Working with vulnerable people can give you immense job satisfaction and this is how social workers feel when they’ve successfully helped someone in a bad situation. Social workers identify those in society who need help, assess the needs of that person and organise support networks to achieve their goal of helping. Their aim is to assist people in solving problems and helping them to cope with their everyday lives. For this kind of work you will need to undergo a DBS Check and Trauma informed practice training. Find out more at https://www.tidaltraining.co.uk/mental-health-courses/trauma-informed-practice-training
They can work with a wide variety of people including the elderly, drug addicts, vulnerable children and those suffering with mental health issues. A typical day might involve the following activities:
- Developing plans to improve their client’s well-being
- Help clients to adjust and change their situation and face challenges like unemployment, divorce or illness
- Refer people to other community help such as child and health care
- Respond to crisis situations such as child abuse
- Evaluate services to make sure they are remaining effective
- Following up with clients to ensure their continued well-being
No two days will ever be the same and you could be helping people with addictions, people with disabilities, those with serious illnesses or lonely elderly people who might be at risk of injury in their home. Social workers often make the news due to their work with vulnerable children because unfortunately when things do go wrong, they can result in tragic consequences. However, the media don’t show us all the success stories and the wonderful work done by our often over-stretched social workers.