scholarly journals Social work during the COVID-19 pandemic. Administrative and personal response to new challenges

2021 ◽  
Vol 0 (0) ◽  
Author(s):  
Claudia Bacter ◽  
Sorana Săveanu ◽  
Cristiana Marc
Keyword(s):  
Social Workers ◽  
Social Services ◽  
Lessons Learned ◽  
Public Institutions ◽  
Vulnerable Groups ◽  
Public And Private ◽  
Online Activity ◽  
Social Actors ◽  
Intervention Measures ◽  
Restrictive Measures

Abstract The crisis generated by the COVID-19 pandemic implied specific intervention measures in all areas worldwide. Social workers from the social care system and health services, along with other specialists, have played an extremely important role in providing support to vulnerable groups, in order to manage social and psychological issues that have emerged in this period. This paper presents the results of a study involving 94 social workers from Romania. The aim of the research was to identify the main changes in the activity of social workers from public and private social services during pandemic, a period characterized by restrictive measures in order to limit the transmission of the virus. The paper focuses on vulnerabilities and challenges imposed by these changes in order to continue to provide social services for those in need. Recommendations on social policies are outlined based on the lessons learned in this period. The results show that communication and the maintenance of the relationship with beneficiaries are the parts where most changes occurred. The limitation of direct contacts has led to a decrease in field activity, online work, increased workload, or changes in working schedule, and also sometimes (mainly in public institutions) increased bureaucracy. Based on the results of the study, some recommendations for policy makers are identified, taking advantage of the lessons from this period of crisis: the need for the authorities to prioritize the allocated resources and to impose stricter rules to follow, provide funding for specific resources, intensifying the collaboration between all social actors involved, developing and implementing unitary intervention models, greater interest and understanding from authorities and responsiveness to new intervention methods, maintaining the online activity where the situation allows it in order to reduce bureaucracy in public institutions.

Social Work and Social Entrepreneurship: Opportunities for Synergy and Social Change

2015 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
pp. 189-198
Author(s):  
Rukshan Fernando
Keyword(s):  
Social Workers ◽  
Social Services ◽  
Social Service ◽  
Economic Recession ◽  
Service Organizations ◽  
Public And Private ◽  
Social Service Organizations ◽  
The Media ◽  
Media Reports ◽  
Private Support

Today's world faces unprecedented complexities. Governments, businesses, and nonprofits have far to go in solving these problems. The economic recession of 2007 exposed a significant decline in public and private support for social services (Pitt- Catsouphes & Berzin, 2015) and the need for social workers to facilitate new ways of addressing the complex, interwoven problems of poverty, racism, social inequity, and discrimination. Now more than ever, social workers need to understand how social services can utilize new strategies with new solutions to address these issues (Berzin, 2012). ). Shuman & Fuller (2005) coined the phrase “revolution will not be funded,” indicating that nonprofits all over the country must devise new incomegenerating strategies to empower disadvantaged groups. Although the media reports that the U.S. economy has rebounded, foundations and governments still expect social service nonprofits to leverage new forms of revenue to fulfill their missions. There is also some uncertainty about how nonprofits will be funded long term as local, state, and federal government dollars dry up. In addition, some claim that social service organizations develop complex programs that do not match the interests of funders (Foster, Kim, & Christensen, 2009).

scholarly journals Social Workers during COVID-19: Do Coping Strategies Differentially Mediate the Relationship between Job Demand and Psychological Distress?

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Menachem Ben-Ezra ◽  
Yaira Hamama-Raz
Keyword(s):  
Psychological Distress ◽  
Coping Strategies ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Social Services ◽  
Job Demands ◽  
Work Practice ◽  
Social Work Practice ◽  
Self Report ◽  
Mediating Role ◽  
Intervention Measures

Abstract The consequences of the coronavirus disease of 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic have raised many challenges in the social services workforce. The current study aimed to examine the associations between job demands, coping strategies (i.e. emotion-focused coping and problem-focused coping) and psychological distress exhibited by social workers during the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition, the mediating role of different coping strategies was investigated for the associations revealed. The participants were 615 social workers, working in various organisations and with diverse populations in Israel. Each completed a validated self-report questionnaire. Results revealed that job demands were significantly associated with higher psychological distress, and that coping strategies, especially emotion-focused coping was associated with higher psychological distress and with job demands. In addition, emotion-focused coping strategies were found to mediate the association between job demands and psychological distress, especially ventilation of emotion beyond other strategies, which relate to emotion-focused coping. These findings are discussed with relation to a stress and coping theory, suggesting that in social work practice there is a need for intervention measures to improve social workers’ coping strategies during crises such as the COVID-19 pandemic.

scholarly journals The Perception of Social Workers in the N-E Area of Romania on Supervision

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 224
Author(s):  
Elena Unguru
Keyword(s):  
Social Workers ◽  
Social Services ◽  
Professional Practice ◽  
Child Protection ◽  
Public Institutions ◽  
Professional Activity ◽  
The Public ◽  
The Social ◽  
Control Dimension

The supervision relationship is a long-lasting evaluation, oriented towards a number of purposes: improving the professional activity of supervised persons, monitoring the quality of services provided by practitioners, and promoting professional practice in general. The aim of the research is to analyze the main axes of the social construction of the supervision of social services in public institutions for child protection in the N - E area of Romania. The research was based on the questionnaire survey and was carried out between October 2018 and January 2019 in the public social work institutions in Bacău, Botosani, Iaşi, Suceava, Neamţ, Vaslui counties. Social workers prefer the supportive side to the administrative one, while supervision managers put the focus on the control dimension, but accompanied by the formative one.

scholarly journals Emotions, Feelings, and Experiences of Social Workers While Attending to Vulnerable Groups: A Qualitative Approach

Healthcare ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 87
Author(s):  
María Dolores Ruiz-Fernández ◽  
Rocío Ortiz-Amo ◽  
Elena Andina-Díaz ◽  
Isabel María Fernández-Medina ◽  
José Manuel Hernández-Padilla ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Social Workers ◽  
Social Services ◽  
Qualitative Methodology ◽  
Community Setting ◽  
Well Being ◽  
The Elderly ◽  
Vulnerable Groups ◽  
Social Interventions ◽  
Vulnerable Individual ◽  
Training And Support

Social workers in the community setting are in constant contact with the suffering experienced by the most vulnerable individual. Social interventions are complex and affect social workers’ emotional well-being. The aim of this study was to identify the emotions, feelings, and experiences social workers have while attending to individuals in situations of vulnerability and hardship. A qualitative methodology based on hermeneutic phenomenology was used. Six interviews and two focus group sessions were conducted with social workers from the community social services and health services of the Andalusian Public Health System in the province of Almería (Spain). Atlas.ti 8.0 software was used for discourse analysis. The professionals highlighted the vulnerability of certain groups, such as the elderly and minors, people with serious mental problems, and people with scarce or no economic resources. Daily contact with situations of suffering generates a variety of feelings and emotions (anger, sadness, fear, concern). Therefore, more attention should be paid to working with the emotions of social workers who are exposed to tense and threatening situations. Peer support, talking, and discussions of experiences are pointed out as relevant by all social workers. Receiving training and support (in formal settings) in order to learn how to deal with vulnerable groups could be positive for their work and their professional and personal quality of life.

scholarly journals Foreign Immigrants in Depopulated Rural Areas: Local Social Services and the Construction of Welcoming Communities

2018 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 337-346 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rosario Sampedro ◽  
Luis Camarero
Keyword(s):  
Social Services ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Northern Spain ◽  
Public And Private ◽  
Social Actors ◽  
The Social ◽  
Private Actors ◽  
Depth Interviews ◽  
Local Social Services ◽  
Welcoming Communities

Many rural areas in Spain suffer an acute problem of depopulation. In recent years the arrival of foreign immigrant workers has contributed to alleviating the situation. The social services in rural areas play a fundamental role in the reception of these new residents, and in attending to their needs. These immigrants find themselves in a very vulnerable situation. Added to the needs of any family group with very limited resources are the terms of being a foreigner in an environment in which the coethnic support networks are very scarce. The capacity of both rural councils and local social services to promote the social integration of the immigrants is very limited due to the lack of resources, and to the difficulties associated with the provision of social services in depopulated rural areas. Through in-depth interviews, carried out in a mountainous depopulated region in northern Spain, we analyse the discourses of mayors, social workers and members of civil organizations. The conclusions suggest that the construction of welcoming communities requires reinforcing the community dimension of social work in rural areas, and from an ecological perspective that enhances social participation and coordination among the social actors. Specifically directed initiatives are needed by means of cooperation among the different levels of government and between public and private actors.

scholarly journals Social Work during the COVID-19 Crisis: Responding to Urgent Social Needs

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (20) ◽  
pp. 8595 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gisela Redondo-Sama ◽  
Virginia Matulic ◽  
Ariadna Munté-Pascual ◽  
Irene de Vicente
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Social Services ◽  
Social Needs ◽  
Vulnerable Groups ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Organizational Responses ◽  
Long Term Impact ◽  
The Impact

Social work during the COVID-19 crisis has faced one of the most challenging times to cover urgent social needs in an uncertain scenario. This study analyzes the immediate responses in social work to vulnerable groups in the first 15 days of the pandemic in Barcelona, one of the most affected areas worldwide by COVID-19. The sample for this qualitative study includes 23 semi-structured interviews with social workers from different fields of intervention, from general approaches (primary care) to specific ones (health, ageing, homeless, and justice). The data analysis followed the communicative methodology, including transformative and exclusionary dimensions, and the analytical categories focused on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on social services users, the organizational responses of social workers, and the impact of the interventions to cover urgent social needs of attendees. The interventions have been accompanied by an improvement in communication channels with vulnerable groups, ensuring an understanding of the situation of families and individuals, and covering the most urgent social needs. The study shows the key role of social workers from diverse social attention tools and their contribution to the sustainability of social services with a long-term impact.

Dissemination and Implementation in Social Service Settings

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Curtis McMillen ◽  
Danielle R. Adams
Keyword(s):  
Health Disparities ◽  
Social Services ◽  
Social Service ◽  
Careful Consideration ◽  
Lessons Learned ◽  
Health Interventions ◽  
Dissemination And Implementation ◽  
The Social ◽  
Implementation Models ◽  
Complex Settings

Social service settings offer numerous complexities in their staffing, consumers, and payer mix that require careful consideration in designing dissemination and implementation efforts. However, social services’ unique access to vulnerable populations with health problems may prove vital in efforts to improve the health status of many of our citizens and reduce health disparities. While a number of well-developed, blended dissemination and implementation models are being used in social service settings, they all require additional documentation, research, and field experience. Nonetheless, the lessons learned in the social services may help organizations in other sectors better implement health interventions with complex consumers in complex settings.

Fiduciary Principles and Public Offices

2019 ◽  
pp. 302-322
Author(s):  
Ethan J. Leib ◽  
Stephen R. Galoob
Keyword(s):  
Administrative Law ◽  
Public Law ◽  
Public Institutions ◽  
Policy Implications ◽  
Public Officials ◽  
Public Office ◽  
Public And Private ◽  
Normative Structure ◽  
The Public ◽  
Positive Law

This chapter examines how fiduciary principles apply to public offices, focusing on what it means for officeholders to comport themselves to their respective public roles appropriately. Public law institutions can operate in accordance with fiduciary norms even when they are enforced differently from the remedial mechanisms available in private fiduciary law. In the public sector, fiduciary norms are difficult to enforce directly and the fiduciary norms of public office do not overlap completely with the positive law governing public officials. Nevertheless, core fiduciary principles are at the heart of public officeholding, and public officers need to fulfill their fiduciary role obligations. This chapter first considers three areas of U.S. public law whose fiduciary character reinforces the tenet that public office is a public trust: the U.S. Constitution’s “Emoluments Clauses,” administrative law, and the law of judging. It then explores the fiduciary character of public law by looking at the deeper normative structure of public officeholding, placing emphasis on how public officeholders are constrained by the principles of loyalty, care, deliberation, conscientiousness, and robustness. It also compares the policy implications of the fiduciary view of officeholding with those of Dennis Thompson’s view before concluding with an explanation of how the application of fiduciary principles might differ between public and private law settings and how public institutions might be designed or reformed in light of fiduciary norms.

Modes of Relational Agency among Welfare-reliant Mothers

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hagit Sinai-Glazer ◽  
Boris H J M Brummans
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Present Article ◽  
Social Services ◽  
Human Agency ◽  
Relational Agency ◽  
Research Participants ◽  
Seeking Help ◽  
Depth Interviews

Abstract How do welfare-reliant mothers enact their agency in relationships with social workers and social services? The present article addresses this question by investigating how twenty Israeli welfare-reliant mothers expressed different modes of human agency in in-depth interviews. Results show how research participants enact agency through (i) expressing anger, (ii) seeking help, (iii) resisting and (iv) engaging in non-action. By highlighting the multidimensional and situational nature of agency, this article offers a new relational lens for conceptualising and empirically studying human agency in social work.

scholarly journals Wastewater Surveillance for SARS-CoV-2 on College Campuses: Initial Efforts, Lessons Learned, and Research Needs

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (9) ◽  
pp. 4455
Author(s):  
Sasha Harris-Lovett ◽  
Kara L. Nelson ◽  
Paloma Beamer ◽  
Heather N. Bischel ◽  
Aaron Bivins ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Information Needs ◽  
Community Dynamics ◽  
The United States ◽  
Lessons Learned ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Private Institutions ◽  
Community Members ◽  
Public And Private ◽  
College And University ◽  
University Systems

Wastewater surveillance for the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is an emerging approach to help identify the risk of a coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak. This tool can contribute to public health surveillance at both community (wastewater treatment system) and institutional (e.g., colleges, prisons, and nursing homes) scales. This paper explores the successes, challenges, and lessons learned from initial wastewater surveillance efforts at colleges and university systems to inform future research, development and implementation. We present the experiences of 25 college and university systems in the United States that monitored campus wastewater for SARS-CoV-2 during the fall 2020 academic period. We describe the broad range of approaches, findings, resources, and impacts from these initial efforts. These institutions range in size, social and political geographies, and include both public and private institutions. Our analysis suggests that wastewater monitoring at colleges requires consideration of local information needs, sewage infrastructure, resources for sampling and analysis, college and community dynamics, approaches to interpretation and communication of results, and follow-up actions. Most colleges reported that a learning process of experimentation, evaluation, and adaptation was key to progress. This process requires ongoing collaboration among diverse stakeholders including decision-makers, researchers, faculty, facilities staff, students, and community members.

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