Social workers help people to help themselves in thousands of different ways. The scope of the profession is vast, and affects the lives of thousand of people every single day. Social workers come from every background and from every part of the country, and help people wherever they are needed. Among the skills and responsibilities of social workers are advocating for individuals on identified problems; serving as a broker by connecting clients with the resources they need; and creating and maintaining professional relationships. Social workers also help clients in problem solving, and coping with the stresses of daily life. The typical social worker comes into contact with a broad range of individuals from the communities in which they work. The must be able to engage and communicate with all of them, and have a knowledge and understanding of human relationships. The services that a social worker can provide will not only support change in the individual, but in the person's environment, too. Some of the areas that social workers can specialize in include medical social work, school social work, and clinical social work. In medical social work they provide help to patients and their families who are coping with the problems that are associated with serious illness and ongoing medical treatment, sometimes in a hospital environment. School social workers provide help to students and families who are coping with behavioral, emotional, social, or economic problems that may hinder learning. And clinical social workers provide their clients with a full range of health services, including the diagnosis and treatment of physical and psychological ailments. Theresa Beatty is a social worker who is a mediator in the judicial circuit court in LaGrange, Georgia. |