct requires that he acts to protect the vulnerable in society.
Unlike the doctor who draws on medicine, surgery and implants, the social worker's main tool of intervention is the fostering of a professional relationship that helps the person or community being helped gain motivation for change.
It is a science, drawing on social science theory that says that human behaviours are affected and changed through relationships and not just by money thrown at a problem.
It is also an art as the process of working with others requires the social work activities to be highly adaptable, flexible and personalised. We are trained in a body of knowledge, equipped with a set of skills and subscribe to a code of conduct and ethics.
Social workers must be able to operate like a helicopter, with a capability to delve deep to address an issue and individual cases, and yet transcend the individual cases to see trends and patterns to advocate changes in processes and systems to make them more responsive to those they serve.
Social workers' collective knowledge, insights and skills add value to policy formulation in addressing structural and systemic concerns.
In social work, we believe that we help people to help themselves, and then they will want to pay it forward to help others, as humans are wired to reciprocate.
Social work believes in the benefits of mutual support, even among people who may be disadvantaged or ill.
To help people stop smoking or gambling, or to prevent abuse, we need to involve family, friends, and even friends of friends.
To reduce poverty, we should focus not merely on monetary transfers or even technical training; we should help the poor form new relationships with other members of society.
So what is social work worth?
It is certainly worth more than the every cent we get now."
yes, this is social work.
the profession that i am proud to be in.
♥ bits and pieces of my memories.
11:58 PM
11:58 PM
