As a new social worker (or rather, a new MSW/LMSW... I'd argue that most social workers have been such since their youth, they just didn't have the credentials yet), I'm also new to the experience of being an intern's supervisor.
When I began my current position, I requested and submitted intern request paperwork to several schools. I loved the idea of getting to assist others as they learn and grow in this profession. Due to unexpected circumstances, I ended up with 3 interns, none of whom I had more than a few days notice about before their first day. They're finishing now (after about 12 weeks), but I'm looking back and attempting to figure out how to better prepare future interns to succeed.
Much like one's first clients, I worry about first interns. I understand that, as humans, we all learn from experience, and through trial and error. As a social worker and a teacher of sorts, I wonder whether that's unfair to the first. I think about my own internship experiences and I recall worrying about whether I was ready to counsel, to treat, to even speak to a client.
It's a tricky thing, the way professions like ours work. On one hand, we always want the most experienced doctor/therapist/teacher, on the other, we understand that the cycle of allowing others to gain experience is part of life.
I sort of hoped, as I pondered while I wrote this, that I'd come to some grand conclusion of how to best prepare my future interns, how to miraculously obtain decades of supervision experience, or even how to reassure them that they're able to handle it all as they complete their internships. I still don't have any of those answers other than that, perhaps part of the growth is in asking the questions.
Friday, May 27, 2011
Friday, May 20, 2011
Branching Out
Tonight, I watched the documentary Becoming Chaz, the film chronicling Sonny and Cher's daughter Chastity as he became legally and surgically their son Chaz. Although the film's purpose is to cover the transition period, it also showed viewers a window into his romantic relationship with his female partner, the way each of the couple explained the transition to their families and friends, and the way the media covers such topics. It really got me to thinking about how wonderful it'd be if everyone saw such a documentary, or at least if every social worker did... especially those who believe they'll never work with a trans person.
As social workers, we spend a great deal of time in school and then, when we're done, we're required to spend time in CEUs, many of which we choose based on their location, the times they're offered, and/or on how closely they relate to our specific job tasks.
I wonder how many of us think outside the box. How many choose CEU classes based on something that has nothing to do with their jobs? Who chooses the classes on children when they work with elders? Who chooses a course on teen moms when their job deals with hospital patients? Much as many may deny it, for as busy as we all are, I think it's only natural to sometimes feel that the CEU class you have scheduled for an evening after you've worked a full day is annoying or a burden. (Quite frankly, I wish we as social workers had more free time and more free money so we could be properly pampered and less inclined to burn out.)
So I encourage you to branch out. I'm not suggesting you spend your spare pennies on more CEUs than you're required to take, but consider alternatives. Watch a documentary. Attend a benefit. Visit an art exhibit. Read an article, a book, or new research. Choose something you know nothing about and remove at least the most surface level of that ignorance.
As social workers, we spend a great deal of time in school and then, when we're done, we're required to spend time in CEUs, many of which we choose based on their location, the times they're offered, and/or on how closely they relate to our specific job tasks.
I wonder how many of us think outside the box. How many choose CEU classes based on something that has nothing to do with their jobs? Who chooses the classes on children when they work with elders? Who chooses a course on teen moms when their job deals with hospital patients? Much as many may deny it, for as busy as we all are, I think it's only natural to sometimes feel that the CEU class you have scheduled for an evening after you've worked a full day is annoying or a burden. (Quite frankly, I wish we as social workers had more free time and more free money so we could be properly pampered and less inclined to burn out.)
So I encourage you to branch out. I'm not suggesting you spend your spare pennies on more CEUs than you're required to take, but consider alternatives. Watch a documentary. Attend a benefit. Visit an art exhibit. Read an article, a book, or new research. Choose something you know nothing about and remove at least the most surface level of that ignorance.
Friday, May 13, 2011
What They Aren't Saying But Are DEFINITELY Thinking...
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/10-Things-Your-Boss-Isnt-usnews-493657782.html?x=0 This article is called 10 Things Your Boss Isn't Telling You.
In the article, the author discusses things that your boss might not write on your evaluation or call you into a meeting about but that are effecting her/his view of you and your ability to do the job.
This leads me to wonder, what do you wish you were able to tell a co-worker? What do you wish someone would have told you sooner? How might you have benefited had you had the information sooner?
In the article, the author discusses things that your boss might not write on your evaluation or call you into a meeting about but that are effecting her/his view of you and your ability to do the job.
This leads me to wonder, what do you wish you were able to tell a co-worker? What do you wish someone would have told you sooner? How might you have benefited had you had the information sooner?
Friday, May 6, 2011
What is a "Mother?"
As Mothers' Day approaches, I am reminded of a scene in the Broadway show La Cage aux Folles in which the characters debate what constitutes a mother. One character essentially states that a mother is the person who gives birth to you, the other argues that this isn't at all his definition. He counters that a mother worries about the tiniest threads of your life, someone who senses that you need them without being told, someone who puts you first, and as someone who loves you more than all of the loves you've ever had in your life.
As social workers, we frequently deal with family units and we practice under the Code of Ethics, which acknowledges differences and demands that we be both sensitive and open-minded regarding the differences of others.
For as often as single mothers on tv sometimes are shown discussing how she is both the mother and the father, it's interesting how rare it is that media shows other versions of "mothers."
That said, I hope everyone will take a moment this weekend to thank the mothers in your life. Whether they are biological parents, adoptive parents, grandparents, a trusted female who isn't a blood relative, a father who served as a mother-figure, a pair of mothers raising a child together, or any other type of person who takes on a maternal role, each one deserves acknowledgment and thanks... after all, where would we be without them?!
As social workers, we frequently deal with family units and we practice under the Code of Ethics, which acknowledges differences and demands that we be both sensitive and open-minded regarding the differences of others.
For as often as single mothers on tv sometimes are shown discussing how she is both the mother and the father, it's interesting how rare it is that media shows other versions of "mothers."
That said, I hope everyone will take a moment this weekend to thank the mothers in your life. Whether they are biological parents, adoptive parents, grandparents, a trusted female who isn't a blood relative, a father who served as a mother-figure, a pair of mothers raising a child together, or any other type of person who takes on a maternal role, each one deserves acknowledgment and thanks... after all, where would we be without them?!
Friday, April 29, 2011
Keeping in Touch
How many of you are still in touch with your social work classmates? With social workers you no longer work with? Whom you’ve met at conferences, rallies, sit-ins, meetings, or CEU classes?
It seems like an odd conundrum to me, socializing with fellow social workers. On one hand, the work we do is often completely emotionally draining. We often give so much of ourselves that we either burn out or need to be taught skills to avoid burning out. Logically, why would we want to think or talk social work in our precious free time? On the other hand though, we are people who hear the world’s problems on a micro, mezzo, and macro level each day. We get sworn at and spit on. We fight City Hall. We struggle to pay our own bills so we can make donations to those in greater need. Who else could better understand why we do this than each other?
This past Tuesday, I had the incredible pleasure of spending the evening with two of the social workers I admire most of all. Collectively, we had almost 100 years of social work experience (admittedly, 97% of that didn’t come from me). Together, we dined and then saw the incredible Broadway show La Cage aux Folles, which is, in a sense, a very “social worky” show. (Based on the film, The Birdcage, the show involves a gay couple who own a transvestite nightclub and their son, who is marrying the daughter of a very conservative and homophobic politician. The story unfolds in how they each relate to each other and how those relationships impact the way they each see the world.)
Heading home from that evening, I got to thinking about the classmates I adored whom I’ve somewhat lost touch with, the former colleagues I’ve always meant to call, and the others I’ve met along the way. It’s tough, keeping in touch with everyone from every event, but perhaps, thanks to text messaging, facebook, skype, and other options, we ought to make more of an effort. After all, who else understands us better than we do?!
It seems like an odd conundrum to me, socializing with fellow social workers. On one hand, the work we do is often completely emotionally draining. We often give so much of ourselves that we either burn out or need to be taught skills to avoid burning out. Logically, why would we want to think or talk social work in our precious free time? On the other hand though, we are people who hear the world’s problems on a micro, mezzo, and macro level each day. We get sworn at and spit on. We fight City Hall. We struggle to pay our own bills so we can make donations to those in greater need. Who else could better understand why we do this than each other?
This past Tuesday, I had the incredible pleasure of spending the evening with two of the social workers I admire most of all. Collectively, we had almost 100 years of social work experience (admittedly, 97% of that didn’t come from me). Together, we dined and then saw the incredible Broadway show La Cage aux Folles, which is, in a sense, a very “social worky” show. (Based on the film, The Birdcage, the show involves a gay couple who own a transvestite nightclub and their son, who is marrying the daughter of a very conservative and homophobic politician. The story unfolds in how they each relate to each other and how those relationships impact the way they each see the world.)
Heading home from that evening, I got to thinking about the classmates I adored whom I’ve somewhat lost touch with, the former colleagues I’ve always meant to call, and the others I’ve met along the way. It’s tough, keeping in touch with everyone from every event, but perhaps, thanks to text messaging, facebook, skype, and other options, we ought to make more of an effort. After all, who else understands us better than we do?!
Friday, April 22, 2011
Body Art in the Workplace
As social workers, we're taught (and our Code of Ethics mandates) that we are to focus on the person, to overlook one's skin tone, gender, socioeconomic status, relationship history, drug use, and behaviors and to use strengths perspectives and goal orientation to assist our clients in reaching their goals, regardless of our personal opinions of their choices.
Do we do this with our coworkers, subordinates, and superiors?
I was just reading this article http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,223178,00.html about Body Art and Tattoos in the Workplace an discovered that "about half of people in their 20s have either a tattoo or a body piercing other than traditional earrings, according to a study published in June in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology." In the article, which was written in 2006, an interview subject suggests that we're "about 10 years away" from living in a world where bosses don't bat an eye at body modifications. Considering the publication date, this means we're only about 5 years away. Does this seem realistic to you?
What does that mean for social work? When you think honestly, would you hold a boss in different esteem if s/he had visible piercings or tattoos? Would you choose to hire someone who had them? Do YOU have them? If you do, are they intentionally covered during working hours? Should they be?
So many questions... I can't wait to read your thoughts!
Do we do this with our coworkers, subordinates, and superiors?
I was just reading this article http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,223178,00.html about Body Art and Tattoos in the Workplace an discovered that "about half of people in their 20s have either a tattoo or a body piercing other than traditional earrings, according to a study published in June in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology." In the article, which was written in 2006, an interview subject suggests that we're "about 10 years away" from living in a world where bosses don't bat an eye at body modifications. Considering the publication date, this means we're only about 5 years away. Does this seem realistic to you?
What does that mean for social work? When you think honestly, would you hold a boss in different esteem if s/he had visible piercings or tattoos? Would you choose to hire someone who had them? Do YOU have them? If you do, are they intentionally covered during working hours? Should they be?
So many questions... I can't wait to read your thoughts!
Friday, April 15, 2011
Frustration... Grrrr!
I must admit something to you all... I'm frustrated.
I'm frustrated by how many times I read news stories about children who are abused for years without a teacher/neighbor/friend reporting it, I'm frustrated by the lack of safety provided for social workers, I'm frustrated by the lack of chosen learning in uncomfortable or uncommon areas among social workers, and I'm frustrated that it sometimes appears that no one else cares.
Granted, I know the latter can't be true. I know that I'm among a professional group who have chosen this profession because we do care. I also know that much of the former may not be technically true either, or at least that it isn't so cut and dry. I know that agencies don't have more safety precautions because they simply cannot afford such, not because they don't care. I know that social workers may be uneducated or out of date on some topics because there are just too many topics to remain consistently updated on. I know that reports go unmade because people fear being wrong or they're afraid of the repercussions of filing a report.
I just feel like there has to be a better way. We live in a world where we can connect with each other through the click of a mouse, where we have access to communication with the leading experts on most everything! Rather than having to know about social work websites on our own, we can shoot a quick email to Susan Mankita or to Linda Grobman (the gurus of socialworkchat.org and The New Social Worker magazine, respectively). We don't need to know every detail about how to proceed with a client who has a transgender child, we can hit up Kim Pearson's facebook page (Executive Director of TYFA -TransYouth Family Allies). I don't know if a self-defense class could ever be counted for CEUs, but I'd venture to guess it'd be a great substitute for a gym workout for those who are working to stay fit.
My point here is this... let's all be more frustrated, let's get ridiculously frustrated even. Because we're social workers and by nature, by formal education, and by the way we work every day, frustration = results.
I encourage each of you to think about where your professional, personal, and safety knowledge is lacking and to get frustrated enough that you take a step or two to fill in those gaps.
I'm frustrated by how many times I read news stories about children who are abused for years without a teacher/neighbor/friend reporting it, I'm frustrated by the lack of safety provided for social workers, I'm frustrated by the lack of chosen learning in uncomfortable or uncommon areas among social workers, and I'm frustrated that it sometimes appears that no one else cares.
Granted, I know the latter can't be true. I know that I'm among a professional group who have chosen this profession because we do care. I also know that much of the former may not be technically true either, or at least that it isn't so cut and dry. I know that agencies don't have more safety precautions because they simply cannot afford such, not because they don't care. I know that social workers may be uneducated or out of date on some topics because there are just too many topics to remain consistently updated on. I know that reports go unmade because people fear being wrong or they're afraid of the repercussions of filing a report.
I just feel like there has to be a better way. We live in a world where we can connect with each other through the click of a mouse, where we have access to communication with the leading experts on most everything! Rather than having to know about social work websites on our own, we can shoot a quick email to Susan Mankita or to Linda Grobman (the gurus of socialworkchat.org and The New Social Worker magazine, respectively). We don't need to know every detail about how to proceed with a client who has a transgender child, we can hit up Kim Pearson's facebook page (Executive Director of TYFA -TransYouth Family Allies). I don't know if a self-defense class could ever be counted for CEUs, but I'd venture to guess it'd be a great substitute for a gym workout for those who are working to stay fit.
My point here is this... let's all be more frustrated, let's get ridiculously frustrated even. Because we're social workers and by nature, by formal education, and by the way we work every day, frustration = results.
I encourage each of you to think about where your professional, personal, and safety knowledge is lacking and to get frustrated enough that you take a step or two to fill in those gaps.
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