What Are The Top Issues That Social Workers Face?
The complexity of the human condition has never been more
challenging. Many of the difficulties being experienced are out of the
scope of individual control, creating greater feelings hopelessness. The
responsibilities of today’s social worker are more involved than ever
before . To achieve true success in the field, social workers need to fully understand the prevalent issues of current times.
Top Five Social Worker Issues
Economic Decline
Individuals who once had good jobs and decent paychecks are finding
themselves visiting food pantries or living in shelters. Social workers
employed with various community and family service organizations are
seeing a greater number of clients in perilous situations.
Without a sustainable living wage and a strengthening economy to
support employment growth, many will continue to look to social work
agencies as their only safety net.
Aging Population
In a time when they should be enjoying the fruits of their labor,
seniors are facing the dual challenges of economic downturn and
declining health. Social workers who specialize in helping older clients
are tasked with sharing financial strategies, along with other more
typical support services. Future generations may be worse off, as
Medicare and Social Security face funding deficits that could render
those entitlements obsolete.
Bullying
Online communities, like Facebook, have extrapolated the effect that
bullies can have on their victims. Social workers in the school
environment are especially aware of the impact of bullying on their
young clients. Feelings of ridicule and worthless can lead to self-harm
and even suicide. However, bullying is not restricted to childhood and
adolescence, and can escalate into the workplace or family home in the
form of harassment, child abuse, sexual exploitation and more.
Technology
Technology is a two-fold subject. There is the aspect of technology
as it relates to aberrant behavior in clients, particularly in terms of
online addictions. The other dynamic is the use of workplace technology
by social workers themselves. Electronic documentation for diagnosis and
coding has become a requirement that takes many professionals out of
their comfort zone.
Client Management
Beyond client-facing issues
there are other factors that affect the social worker as a person and a
professional. Stress is at the top of the list and is inherent to the
nature of the work. It can be hard to separate work from life,
especially in smaller communities where clients and social workers may
cross paths outside of the workplace.There can be work-related stresses
that come along with the profession, such as heavy workloads and
difficulty with clients and their situations.
http://socialwork.une.edu/resources/news/top-five-issues-that-modern-social-workers-face/
http://socialwork.une.edu/resources/news/top-five-issues-that-modern-social-workers-face/
