Editor's Eye

Hello --

 

 

 

Until next time,

Linda Grobman, ACSW, LSW

Publisher/Editor

THE NEW SOCIAL WORKER®

 

 

 

 

 

What does a life in social work look like? You might look at it as a series of “sideways” stories! “If life were black and white, we’d have no need for social work.” Read Ogden Rogers’ collection, Beginnings, Middles, & Ends: Sideways Stories on the Art & Soul of Social Work. Available on Amazon.com (print and Kindle), Google Play (e-book), directly from the publisher, and other bookstores. Do you know a social worker or social work student who loves to read? This book is a welcome retreat from academic textbooks.

 

Job Corner

 

 

Featured Excerpt

 

Child protection is a myriad of different experiences. Sad, joyous, shocking, and scary are just a few descriptors. There are not many jobs where you get to encounter uniquely different situations every day. These situations can bring out a wide array of emotions from joy to anger. To manage these situations and emotions, supervision is one of the most important tools we have. There is no one approach or perfect practice to strive for; each situation demands its own assessment and tactic. Just as no one worker is perfect, no one system is perfect. If you can live with all of this, you will discover that child protection is an awesome job.   

 

Each day is different, and each case calls for different skills. Day to day, I travel to schools, hospitals, homes, police stations, parks, community centers, malls, libraries, and lots of McDonald’s restaurants. Day to day, I bring up difficult and bizarre subjects with people about their sex lives and sexual interests, childhood experiences, criminal pasts, thoughts about parenting, life goals, vacation plans, hobbies, romantic relationships, intelligence, religion, food preferences, and even their favorite movies and TV shows. No subject or location is off limits if it is relevant to a child and a child’s safety. I often start my day sitting at my desk, and through the course of the day I may end up being called to a school and then a police station. Next thing I know, I am sitting at a hospital at 8 p.m. There is no end to the possibilities and situations I might find myself in. 

 

One youth I worked with had me start my day sitting with her in court, waiting for her no-contact application to be heard, and then ended with me taking her shoe shopping and dropping her off at her placement. Another report called for me to take a child to the airport, which was three hours away, at 5 a.m. to catch a plane back to the child’s father. 

 

The wide scope of our job often brings out a wide array of emotions. At times, it is difficult to keep these emotions in check. I have lost my temper with a client. I have cried with and for a client. I have been sarcastic with a client. I have cared deeply about a client. I have laughed at and with a client. And I have been attracted to a client. 

 

Don’t be afraid to laugh with a client. Child protection can be so serious at times. Don’t forget to show clients that you are a real person. Once, I had to drive a mother of an infant to a forensic medical appointment at a specialized hospital. During the car ride, she was anxious and nervous about her exam, and I had been talking to her about what to expect and trying to calm her. During a moment of silence, I sang a verse from the song on the radio under my breath. She started to sing it quietly, too. I turned the volume up, and we sang the song loudly together, laughing. 

 

Read the rest of this article at:

 

 

Read more articles from the Winter 2016 issue of The New Social Worker. A few highlights:

 

• Mindfulness: 10 Lesson in Self-Care for Social Workers
• Achieving Racial Equity Through Social Work: Building a Network That Works
• What’s the Buzz? Treating Prescription Drug Abuse in Youth
• Suicide, Schools, and Social Media
• Mandated Reporting When Engaged in Family Work
• Ethics of Social Work Apps
• 5 Tips To Help You Stay Strong During Your Social Work Job Search
• Book Review: Racism Without Racists
• Book Review: Social Work Live!
• Book Review: Doing Good Better

 

Bonus: Check out our recent web-exclusive articles:

 

• Reverse Culture Shock: Did You Have Fun on Your Vacation?
• Invisible Bodies
• Saying No to Gratitude and Forgiveness
• Twin Traumas

News & Resources

 

 

 

I am seeking a limited number of articles for THE NEW SOCIAL WORKER website. Is there an issue that you are passionate about that corresponds with an upcoming “awareness” month, week, or day? This is a good way to identify a topic for a timely article.

 

Our style is conversational and educational, and web articles typically run 500-750 words. We want positive articles that social workers can use to help them advance in their careers.

 

I also welcome submissions of poetry, photographs, illustrations, artwork, videos, audio, and other creative work depicting social work and related topics.

 

Please contact Linda Grobman, editor/publisher of THE NEW SOCIAL WORKER, at: lindagrobman@socialworker.com

 

Submit articles to Linda Grobman with a subject line that says “Submission—(insert title or topic of submission). Attach your submission as a Word file.  Please include in this file: title of submission, your name as you want it to appear with your article, body of your submission, a brief bio about yourself.  I will then review your submission and let you know if I need anything else or if it is accepted for publication.

 

In Print

White Hat Communications, publisher of THE NEW SOCIAL WORKER magazine and the Social Work E-News, has published several books about social work. These books make great gifts (for graduation, holidays, or other occasions) for yourself, or for your friends, students, and colleagues in social work!

 

We also publish books on nonprofit management. Want to start your own agency? We have a book for that.

 

 

All of our books are available through our secure online store at:

 

Most are also available at Amazon.com.

 

You can also view and download our catalog in PDF format.

 

Reminders

VISIT OUR SITES

www.socialworker.com