Introduction
The fieldwork entailed a social program to help the community with different issues. Counseling, advising, and caring for vulnerable people were the main focuses in the internship field. Preventing relapse for clients on probation was among the major activities during the internship placement. Moreover, social work was focused on reducing overdose by reviewing and sharing related data. The third activity was facilitating the opening of schools considering the COVID-19 pandemic’s social damages. This paper presents the project descriptions, the core competencies of individual projects, the intervention level, and documentation. In addition, the study demonstrates self-reflection in every project, presenting its advantages and the learned skills. Moreover, it rates the proficiency of intellectual skills.
Facilitating Relapse Prevention Groups
Description
The relapse prevention plan is a mechanism in which the individual undergoing treatment talks about their risk and prevention situations. Individually and subjectively, it points out the problems that can lead to a relapse and conditions that can prevent it. The main goal was to facilitate a Relapse Prevention Group for high-needs clients on probation. The group was limited to adult clients enrolled in services during their probation. The agency provided the curriculum to the population intending to reduce the risks of relapse. It was a 32-week program with a high success rate. Throughout the program, the relationship between cooperation and collaboration was identified. Furthermore, the prominent role included giving attendance reports to their probation officer, introducing the topics, and making the lesson plan. Collaboration with other staff was the primary interprofessional skill.
Intervention Level
The level of intervention for the Relapse Prevention Group was micro because of the nature of one-on-one interaction with the clients. The program talked about avoiding habits, places, and people. However, the treatment must be based on more aspects, as there are situations that are not so easy to avoid. However, some habits take time for real change to come spontaneously and naturally. Such activities are direct to the clients, including associating with them. According to Langer & Lietz (2014), the micro-practice involves direct practice with clients and their immediate surroundings. The explicit emphasis on reasons that lead to relapse is the feelings that were worked on in each subject. The topics that affect the clients directly include emotions such as anger, frustration, loneliness, and many others, but only the matter can tell.
Core Competency
Community helping notions in the relapse program showed intervention cooperation between the facilitator and the clients. Clients have the power and skills to make changes and life improvements because they are managers of their behaviors. The EPAS Core Competency that best fits this activity is 8: Intervene with Individuals, Families, Groups, Organizations, and Communities. In this case, individuals are the clients who are community members. As per EPAS Core Competency, a society must intervene in different groups to offer a solution for some challenges (Avelino et al., 2021). As a facilitator, I was on the frontline in helping the clients understand the relapse challenges and why it is essential to avoid them. The skills applied in communication, teaching, and directing the clients in the way of life make the program qualify as intervening competency.
Documentation
The plan is to provide the curriculum used for the Relapse Prevention Group since it benefits other facilitators and clients. There is different information that is comprehensive and detailed, which is very crucial in such related social works. Documenting the curriculum will also authenticate the whole job done in the internship program. Moreover, the weekly passed-out worksheets that the clients worked on. The worksheets detail everyday activities and how the facilitators and the clients coordinated the program. Documenting such programs is very risky in exposing clients’ data. Thus, to ensure confidentiality, no personal information about the clients or fellow facilitators will be included in the documentation.
Self-Reflection
The program was crucial for the clients and also for the facilitators. It was evident that the clients felt the program’s impact and were willing to change. Therefore, the program’s success rate and its effect on society were the main reasons for choosing this program. As much as it is the facilitator’s job to lead a Relapse Prevention group, it is the client’s responsibility to implement the lessons learned in the class. The program was a joint work that brought different skilled people together. It was crucial to know how to communicate effectively and to listen actively. Cultural competency was also learned as various members of the society were included in the program, and associating with all of them was crucial.
Overdose Fatality Review Board
Description
The overdose fatality review (OFR) is an innovative and collaborative data-sharing procedure to address drug-related overuse in our community. A thorough review of overdose deaths is the goal of an OFR to comprehend better the circumstances surrounding overdose deaths and make suggestions for preventing further overdose deaths. Access to healthcare, support for recovery, substance abuse history, and social determinants of health receive special consideration (Strang, 2017). The La Paz County Health Department overdose fatality review was only starting, and the prominent roles in the program were to prepare for Coordination through meetings to plan and select the board and share responsibilities amongst the team.
Intervention Level
The Overdose Fatality Review Board is a mezzo-level intervention. Mezzo social work entails creating and executing small-scale community and local social service projects such as city districts, neighborhoods, and schools (Kwan, 2021). The community board included the area and the community leadership coming together to find a solution to overdose in the community. Practitioners of mezzo social work typically interact directly with the individuals they wish to assist. However, according to the author, mezzo social workers aid groups of people at a time rather than providing individual counseling and support. Since the program failed to give group help to the neighborhood, it qualified to be a mezzo level of intervention. In other words, they are establishing an overdose fatality review to assist underserved community members by sharing information and comparing data. Moreover, it is coming up with joint strategies in the community to churn overdose cases.
Core Competency
The EPAS Core Competency that best fits this activity is 6: Engage with Individuals, Families, Groups, Organizations, and Communities. Individuals, in this case, are community leaders who are community members willing to participate in helping the community. As per EPAS Core Competency, a society must engage in different groups to offer a solution for some challenges, such as overdose fatality (Zastrow et al., 2019). Qualified repression combined with primary prevention is one of the ways to reduce crime. A collective community effort that changes lives and opens up opportunities for adults and adolescents across the community. The change will ultimately occur if community members are provided with information regarding the opioid crisis and allowed to offer suggestions for how we can collectively effect change. Thus, the ability and willingness to engage with the community validate the activity as EPAS Core Competency.
Documentation
The main works of the Overdose Fatality Review Board must be documented. Moreover, people should register for a PowerPoint presentation at the first OFR board meeting. The document’s content includes information on the community challenges regarding overdose. Various shareholders can use the report to conduct the same session and share information. Since the program shares and compares overdose fatality data, the forum’s results will be provided and documented. The grant under which this OFR board is will also be added. The budget will include the details on the OFR board’s inclusion as a community board and the following regulations. Thus, readers and shareholders willing to start such a program have the information to go ahead. Confidentiality will be maintained by ensuring the anonymity of overdose data.
Self-Reflection
The ability to conduct and manage community social work is very crucial. The main activities in the project enhance an individual’s ability to include different social groups to come up with the same solution. Being the coordinator in such a project enabled me to develop social work skills and thus use them as a significant project. The primary abilities include professional commitment, critical thinking, and organization. In addition to managing and supporting multiple clients, social workers have a variety of responsibilities, including documentation, reporting, billing, and collaboration. The professional commitment was witnessed through being the activities coordinator and planning for the upcoming meetings. Furthermore, critical thinking was applied while preparing for the content of the meeting. Planning for the session required a detailed and organized professional; thus, organization skills were learned. To effectively manage cases, social workers must be organized and prioritize the community’s needs.
ELC Reopening Schools
Description
The final project includes helping children and teachers while reopening schools after the COVID-19 pandemic. It is a state grant that La Paz County was given to return kids to school safely after Covid-19. As a part of this plan, a Public Health School Counselor was hired to focus on counseling kids from grades K 12 who were directly impacted by deaths due to COVID-19. Children and teachers are faced with emotional and psychological challenges. The La Paz country project ensured safety during the reopening and counseled students and teachers. Some have been affected directly by losing a relative or a friend and required some support. Cooperation was the central professional relationship. I was a Public Health School Counselor under the supervision of the school district’s psychologist and an LCSW. I’ve completed assessments, one-on-one counseling, and facilitated small groups.
Intervention Level
The grant funded by this activity is considered macro-level. However, the scope of the work and my part in it are considered micro. According to Larsen and Lietz (2014), micro-practice is direct practice with clients and their most immediate surroundings. Micro-social work involves meeting with students, teachers, and small groups to help them identify and resolve psychological, sensitive, and behavioral issues affecting their happiness and quality of life. Micro-social work aims to provide one-on-one guidance and emotional support to help vulnerable populations. My role in the project as a Public Health School Counselor made the intervention level micro level. It includes assisting clients in developing the skills they need to deal with emotional and social problems and intervening when they are in a crisis or extreme distress due to the pandemic.
Core Competency
The EPAS Core Competency that best fits this activity is 6: Engage with Individuals, Families, Groups, Organizations, and Communities. A community-wide effort that helps lives and helps teachers and students cope with emotional distress. Consequently, the activity qualifies as an EPAS Core Competency due to its ability and willingness to interact with the community. Additionally, the circumstances of the death, which in this instance would be Covid-19, are connected. Crisis intervention is required for these two traumatic events. The competency’s significant relevance is engaging with individuals, groups, and families in solving some psychological issues affecting them. Social workers evaluate and apply their knowledge of theories of human behavior and the social environment in assessing a wide range of clients and constituencies, including families, groups, organizations, and communities.
Documentation
Images and program grants will be documented in this project. The photos were taken with children during the counseling program. The images are a presentation of the engagement with individuals that can be established for future reference. The pictures and the project grant can be used to help future social workers in helping people with emotional challenges. There are many reasons to produce a scientific or technical document. Still, the following four general categories apply: to inform, instruct, persuade, and enact (or prohibit) something. These are all examples of providing information.
Self-Reflection
People across the world have suffered emotionally due to Covid-19. Students are part of this population and require counseling. Taking part in such a project allows an individual to be part of care in society. The project was also selected due to its impact and success in helping students cope with challenges. In addition to pedagogical actions, the school needed to implement counseling measures to ensure the safety of students, teachers, and other professionals working in the institution’s day-to-day operations. Being a part of the team assisting students is an essential social work example that helped me enhance my empathy skills, community counseling, and generosity. People taking part in the project were able to think about how to solve the problem of accessing the emotional struggles of different groups.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the paper presented different aspects and the importance of various projects during the internship program. The study demonstrated three projects: Facilitating Relapse Prevention Groups, creating an Overdose Fatality Discussion Board, and Helping students Reopen after the pandemic. Core competencies include engaging and intervening with groups, individuals, and families. All the projects were also rated at macro, mezzo, or micro levels, which showed the projects’ purpose and intensity. Documents from the project that will be documented were also presented, including the Relapse Prevention curriculum, the overdose board discussion points, and pictures taken while counseling the students. Finally, self-reflection gave social work skills such as empathy, communication, organization, and professional collaboration.
References
Avelino, F., Dumitru, A., Cipolla, C., Kunze, I., & Wittmayer, J. (2020). Trans-local empowerment in transformative social innovation networks. European Planning Studies. Web.
Kwan, C. K. (2021). Helping People with Disabilities in the Workplace: Mezzo-level Interventions Targeting Corporate Culture. Social Work, 66(4), 339-347
Langer, C. L., & Lietz, C. (2014, December 31). Applying Theory to Generalist Social Work Practice (1st ed.). Wiley.
Strang, J. (2017). Death matters: understanding heroin/opiate overdose risk and testing potential to prevent deaths. Addiction, 110, 27-35.
Zastrow, C., Kirst-Ashman, K. K., & Hessenauer, S. L. (2019). Empowerment series: understanding human behavior and the social environment. Cengage Learning.