The Social Worker’s Responsibilities: Meeting the Challenges Essay

Introduction

A modern social work specialist needs to perform the activities to create, develop, master social technologies and social programs and implement them in work with different clients to solve their problems and improve their social functioning. The degree of development of communicative competence of a social worker largely determines the efficiency of their activity. The main goal of the social worker in this interaction is to help people solve their problems and consider all possible and necessary mechanisms of social functioning of the person or social group. It should be an interaction based on dialogue, cooperation, on working together to find solutions to problems that arise.

Strategies for Engaging Clients

A dialogue between the social worker and the client, on the other hand, can only take place if the parties strive to understand everyone’s position, accepting it as a value that can enrich and elevate it. A West Side Federation for Senior and Supportive Housing’s social worker believes that 95% of the relationship is empathy (April 23, 2021). A critical component in any dialogue is the ability to listen. Social workers described that in situations where the client realizes that they can trust the social worker, they become more open to further dialogue (Rollins, 2020). WSFSSH’s slogan is “We want people to live fully and freely, with dignity and respect” (April 23, 2021). At the same time, an understanding social worker does not just listen to the client and give advice but seeks to extract and decipher the underlying meanings of the communicative signals coming from the client. It is essential to strive for an honest and respectful dialogue, which means encouraging the client’s willingness to interact and alleviating their fears about making concessions, adapting to a particular situation, and changing their ideas about something or their usual behavior.

Job Search and Placement Assistance

The social worker’s professional knowledge, abilities, and skills largely determine the client’s effectiveness. Social workers help with job search, further employment, documentation, and provide psychological support. Employment opportunities were offered in the field of international social work. According to WSFSSH, all their clients were elderly and usually had disabilities that prevented them from finding employment (April 23, 2021). For this reason, employment is not an area in which the company works.

How the Specific Program Defines Success

Success is an internal state of happiness and satisfaction, which can be achieved by realizing one’s aspirations. The success of a company depends first and foremost on the people who work in it. Quality services and a successful brand are undoubtedly essential, but the primary role is still played by talented employees who can competently manage the internal business processes and find an approach to different customers. According to WSFSSH, success has no specific definition, and it depends on how the customer determines it (April 23, 2021).

Reporting Measures for Assessing Services Provided and Their Impact

Both internal and external control is carried out to regulate the work processes in the organization. In the first case, the organization uses a chart with notes for each resident, which employees must update every 30 or 90 days. The entity makes sure that everyone receives primary standard care and has regular health screenings. State officials do external checks because the state funds WSFSSH. These accountability measures help determine the quality of services provided, their usefulness, and their necessity.

Quality Assurance Measures for the Program

The social worker systematically faces complex tasks, mainly because he works with people in dangerous situations to live, healthy, and relationships with others. He needs to understand and describe the actual situation the person is in, relying on a multitude of verbal and non-verbal signals, often contradicting each other. Attention to the client’s immediate concerns and emotional state is essential to achieving and maintaining rapport. Specialists in this field deal with various issues ranging from medicine and psychology to law and pedagogy.

Areas for Growth or Improvement on the Program Level

The main problem most non-profits face is a shortage of staff due to a lack of additional funding. According to the employees, it is necessary to have enough staff when working to avoid stressful situations, and to help other clients when there is a high caseload. Staff augmentation is a type of HR solution, one of the branches of personnel outsourcing, which allows you to quickly staff up when it is necessary to expand for a short or long period. At the same time, staff expansion is not done without justification; to agree to this process, employees need to provide solid arguments and oral or written forms to their superiors.

What Success Means to a Social Worker

An essential part of a company’s success is satisfied employees who want to work for the company’s good. Different employees have varying goals and desires, which means they need to be given diverse opportunities to work and grow professionally. It is crucial for WSFSSH’s employees to do what they want to do, to learn the things they are interested in (April 23, 2021). Employees need to know that their work is important, that they are doing valuable things for others, and that they have career advancement. All these things help create a pleasant working atmosphere. The key is to find a balance between work and things they enjoy.

Conclusion

Social work is a practical profession and an academic discipline that promotes change and development contributes to social cohesion and strengthens people’s ability to function independently and liberate themselves. Today, the competence of social service professionals cannot be limited to the ability to help people in difficult life situations. A social worker must know and be able to prevent new risks, identify the causes of clients’ vulnerability, and promote the social well-being of individuals, various social groups, and society.

Reference

Rollins, W. (2020). Social worker–client relationships: Social worker perspectives. Australian Social Work, 73(4), 395-407. Web.