Public Health Social Worker
Category of Career: Health and Medical Services
Description: The public health social worker is important in the community as they help individuals who suffer from various health disorders, anywhere from Alzheimer’s to cancer and even terminal illnesses. As a public health social worker your job is to provide the best assistance in developing care plans once patients are released from the hospital. Public health workers can also work with patients who have communicable diseases who are in danger of affecting the public. They work to serve the community by exploring different links between poverty and illness/health. Job duties include carrying out research, undertaking problems by working closely with patients,
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You are working one-on-one assisting somebody rehabilitate and adjust to everyday life, creating a care plan for them to follow at home and helping them arrange follow-up health services. The best part is that you are able to impact somebody’s life and really help them out in a very difficult time of their lives. For me it would be a great opportunity to gain experience of different mental/health illness and it would be relevant for my future career as a psychologist. Working closely with patients I will be able to have true empathy to grow as a person myself. I also feel as if I would enjoy many tasks described in this career such as counseling clients and patients to help them overcome illnesses, organizing support groups, and referring to different …show more content…
First you must complete a 4 year degree program at an accredited university in the field of social work or related fields such as psychology or sociology. You must also obtain a license or certification if you want to practice social work, it varies depending on the state you reside. This is because you need to have strong knowledge on different aspects such as therapy and counseling, sociology, personal services, laws placed to protect patient and yourself, knowledge in organizing data and creating care plans, and knowing how to respect different patients who are part of unfamiliar cultures and religions. Skills you must possess include being able to effectively communicate with the patients, family and other health care providers. You must have collaboration skill and a strong work principles, interpersonal skills and be able to problem solve and use critical thinking. Circumstances may change from a moment’s notice so you must also be flexible and be able to adapt to new
Caring for an individual who is facing a life threatening illness is often completed by a multidimensional team, including doctors, nurses, therapists, and caregivers, as well as family members. Social workers are an integral part of this team, since they are usually the healthcare workers that are involved in the evaluation and assessment of patients and their family members’ needs and concerns at the end ...
Social workers play a major role in health services; a person can be injured or mentally ill, as health and wellbeing relates to both physical and emotional. In this case a person would need someone to speak to about their feeling as much as they need someone who can address their disease, illness or injury. Labelling the communities aspect is very significant to a successful wellbeing and protection of the general health of patients and the society. According to the research that was done ‘…it is the social and economic conditions that make people ill and in need of medical care in the first place that are more important determinants of the health of the population’ (Wilkinson & Marmot, 2003, cited in Adhikari, 2012, p. 1). The wide executive understanding and comprehension of social workers according to the tests and expolation that was done, the ability, and handling the circumstance with a great attention of the “...range of physical, emotional and environmental factor that have an effect on the wellbeing of individuals and communities’ (NASW, 2005, p. 6), “provides an important and holistic dimension to the health care arena” (Beddoe, 2013). Social workers among the health system have two main focus; they’re involved with individuals who are going through a lot of physical, emotional and situational difficulties or crisis that maybe for short term or ongoing long term; and by partaking with those clients or purchasers they help the person who is in health care to make they’re recovery possible
Social work covers a broad range of areas but is primarily concerned with working to support, protect and empower vulnerable, excluded and marginalised members of society. While the profession may be going through a time of change, the essential qualities of social workers – to listen, support, to advocate on behalf of others and see people in the context of their whole lives – does not change.
Becoming a social worker is dependent on numerous factors, one of which being education. “A bachelor’s degree in social work (BSW) degree is the most common minimum requirement to qualify for a job as a social worker, however, majors in psychology, sociology, and related fields may be sufficient to qualify for some entry-level job” (Chao & Orr, 162). Many people when pursuing the goals of being a social worker, however, are most interested in jobs in public agencies and/or having their own practices. “A master’s degree in social work (MSW) is necessary for positions in health and mental health settings and typically is required for certification for clinical work” (Chao & Orr, 162). One’s level of school is not the only thing employers are focusing on when looking to hire social workers. Along with one’s education, a social worker must have “a broad liberal arts base which includes a knowledge of the social sciences (sociology, psychology, anthropology, history, political science, and economics) to provide explanations about the nature of human society and the human condition” (Johnson, 48). There are many more skills that are just as essential, if not more beneficial, to the employer as well as client.
This includes helping those who are in need as well as to fulfill roles in society. The social work paradigm includes values such as service, social justice, dignity and worth of the person, importance of human relationship, integrity and competence (NASW, 2008). The main mission of the social work profession is to enhance human well-being and to help everyone to meet their needs by using all of the social work values. The central attention to social work is the environmental forces that create, contribute to, and address problems in living. Therefore, as social workers we must help our clients overcome environmental forces by providing them with the resources that this country has to offer. Social workers have a duty to strive to end discrimination and other forms of injustices through “direct practice, community organizing, supervision, consultation administration, advocacy, social and political action, policy development and implementation, education, and research and evaluation” (NASW,
According to the National Association of Social Work (NASW), Social work is defined as, “The professional activity of helping individuals, groups, or communities enhance or restore their capacity for social functioning and creating societal conditions favorable to this goal.” As such to pursue a career as a Social worker one must contain some key values. Such values include: one must be able to provide help, resources, and benefits to people so that they can achieve their maximum potential in life, they must also uphold that all citizens should be treated equally despite their socioeconomic background. In addition, they have to be willing to maintain trustworthiness and sound adherence to moral ideals, value the dynamic reciprocal interactions
Human Services Careers involve a large range of jobs that vary in education requirements, job responsibilities, population served, and salary range. 5 human services career options will be discussed. This discussion will show the wide range of positions that are available within the human services field. Basic to specific qualifications, job responsibilities, and hiring outlook will be included to detail each career option.
I have chosen social work as a profession because of my passion to help others. I want to make a difference in someone’s life and help them through the problems they are having. Whether the client needs counseling, guidance, or advocacy I want to be the person to help them. My drive for helping others and motivation to change social policies for the better is why I have chosen social work as my future profession.
My reasoning behind deciding to pursue a career in social work stems from my seemingly innate desire to see others succeed in fulfilling their potential. Although it feels somewhat of a cliché, my passion and desire for the field of social work originates from a genuine wish to make a positive difference in people’s lives.
The career of a social worker is not as attractive to many because it’s not a field where you can make a lot of money right away. I want to make good living once I enter the real world, but I also want to have a purpose in life. I have always loved to help people. I am a very nurturing person and have always been passionate about helping others. I want to be able to make a difference in my community and the lives of other people. I also want to be a social worker because I want a career where I can have some diversity. I do not want a job where I must be confined to a desk to perform my job daily. Each day will be a different challenge as a social worker. I need to be involved in a field where I will not be bored and pushed to resolve the many
Being a social worker entitles being able to identify those who are in need and helping them to respond to particular crisis such as abuse of a child and or spouse and helping the clients to get use to certain changes in their lives. For example, social workers promote change, problem solving in human relationships and they also enhance the well-being of individuals. To become a great social worker one must first have a heart. A social worker should care about an individual’s well-being and have problem solving skills to be able to help or guide an individual to get help with the everyday stresses of being in bad situations financially as well as mentally and psychologically. Being that social workers deal with individuals that do not necessarily have it easy in life, an individual should come into their life with open arms, ready to accept all the flaws and baggage this individual may have. Life is not easy for anyone, but we all have to remember an individual somewhere has it worse than most.
As our society becomes more challenging, social workers help bridge the gaps for people who face extraordinary challenges in their lives. The social worker’s scope of practice may include helping at-risk or overwhelmed individuals find resources, develop new coping strategies, resolve problems and conflicts, and secure opportunities to improve their quality of life. (Flynn, 2013) Although the scope of practice is basically the same, there are various types of social workers with various levels of education. It doesn’t matter if you are a medical, clinical, school, military, psychiatric, or community social worker, the goal is basically the same.
Social work is of great significance worldwide aiming to bring about social change and development, cohesiveness within the society, empowerment and liberation of people, particularly those who are in need (International Federation of Social Workers & International Association of School of Social Work (IFSW & IASSW), 2014). The basic functions of social work includes Restoration, Provision of resources and Prevention. A Social Worker can be defined as an individual who is trained and qualified in the field of Social Work. He/she works with vulnerable people in an effort to bring about change in them and develop their social functioning. This is done in hopes of the individual meeting their social needs, identifying and finding solutions for
Medical social workers help patients control their medicine and their health status. These kinds of social workers work with the patients one an hour a day or at night. They work with any kind of patient and anywhere they want to be treated. Most of the time they collaborate with the patient's doctor or nurse to see what kind of social work they might need.
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.