Social work is a profession of helping. During the helping process social workers interview their clients. Interviewing can provide insight about the client and what they are hoping to achieve. Clinical interviewing has a purpose. For example, Clinical interviewing is use to understand that client’s needs (cite). When interviewing it is important that social works gather all data that they need to be successful (cite). It is important that social workers have a theory they follow (cite). Without a theory there is no purpose or goals when interviewing (cite). During the interviewing process it is important that social workers have structure (cite). When doing the social workers needs to make sure that the client is comfortable communicating their needs (cite). This can take some time. The client needs to feel like they can share their experiences with the social worker without being judged. After the social workers has established positive environment for the client then he or she can begin …show more content…
One of the best ways to develop skills is to read (cite). By reading one can begin to understand what it take to be a social worker and have general knowledge of social work practices. Exploring can help a social worker to gain critical thinking skills (cite). Viewing clinical interviews can also help to become a better social worker (cite). By doing this one can begin to understand what should happen during the interviewing process and can also help one become more comfortable with interviewing. Implement skills about certain subject and receiving feedback can help one obtain better skills as a professional (cite). Also evaluate ones performance and reviewing one videos can help a person learn from their mistakes and feel more comfortable during the interviewing process (cite). Lastly practice is very important for a social worker when learning new skills
Social workers are viewed by the world to be “fixers” in society. The general public sees social workers as just “people who work in child protective services”, they do not know about the other things that social workers are also involved in. I interviewed, Stuart Brewster, a therapist for children and families, he graduated from the university of Washington with a masters degree in social work.
I decided to interview my older brother’s friend, Cory Ringlein. I have known him most of my life and he has suffered from lymphedema as long as I have known him, this is important because his mom was a social worker before she stopped working to focus on Cory’s illness. I know this was pretty influential on Cory; he watched his mom work as a social worker and helped him make the decision to be a social worker.
Many assessment tools and interviewing skills are available to the clinical social worker within a mental health setting. This paper will examine one such assessment tool, the competency based assessment, and its applicability in a mental health setting. A comparison will be made between this advanced assessment method and a generalist social work assessment. Interviewing people who have mental health concerns can offer challenges for clinical social workers. Several interviewing techniques that can help with some of these challenges will be outlined.
The primary mission of the social work profession is to enhance human well-being and help meet the basic human needs of all people. Particular attention is paid to the needs and empowerment of people who are vulnerable, oppressed, and living in poverty. Social work is a profession based on enhancing the capacity of people to participate in society and enhancing the capacity of society to include all people in it. Social workers address problems related to social, political, and economic
Today’s skills session on social work interviewing skills covered the uniqueness of social work interviewing in comparison to interviews conducted in professions such as the police, doctors, employers, etc. It covered also different types of questioning and how to paraphrase. Another area covered was, what to avoid when interviewing a service user and the use of silence. I leant that interview skills are fundamental in social work and social work interviewing is unique. Social workers empathize with clients because of their knowledge of the client group and the need of help to alleviate their problems. Empathy however does not equate accepting that the client is right in what they have done or that the social worker is condoning their actions. Empathy relates to the issue of ‘trusting’ and ‘believing’ the client. In as much as a social worker should seek to establish trust in the relationship, this does not necessarily mean they should believe
Interviewing and research skills are needed within the social work profession. Effective communication skills are one of the most crucial components of a social worker’s job. Every day, social workers must communicate with clients to gain information, convey critical information and make important decisions (Zeiger, 2017). This interview experience was an opportunity to explore the daily challenges and rewards of a licensed social worker. I was excited for the opportunity to interview a social worker in the gerontology sector as this is a specialty I am considering. This meeting allowed me to explore the educational steps of being a social worker, practices of the agency, the clients who are served, and the challenges the agency has.
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.
Captain Rob Geis agreed to be interviewed and share his experiences with the next generation of Social Workers. Native to Ohio, he graduated High School in 1979, he continued his education at Ohio State University from 1982-1986, completing his Masters in Social Work. For the past 24 years, he has served as a Social Worker in the United States Army. In his current position he is responsible for the Department of Social Work Services. Previous positions have included: two assignments as a Division Social Worker, Medical Inpatient Social Worker, Chief of Social Work, Division Chief of Mental Health, Clinical Director of Army Substance Abuse Program, Combat Operation Stress Control Commander, and General Staff Officer (Geis, 2012). Academic positions have included both, the Army Long Term Health Education and Training (LTHET) as well as the Command and General Staff College.
I used rephrasing as a part of understanding the reason for the client’s visit and repeated the information in a way that we both could understand. The client was able to respond through the questions that I asked her in regards to her situation. I want to get a clear understanding without leaving out valuable information. In the three sessions my intentions were to make sure that what she gave me over the phone matches what she says in the interview. I made sure that when my client was speaking, I took notes on the new information or the information that was not covered in any of the previous sessions. Each session was based upon reflection because I had to make sure progress was being made or not. When my client began to discuss things in a way in which I could not understand, I was able to interpret the information in a way that she and I both understood and agreed upon. The moment an initial contact was made, I started giving my client information on informed consent forms, who I was and the number of years of my social work profession, policies and
Interviewing skills are vital to be an effective case management worker. There are many benefits that come with possessing strong interviewing skills, for instance, knowing what questions to ask and when to ask the questions. More importantly strong interviewing skills can help you to get the client to open up and elaborate on their responses. However, you are also able to differentiate between the approach you take when conducting an interview with a kid as a oppose to an adult. Interviewing skills probably are one of the most important skills you can posse as a social worker, because you need information in order to help your client, therefore, the better you are at it the easier your task will be. Another area I need to challenge myself in is being a knowledgeable advocator. Part of being an advocator is being well informed of the services that agencies offer, so that I could be a more effective case manager. It consists of doing research and visiting different agencies to have an idea of the services offered within the community you are working in. Finally as an advocator you are part in a position in which you strive to hopefully bring positive change for your client. In addition, as a advocator you also have to be aware of the policies that are effecting the client in a negative way, so that you can take the initiative to create change for
When I first entered college I was an undecided new student who wasn’t exactly sure how I wanted my life to go. Once I started taking a couple of classes in the business, Marketing and social work fields I knew right away what my calling was. Just having that first intro to social work class my attention was hooked. I loved the classes and the experneices I learned about. I realized that my direction of college and a degree was to be accomplished in the social work setting. Being able to help those in need in Micro and Macro setting. Moving forward in the social work degree I soon realized that I was fully comminted to this major, knowing that one day I could help those people and children in the worl warmed my heart. My sophomore and senior
The profession of Social work is a unique and diverse field in that it has the capacity to reach many different individuals in many different aspects of their lives. Growing up with six siblings and being confined to a small three bedroom apartment, while my mother worked multiple jobs to provide for her children, often times I became reliant on others to guide me. In retrospect of my childhood, I have personally been affected by social workers, and each of them treated my family with such professionalism. These individuals who impacted my life, did not realize the blessings they were bestowing upon me. Little did they recognize, they forever enriched my life. I desire to do the same for others. I yearn to not only become a professional at promoting the well-being of others, but also making a long-term difference for others.
The social work profession is defined as “a practice-based profession and an academic discipline that promotes social change and development, social cohesion, and the empowerment and liberation of people (ISFW, ‘Global Definition of Social Work’, 2016).” The definition may be true about the profession but it is more in depth than just that. To me, the profession’s primary focus is to help others through life as much as we can while letting them make their own choices and guiding them. In society, social workers are utilized in many different nonprofit and government roles. They serve the community in many different ways from monitoring parent visits to helping people through mental illnesses. Human beings are so complex and things that happen
My understanding about the social work profession is one that works with a diverse group of people to better their well-being in all aspects. Social workers requires: responsibility, passion, and knowledge. The social worker has to understand their own personal cultural values, beliefs, and appreciate the multicultural identities of different people. The profession of social worker requires a lot of skills because they have different tasks and responsibilities. They are aware of social policies and programs for the diverse clients advocating.
Social work is a profession which promotes social change, problem solving in human relationships and enhance well-being. It is important to acknowledge the history of social work and the purpose of social work and why it exists. Social work is a questioned theory with different perspectives on what it is and how it should be practised. Social work helps people to deal with personal and social problems so that people can overcome or adjust to any personal difficulties. Social work is a combination of social stability and social change. Social stability promotes individual and social welfare and social change seek to change negative aspects of society. Values are implicit within the law and policy and these tend to reflect the values within society. Personal values can influence the way social workers interpret and implement their profession.