The dedication to
expanding the role of social workers in politics and public policy making is
the forefront topic I believe. From nearly the beginning of the profession,
social workers have been called on to be active in politics. The future seeks to break new ground and expand
our role in politics. It has two goals: The first is to increase the number of
social workers in elected office. The second goal is to "push the
envelope" on what is moral, legal and ethical for all social workers to
do, especially direct service social workers, to improve the political
empowerment of their clients. The importance of these new endeavors is very striking
to me.
Good social service
policy requires special knowledge and expertise. Today, most public policy
makers have no direct experience in social service work and as a result they
lack firsthand knowledge. Helping professionals, or for that matter clients and
consumers, would bring needed knowledge and experience to public policy making.
Another reason for political involvement is imbedded in the social
change/social reform mission that is at the heart of the social work
profession. Politicians can change policy that will either help or hurt
clients; therefore social workers are obligated to be among those who are
making policy. There was a lot of concern that social workers should not be the
"handmaidens" of psychiatrists in the mental health field. We social
workers have come to dominate the mental health field. I do not want today's
social workers to be the "handmaidens" of politicians and we will be
unless we agree that some of us should run for office, get elected and serve.
Most importantly social workers know how to learn what
people need and how to get it for them. We can do all of these things because
we are trained to assess people, situations, communities and organizations. We
learn active listen and translate people's statements into concrete plans of
action. We know how to engage people in focused action, advocate for the
interests of the disadvantaged and vulnerable. We understand group dynamics and
how to use them and are culturally sensitive and respectful.
I agree social workers are making a forefront on our role in politics. It's amazing how much politics and policies we are able to use at our advantage for our clients and for their well-being. And yes, it is most certainly important to know what we can about politics to have a social change/social reform. If we do continue to "push the envelope" people are more likely to take social services seriously and know that we are here to help and be advocates for our clients, and helping them "pick themselves up by the boot straps." Great post and great point of view!
ReplyDeleteI totally agree with what you posted. We as social workers can make a huge impact on how policies are written and are put into place. Like you commented, the politicians do not have the knowledge or experience social workers bring to table when it comes to needs of the clients we serve. Social workers can be that voice by advocating and making policy makers aware of how budget cuts will affect our client’s lives. Although this chapter discusses existing policies which focus on helping the elder population, the resources may be limited or even exhausted as more people are in need of social services. More needs to be done to pave a path to ensure the future needs of seniors are met. We have learned throughout this class this population is growing as life spans have increased. This means this group will need assistance in the areas such as housing and health care.
ReplyDelete