Blog Entry 5: What Does The Research Suggest ( The Social Worker)

Oh where to begin? Perhaps I start big with the DCF and work inward. The DCF is sadly plagued with issues. Suffolk university did a study on DCF conditions and took the raw statements of workers, and the results were...terrifying. In some cases, the offices are not suitable for living in let alone dealing with small children and high stress situations in. One worker at the offices in Leominster Mass stated  “cockroaches scurried across the same floor that babies crawl on during supervised visits with their parents. The office walls are “punched through, and the social workers sit in closets, the worker wrote. “Shameful.” With the DCF lawyers being given 100 cases instead of the recommended 60 and social workers being saddled with 5 more cases than even legally allowed, there are bound to be significant issues. The Office of the Child Advocate, an organisation that oversees the DCF polled social workers and this is what they found: Workers were suffering from “PTSD for fear that something could happen on their caseloads” and “ More than two-thirds of social workers said their job had caused them emotional or mental instability – and of those, 45% had taken time off work as a result.” According to the polls moral was dropping yearly, and management was not trusted. With issues like this, how could the social workers do their best? answer, they couldn't. There are so many studies I could site, so many facts to say, so many issues that left me in shock that I don't know where to turn. With studies about social worker say that “85% said public criticism of their job had stopped potential new recruits entering the profession, 95% admitted that the increased pressure meant children's health and safety was at risk because social workers were having to make key decisions based on insufficient information, and 70% of those questioned admitted having been unable to protect a child because of the constraints of their job, I simply have to stop and reevaluate life.” Raw facts are all well and good, but they are nothing without the words of the individual person. They cover a breadth of information, but an individual's testimonial provides the depth and personal connection that makes something like this worthwhile. While I could not actually interview any social worker, I have the next best thing. I discovered that if I find an article on this subject and scroll to the bottom, social workers are commenting and having entire conversations at the in the comments section. There seems to be a consensus that there are deep seeded issues in the system, in the words of one person “I’ve worked in many settings in my career and virtually without fail, administrators are out of touch or simply not qualified to supervise/manage social workers. I have a great deal of difficulty with the fact that some high school graduates have higher incomes, better benefits, less stress on the job (eg. no threats; bodily injury), have no CEU/licensure/malpractice insurance expenses. I have friends and acquaintances who are changing career directions and leaving the field altogether. As a famous man once said, “Houston, we have a problem.” In the words of another social worker “ I see a lot of stressed out/ burned out social workers, and if anyone says otherwise then they are kidding themselves. When I see these social workers, I pray that isn’t the future I’m headed for.” Things like this give validity to the facts, and in reality it is the words of a real person that will stick with you for years to come because they carry an emotion that one cannot forget. I could go on for days on this topic and someday I will, but for now I must move on and talk about some of the effects on the children themselves.

Lahey, Jessica. "Every Time Foster Kids Move, They Lose Months of Academic Progress." The Atlantic. Atlantic Media Company, 28 Feb. 2014. Web. 11 Oct. 2015. <http://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2014/02/every-time-foster-kids-move-they-lose-months-of-academic-progress/284134/#disqus_thread>.

Kools, Susan, and Christine Kennedy. "Medscape Log In." Medscape Log In. Medscape, 2003. Web. 11 Oct. 2015. <http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/449673_4>.

"National Association of Social Workers." National Association of Social Workers. NASW, Sept. 2004. Web. 11 Oct. 2015. <http://www.socialworkers.org/pubs/news/2004/09/perceptions.asp?back=yes>.

Hill, Amelia. "Children at Risk Because of Pressure on Social Workers, Research Finds." The Guardian. The Guardian, 6 Oct. 2010. Web. 11 Oct. 2015. <http://www.theguardian.com/society/2010/oct/06/overworked-social-workers-children-risk>.

Lips, Dan. "Foster Care Children Need Better Educational Opportunities." The Heritage Foundation. The Heritage Foundation, 5 June 2007. Web. 11 Oct. 2015. <http://www.heritage.org/research/reports/2007/06/foster-care-children-need-better-educational-opportunities#_ftn9>.

Admin. "Social Work: Low Pay, High Stress | Social Workers Speak." Social Work: Low Pay, High Stress. Social Workers Speak, 2 Nov. 2009. Web. 11 Oct. 2015. <http://www.socialworkersspeak.org/cheers-and-jeers/social-work-low-pay-high-stress.html>.

Madrael. "CNN Reports Social Work Is the Most Stressful Overworked and Underpaid Job." The Madrigal Maniac. The Madrigal Maniac, n.d. Web. 11 Oct. 2015. <http://www.madrigalmaniac.com/2009/11/19/cnn-reports-social-work-is-the-most-stressful-overworked-and-underpaid-job/>.

Levenson, Michael. "DCF Workers Deal with ‘shameful’ Office Conditions." BostonGlobe.com. Boston Globe, 31 Mar. 2015. Web. 11 Oct. 2015. <https://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2015/03/31/dcf/vi7CKCiGrlOHQRrAwb0NGJ/story.html#comments>.