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The importance of child protection policy
Social work working with children
The importance of child protection policy
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People may wonder which profession in our society is dedicated to the well-being of children: the answer is social work in the field of Child Welfare. Child welfare is a segment of social work that is vital to the health and stability of the children and families in our society. These social workers provide a multitude of different services, some of which include working in the foster care system, child protective services, as caseworkers, and as therapists. They work with children and adults alike, making it their mission to provide the resources and services necessary for children to be in the most safe and healthy environment and situation possible. Definition of Child Welfare Child welfare ensures “that children are safe and protected from any harm” (Berg-Weger, 2013). Social workers in this field “protect vulnerable children and help families in need of assistance”, “intervene when children are in danger of neglect or abuse”, and some even arrange “adoptions, locate foster families, or work to get families back together” (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2013). This is the second largest area of social work, especially for those with a bachelor’s degree in social work (Berg-Weger, 2013). The primary purpose of child welfare is to keep children protected and safe from harm (Whitaker, Reich, Reid, Williams, & Woodside, 2004). The secondary purpose is to “provide necessary services to the families of children at risk, to improve conditions in their homes and bring stability to their family units” (Whitaker et al., 2004). According to the National Association of Social Workers, “this system includes both public and private agencies, and works in close partnership with – and relies on – many other community systems, such ... ... middle of paper ... ...rkers. (2013b). Social Work: Purpose & Possibility: NASW Membership Benefits & Services. Retrieved from https://www.socialworkers.org/nasw/join/membershipbrochure.pdf National Association of Social Workers. (n.d.). Children and Families. Retrieved from http://www.socialworkers.org/pressroom/features/issue/children.asp U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. (2014). Occupational Outlook Handbook: Social Workers (2014-15th ed.). Retrieved from http://www.bls.gov/ooh/community-and-social-service/social-workers.htm#tab-2 Whitaker, T., Reich, S., Reid, L.V.B., Williams, M., & Woodside, C. (2004). “If You’re Right for the Job, It’s the Best Job in the World”: The National Association of Social Workers’ Child Welfare Specialty Practice Section Members Describe their Experiences In Child Welfare. Retrieved from http://www.naswdc.org/practice/children/NASWChildWelfareRpt062004.pdf
The job of a child welfare worker appears to be a demanding profession that promotes the child’s safety, but also strengthens the family organization around them in order to successfully raise the children. This child welfare workers work in the system known as the Child Protective Services whose initiative is to protect the overall welfare of the child. The short novel From the Eye of the Storm: the Experiences of a Child Welfare Worker by Cynthia Crosson-Tower demonstrates the skills necessary to deal with the practice of social work along with both its challenges and its happy moments. The novel consists of some of the cases involving Tower’s actual career in social work. In reading the book, I was able to experience some of the actual cases in which children dealt with physical and mental abuse from their families that caused them to end up within the system. Also, some of these children had issues in adapting to foster and adoptive families based on the issues they faced earlier in life. As we have learned earlier in the course, the violence that a child experiences early in life has an overall affect on the person they become as they grow into adulthood. When children deal with adverse childhood experiences, they are at a higher risk for abusing drugs and/or alcohol, increased likelihood of abusing their own child or spouse, higher rates of violent and nonviolent criminal behavior, along with several other issues throughout their lifespan.
Popple, P. R, & L. Leighninger. (2011). Social Work, Social Welfare, and American Society. Boston, MA: Pearson Education, Inc.
There can be some improvements in how the police system is involved with the child abuse investigation, in order to allow the child welfare workers to focus on providing services to disadvantaged families. Since caseloads are high, most child welfare workers have limited time span to work and focus on the families’ issues such as, financial stability, social and emotional well-being of all family members. Implementing successful prevention strategies will require the need to provide assistance to the entire family and focus both on the child’s safety and well-being, as well as the parents’ emotional and economic well-being. Child welfare systems can provide resources such as child care services for single parents who lack education, which limits their employment. Such services can help the family become financially stable, and hopefully get out of living in poverty.
Zlotnik, J. L. & Cornelius, L. (2000). Preparing Social Work Students for Child Welfare Careers:
National Association of Social Workers- Texas. (n.d) Retrieved Feb 09 2014, from NASW/TX 83rd Texas Legislature Wrap Up Web Site: http://naswtx.org/displaycommon.cfm?an=1&subarticlenbr=348
and agencies designed to meet the physical, intellectual, and social-emotional needs of individuals and families.” . As a Child Protective worker, my responsibilities are to assess safety (immediate),risk (future harm), abuse and maltreatment, make a
For the purpose of this paper the social worker interviewed is Ronnita Waters, MSW, RCSWi; she is currently an operations manager at the Center for Family and Child Enrichment (CFCE). The issue or area where her advocacy skills are practiced is within child welfare. Mrs. Waters mentions to the interviewee “I always wanted to work with children, then eventually for children.” when asked what developed her interest in this area of social work. Furthermore, before she became an operations manager, the social worker was an adoptions supervisor, overseeing adoption case managers and ensuring the proper implementation of policies such as the sibling placement policy and adoption policy. In addition, before achieving the role of supervisor, she was
A Child Protective Service worker is a career that can be mentally and physically exhausting with emotional upheaval and wonderfully rewarding all at the same time. This paper discusses several “best practices’, their descriptions, and how they are put in use to assist the children who need help and the parents who unwillingly become a part of the Child Welfare system; even though they count on the system to help them better themselves and the lives of their children. Child Protective Service workers require extensive training, vast knowledge, multiple values, and strong ethics to effectively assist this
Downs, S., Moore, E., McFadden, E., & Costin, L. (2004). Child welfare and family services: Policies and practice. (7th. Ed., pp. 319-363) Boston, MA: Allyn & Bacon.
Ideological, social, political, and economic factors of a given period play key roles in developing and maintaining any social welfare policies in which the area of child welfare is not an exception. Throughout the history of child welfare legislation in Canada, Acts have been passed and modified according to the changing concept of childhood and to the varying degree of societal atmosphere of each period.
Social work as a profession strives to help the welfare of those within the community whether its persons or families through advocacy. Often times clients are those who may be vulnerable and disadvantaged. Social workers aim to help people fulfill basic needs in their everyday lives and assist them by providing beneficial resources and intervention counseling. They do more than just help them in their current situation, it’s about helping them to survive and set attainable goals to live a fuller and better life for themselves, and most time for their families.
The systems of child welfare should change its emphasis back to its original goal of improving the well-being of children. The duty of investigating abuse complaints should be handed over to the police who can carry out proper investigations and the courts who can adequately charge those who cause physical and mental damage to children. Child welfare should be troubled with raising the level of poverty and the well-being of all children.
Human service professionals are required by law to protect the welfare of their client which also includes children. As a way of ensuring the safety of children, there are mandatory laws in place requiring social services workers to report suspected cases of child abuse and neglect. Whenever allegations of abuse or neglect have been proven or indicated, the social worker must advocate for the child by identifying
For years, when I thought of Social Workers, I imagined a person coming into a client’s home and taking their kids away for neglect. Later, I found out that social workers could go into so many dimensions, such as clinical social workers, case mangers, and even administrative positions in agency settings. Furthermore, I realized that I was maturing into an adult. For example, when I began telling people of my decisions to become a social worker, a lot ...
families, and communities to enhance their individual and collective well-being. Social workers are change agents and because of that, they aim to help people develop their skills and abilities to use resources provided to them to strengthen and improve their lives and communities to resolve problems. One of the main goal of social workers is to improve the well-being and lives of the most vulnerable populations, fight against poverty, unemployment, domestic violence and the underserviced population by emphasizing on the person-in-environment and social justice model. The social work profession, considerers the individuals’ internal and external struggles, while working with the individuals to examine their relationships, family, work environment, community, and other things that might impact them and identify ways to help address problems and challenges.