Social Work Profession

Social Work Profession
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Social Work Profession
What is social work?
Social work is a job that deals with assisting people, specific group, families or the society to better their collective or personal well-being (The National Association of Social Work, 2015). The main agenda for any social work is to aid individuals with skills that will enable them to utilize their resources and use them to solve their community problems. The government uses social work strategy with the aim of solving community problems like domestic conflict, poverty and joblessness.
The concept of social work was used in the initial formation of social justice and human rights departments. Social work is different from other types of work because it blends particular skills, ideas or values as a mode of intervention in solving issues. Additionally, it uses relationship such as the respect for the community involvement and choice to ensure that its main agenda is accomplished. Social work plays a significant role in a social, political or economic context. This is because any of these contexts can result in violence or social tension. Therefore, social workers are used in ensuring that peace is observed in the community.
Why social work profession and what does that mean?
Contrarily, many conflicting ideologies undermine the concept of social work practices. For instance, many people find it had to recognise social work as a professional job. In the past, social workers were used in offering clinical aid to veterans who participated in the World War I.

However, in the 1970s, it advanced to volunteer ship program that were used to solve social ills such as environment pollution or counselling programs. Women were majorly involved in this program than men.
Today, the ideology of social working as turned to a new, different level. For example, social workers are found in school institutions, clinics, health facilities and many social service organizations. Even though, they perform similar functions like serving the sick, the disadvantaged and offering counselling service like the ones performed during the World War era, it different because currently, social work is now a professional job. For instance, there are formal standards put in place to ensure quality delivery of services. Additionally, The Association of Social Work Boards is responsible for setting these standards.
In the United States, they are responsible for over checking nationwide licensing exams done by social workers graduates. The course in the social working department has a degree for either master`s or bachelor`s level. It is mandatory for any social worker to have a license so that he or she can work in any of place in the United States. They have put these standards because social working involves nursing, first aid provider, firefighting department, disaster recovery agents who are given the mandate to serve life before a professional doctor can take control of the situation. Therefore, they require advanced training in disaster management.
How does one become a social worker and what does it mean to be a social worker?
To become a social worker, you are required to obtain a social work license from the Council on Social Work Education. You are also required to have competitive C.V to be eligible for a job admission (Social Work Licensure, 2015). Therefore, you need to have volunteered for more than one social volunteer ship program in your life. You need to be a hardworking person and be consistent in your work. It is also convenient to be good in public speaking and at least have some leadership skills. The reasons why these standards are important are as follows: you are required to have a license because during distaste’s, dealing with human life requires professional skills that will prevent irresponsible actions that can cause further damage. By having a competitive C.V, it ensures that you are the best in the industry, and you can be reliable when attending to an emergency. Consistency and hard work are significant because it makes sure that you will be available in case an emergency appears.
What are the basic social work professional values and why are these important?
Consequently, there many codes of ethics that social workers need to master before starting any nursing practice. It is known that social workers are required to be sharp in decision-making processes pertaining issues such as moral judgement, ethical concerns and relationships. Moreover, ethical codes that social workers should master are the principle of confidentiality, power, honesty, moral strength, respect and cultural sensitivity. According to Spector, ethical components in social workers incorporate trust, respects and good working relationship with others (Hugman, 2013). In the social worker`s profession, respect is a big word because it is the key to satisfying social service delivery. Respect for ethical code in social work profession entails the respect for the client dignity, ensuring that the client has the right to self-determination, initiating good judgement, executing duties effectively, accepting accountability when on duty, being alert to patients interests, having a good working relationship with other workmate and alleviating suffering.
Secondly, all social workers are required to maintain confidentiality at any time. Thirdly, moral courage is another ethical code for social workers. This is the ability for social workers to confront the ugly situation head on. For example, attending to disfigured victims who are victims of fire or acid accident may require strength and courage. Fourthly, cultural sensitivity means that any social worker should be able to attend to any victim from diverse culture and background. In this case, culture involves the concepts of diverse racial, thought, actions, ethnic, language, religion, customs, communication, ideology and values. Therefore, it important to note that different cultures view issue concerned with illness, birth, death, suffering, health and pain in a cultural belief system (Hugman, 2013).
Lastly, social workers should aim at becoming a good world citizen. This means a social workers should participate in research that will ensure everyone in the world has the best public health services. Therefore, upcoming and professional social workers in practice are persuaded to volunteer in a programme of providing public health work in third world country. For example, during the outbreak of Ebola in 2014 in the Western African countries it was a chance to make a difference in the world for those practising social working careers (Hugman, 2013).
Why are diversity and social and economic justice important concepts for social work?
Diversity in social, political or economic context is important in a social working career. This is because any of these contexts can result in violence and social tension. Therefore, social workers are used in ensuring that peace is observed. The idea that ethnic conflict arises from inadequate resources can be explained by the theory that suggest that conflict originates from the existence of inequality and in this particular case, economic inequality. Cultural Contestation is a conflict that is ostensibly about cultural expressions or portrayals that become intense when it engages core group identity issues. For example, religion has been cited as the main contributor to ethnic violence. The world is endowed with very many religious groups and beliefs with each having their own different and unique beliefs. These controversies have been known to be recipes for ethnic violence in the past. Therefore, social workers are required to know how to hold such diversity and social conflicts (Hugman, 2013).
Reference:
The National Association of Social Work. (2015). What is Social work. Retrieved at. http://www.casw-acts.ca/en/what-social-work
Hugman, R. (2013). Culture, values and ethics in social work: Embracing diversity.
Social WorkLicensure.org.(2015). The Social Work Profession. Retrieved at. http://www.socialworklicensure.org/articles/social-work-profession.html#context/api/listings/prefilter