Consistency and change: internationally educated social workers compare interpretations and approaches in Canada and their countries of origin

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Annie Pullen Sansfaçon ◽  
Marion Brown ◽  
Stephanie Éthier
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
Knowledge Transfer ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Political Context ◽  
International Federation ◽  
New Work ◽  
Labour Mobility ◽  
Canadian Provinces ◽  
Do So ◽  
Work Contexts

Every year, a number of social workers who have studied and obtained their qualifications abroad immigrate to Canada. They do so to start a new life and pursue their careers in one of the Canadian provinces (Brown et al, 2015; Pullen Sansfaçon et al, 2012). However, even with the ‘Global Qualifying Standards’ (International Federation of Social Workers [IFSW], 2015), a document that recognises the increased labour mobility within the profession and aims for consistency within and between the different qualifications, social work still needs to adapt to local variations and is considered highly dependent on the cultural and socio-political context where it is practised (Fouché et al, 2013; Beddoe et al, 2012; Hussein et al, 2010; Welbourne et al, 2007). This specific social work imperative led us to investigate the processes by which transnational social workers adapt to new work contexts in Canada and, more specifically, to explore issues related to knowledge transfer in different practice contexts, and to further investigate how social workers really adapt to local variations.

Action Programmes of Social Work Organisations

1968 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 23-24
Author(s):  
H.R.H. Krommun Narathip Bongsprabandh
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
Social Welfare ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Work Groups ◽  
International Federation ◽  
International Social Work ◽  
International Social

Social work representatives from eleven Asian nations participated in the first regional International Federation of Social Workers Conference for Asia, November 6-10, 1967. The theme was "Action Programmes in Social Welfare and their Impact on a Changing Asia." His Royal Highness Krommun Narathip Bongsprabandh opened the Conference with the statement presented here. In addition, the three position papers of the Conference are reproduced in this issue of INTERNATIONAL SOCIAL WORK. One of the background papers for the Confer ence and a report of the work groups appeared in the April 1968 issue of the Journal.

Readiness and regulation: perspectives of Canadian stakeholders on the labour mobility of internationally educated social workers

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marion Brown ◽  
Annie Pullen Sansfaçon ◽  
Kate Matheson
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Research Council ◽  
Knowledge Exchange ◽  
Labour Mobility ◽  
Cultural Adaptations ◽  
Social Welfare System ◽  
The Social ◽  
Neoliberal Ideology ◽  
Regulatory Bodies

This chapter synthesises the data from two knowledge exchange fora where the findings of a four-year research study funded by the Social Science and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) were shared with, and subsequently responded to by, social work employers and provincial regulators as well as internationally educated social workers. The key themes of knowledge, values, and skill transfer, cultural adaptations, and understanding of the Canadian social welfare system align with the priorities of migrant social workers themselves (Pullen Sansfaçon et al, 2014), suggesting a congruence of central concerns. At the same time, tensions exist between the actual, lived experiences of the social workers and the expectations and practices of the stakeholder group. In this chapter we analyse these points of convergence and divergence, shaped as they are by Canadian social welfare’s prevailing neoliberal ideology and its structural manifestations brought to bear on social work service employers, supervisors, and regulatory bodies.

Childbirth Distress: A Call for Professional Engagement

Affilia ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 35 (3) ◽  
pp. 376-396
Author(s):  
Christiana MacDougall
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Emotional Distress ◽  
International Federation ◽  
Policy Statement ◽  
Social Forces ◽  
Social Work Research ◽  
Women's Narratives ◽  
Childbirth Trauma ◽  
Traumatic Childbirth

Among women who give birth, roughly half describe their birth experiences as traumatic. Childbirth trauma is a topic of growing global interest for health and mental health professions. However, social work remains peripheral in this emerging area of scholarship and practice. This article presents a portion of findings from recent feminist narrative social work research exploring women’s narratives of their experiences of emotional distress in childbirth to illustrate the need for increased professional engagement with this important social issue. Analysis of participants’ narratives illustrates how Foucault’s discourse and power/knowledge can be useful in understanding the subtle social forces that shape birth experiences which may result in emotional distress. In this article, I argue the topic of childbirth distress falls within the reproductive rights framework and should be of importance to social workers. The findings presented below are discussed in the context of the International Federation of Social Workers’ ethical principles and its policy statement on women to support this position.

scholarly journals The impact of COVID-19 pandemic on international students in Canada

2020 ◽  
Vol 63 (6) ◽  
pp. 820-824
Author(s):  
David Firang
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
International Students ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Vulnerable Populations ◽  
International Federation ◽  
Social Work Research ◽  
Academic Literature ◽  
Holistic Understanding ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Vulnerable Population Groups

The rate at which the coronavirus (aka COVID-19) pandemic is exterminating thousands of people and leaving millions sick has pushed the International Federation of Social Workers to call on scholars to examine the impact of the pandemic on vulnerable populations. One of the most vulnerable population groups ignored by social work research on COVID-19 is international students. Drawing on media sources, academic literature, and the author’s interactions with international students, this essay argues that international students are more vulnerable during this pandemic. The essay contributes to our holistic understanding of how social work can mitigate the impact of the pandemic in general.

International policy on ageing and older persons: Implications for social work practice

2011 ◽  
Vol 54 (3) ◽  
pp. 330-343 ◽  
Author(s):  
Merl C. 'Terry' Hokenstad ◽  
Amy Restorick Roberts
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Older Persons ◽  
Work Practice ◽  
Social Work Practice ◽  
International Federation ◽  
Policy Statement ◽  
International Policy ◽  
The Social ◽  
Recent Policy

The International Federation of Social Workers’ recent policy statement on ‘Ageing and Older Persons’ draws on the Madrid International Plan of Action on Ageing and its implications for the social work profession. Principles from the policy statement are examined with recommendations for social work practice.

Is social work really greening? Exploring the place of sustainability and environment in social work codes of ethics

2016 ◽  
Vol 61 (4) ◽  
pp. 503-517 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wendy Bowles ◽  
Heather Boetto ◽  
Peter Jones ◽  
Jennifer McKinnon
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Environmental Sustainability ◽  
Codes Of Ethics ◽  
The United States ◽  
International Federation ◽  
Leadership Role ◽  
Ethical Practice ◽  
The United Kingdom ◽  
Professional Body

This article examines the extent to which issues of environmental sustainability are represented in three national social work codes of ethics – the United Kingdom, the United States and Australia. These national codes are discussed and implications for social work are analysed with a view to strengthening the profession’s position regarding environmental sustainability. Findings suggest that national codes do not include concern for environmental sustainability as a core professional concern. The authors make recommendations for developing ethical practice and further argue that the international professional body of social work, the International Federation of Social Workers (IFSW), should take a fundamental leadership role in advocating for environmental sustainability.

International Federation of Social Workers (IFSW)

2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nigel Hall
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Social Work ◽  
Best Practices ◽  
Social Development ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
International Federation ◽  
International Organization ◽  
The World ◽  
National Organizations ◽  
Policy Statements

The International Federation of Social Workers is an international organization representing the interests of social workers around the world. This organization works in cooperation with global regional social work bodies, national organizations, and other associations to organize international events, publish policy statements, encourage cooperative initiatives, and link to other international bodies. It is active in human rights and social development and in the promotion of best practices and high professional social work standards.

Power, Politics, and Social Work

2021 ◽  
pp. 229-240
Author(s):  
Silvana Martínez
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Latin American ◽  
Social Order ◽  
Social Inequalities ◽  
International Federation ◽  
Power Politics ◽  
The World ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
Global Agenda

In this chapter some reflections are examined linking social work with power and politics. These reflections are raised from a Latin American and decolonial perspective. The urgency and the need to reinvent social work around the world is argued in view of the deepening of social inequalities caused by a capitalist-colonial-patriarchal social order. Likewise, the need to build a political view of social work is argued, as well as a greater commitment to social movements and their struggles to transform these social inequalities and the current social order. Theoretical reflections are accompanied by historical evidence that illustrates these struggles, as well as experiences of professional practices of social work. These reflections are also linked to the themes of the global agenda for social work and social development, as well as the world definition of social work by the International Federation of Social Workers.

scholarly journals Reading World Social Work Day 2010 through Multi-modal Analysis

2019 ◽  
Vol 16 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Tara La Rose
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
Modal Analysis ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Digital Media ◽  
International Federation ◽  
Narrative Texts ◽  
Multiple Contexts ◽  
Digital Texts ◽  
Multiple Meanings ◽  
Media Environments

This paper considers World Social Work Day 2010, a digital media story created and shared on YouTube by the International Federation of Social Workers. Multi-modal analysis is used to reveal the multi-vocal nature of the text and to consider the particular social work discourses used in this digital narrative. Connections between and across digital texts are used to explore the capacity of digital media to produce multiple meanings and to allow texts to exist in multiple contexts simultaneously. Post-structural perspectives framing this analysis encourage consideration of the potential meanings of globalization in social work, particularly when narrative texts are shared via online digital media environments and interpreted by both intended and unforeseen audiences.

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