Peer Reviewed Academic Journal

The title of the journal is

Secondary Traumatic Stress and Burnout in child Welfare Worker: A Comparative Analysis of Occupational Distress Across Professional groups

http://0-search.ebscohost.com.webpac.peralta.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=74247650&site=ehost-live

Summary: 

This article is about a survey of 669 Child Welfare professionals who participated for the survey through email or post. The respondents completed "The Professional Quality of Life IV" to ascertain compassion fatigue and burnout symptoms. It starts to explain how Child Welfare professionals deal with a lot of traumatic stuff such as bad situations, or abuse stories etc. And by them hearing these cases or dealing with them is causes STS (Secondary Traumatic Stress). They feel that weight to being able to help the child and get them out of their bad situations.

Analysis: 

After analyzing this article the research was based on a small proportion of people and reading through the article it wasn't just the job that can cause them STS but they were also testing depending on where they live such as rural or urban cities. As well as their marital status either single or taken. This is a quote from the article "Respondents were asked to identify their living location. Potential responses included urban (apartment), urban (single-family dwelling), suburb (apartment), suburb (single-family dwelling), rural (apart- ment), and rural (single-family dwelling)." 

 

Response:

I feel by adding this they really weren't basing themselves on that the life of social worker is what can cause STS in their lives. I didn't feel this was accurate. I would of liked to see more research done in the office on what can cause their stress. Either too many case loads or the types of cases that can the social workers stressed out, for example if the kid is being raped. I do believe that social worker have a stressful job especially working for the government rather than non-profit organizations.

Interview

This is an interview I did with through email with Susan a social work I wanted to interview someone who was an expert in this field. I felt her opinion and her experience would help me and see the real side of the career through someone's eyes. I did a total of 9 questions for her.

• Her interview did give me more hope, that this job is a challenge but it really rewarding if you work hard and do with your heart =)

1. What type of social worker are you? Or are you in social welfare? 

I am a Associate Clinical Social Worker with a focus on Individuals, Families and Groups.  I have about 2 more years of supervised work before I will take the test to become a Licensed Clinical Social Worker.

2. Does you job involve helping children ? And how 

I run the Wellness Center at Oakland High, where we serve ~1200 students each year, providing everything from mental health counseling to medical services and after school/education support services.  I also provided individual counseling to students who have substance abuse concerns. 

3. Have you seen a difference in the work you have in done in your clients lives? 

Yes!  I just talked with a student who graduated from Cal yesterday and who thanked me for working with him in his senior year to help him get through everything he was going through.  Other students come back all the time to thank us for helping them.  

4. What do you love most about your job? 

See above :)

5. What would you respond to those who just put down social workers and say they don't care about kids? 

I would say that some social workers are like that.  There are good ones and bad ones.  They are human as well.  I would point out that I am a social worker and I care a lot about kids.  

6. Do you recommend working for the government or non-profit organizations? 

Government pays better, but the case loads are crazy big, and the system is hard to work in, which is why some social workers become really negative and why some people feel like they don't care about people.  

On the other hand, working for a non-profit is tough because the pay starts out really low.  The training is usually really good, though, and the people are usually really cool.

7. Which is better masters or bachelors ? 

Masters unfortunately.  

8. Do you feel the challenges you face in your career are rewarding at the end because you felt you help the child ? Maybe if you can give me one experience would be perfect ? 

I work with a student who was smoking weed every day, at least twice a day in her 9th and 10th grade years.  She quit last year, and is about to graduate.  I met her mom, and I super happy for her. 

9. What was your motivation for choosing social work as your career ?

I didn't mean to.  I was a teacher first.  Then I got a job running the Wellness Center.  As I tried to help students, I realized I needed more tools to help them deal with all the crazy stuff that people deal with every day.  I took a class at Merritt for basic counseling and really liked that class.  Then I took a workshop for something called Motivational Interviewing.  The woman who taught it was an LCSW and I really liked her approach to the work of helping people.  That's when I decided to become a social worker.  

Open Letter

Dear Mom,

Your little girl has grown up, and I know your wish was for me not to see the reality of this world but sadly I have and I don’t want to sit here and let it keep happening. Your plan for me was to grow up and be a doctor and save people’s lives in a hospital. But my focus now is to save these teens on the streets that are drug abusing and dropping out of school because they need to support their family. I want to make justice for them and not just have pity for them. Walking to school was never your plan, you wanted me safe in car and getting dropped with a kiss and a hug but these past few years walking to school in the Richmond streets I have seen too much at times that I can’t believe how blessed I am. Social work is what I strive for Mom, in that way I can make you proud. Not only is this career for me but the satisfaction that some child or teen is safer than they ever were before. I can’t believe in front of our house where we eat, pray and have time together drugs are dropped right in front on accident by our neighbor who’s 12. He has no other way out he believes. You tell me make sure this is what you want to do, I don’t want you to pick a career where you will regret it. In my english class I have done research and most of it has be negative and its bothers me mom. But I want to become someone who makes a change. I found an article on of a woman whose name was Kimberly Hall she is a social worker and due to her work in many kids and teens most of them graduated and even got into ivy league schools. I want to know that my support my career is going to make a change not just in my life but a person who does not have a voice and I helped them have their voice be heard. Mom your ways of keeping me safe I appreciate but the circumstances of just walking to school have influenced me to have a career where I can be a help, or just someone to hear these people out and have the capacity to make justice for them. Mom I’m not trying to be superwoman but what I do strive to be is putting my big heart somewhere into something I love and not be taking someone’s blood for the rest of my life I don’t want to be vampire but maybe just a little more superwoman.

Reflection Timeeeee

A reflection on starting this research for being a social worker.

Reflection before Research: 

Starting this research I was certain how social workers were great heroes and they job was active and if i chose this career I wouldn't be sitting at a desk. I can go out and help kids which is my main goal. I don't want a career that I'm going later to regret. I was planning to be a nurse after I graduated high school because I always thought the medical field was the best for me. When Mr.Hoshida my English teacher told us to do research on social work I was super excited and had a positive mindset that i would be even more convinced of my major. I was hoping to see good cases and really touching so tires online.

Reflection after Research: 

But after doing research I actually found that I can be a social worker in a hospital. Not many good reviews on being a social working. Looking through articles all I found was bad things and cases of children dying because of the social workers having to many case loads. That really scared me an article from the New York times interviewed a social worker who had 17 cases at a time. And the sad part was that the kids were being hurt or abused and sometimes the judge would disagree with their opinion. They deal with a lot. I got disappointed due to the research I found because it all was so negative. I knew their had to be somewhere I could find some good in the career of a social worker. I found an article of a man who attended a conference for social worker and he was really appreciative of this one social worker named Kimberley Hall. And due to her work in children many of them them graduated high school. Her story really touched me. I know most media likes to show the bad in stuff and not the good but I had to dig to find some good stuff. I had an interview with a social worker through emails and she inspired me to keep gong because she explained to me that she moves what she does. She sees her results in children and her work. I don't want to give up just yet I feel this career would be for me I have a big heart for kids.