social work reflection examples

Schwartz, S., 1982. Reflection Risk assessments are an integral aspect of work with vulnerable people (Parry, 2013). 96-103. Social work has traditionally been constructed as the professional knowing best, and continues to be practised in a way where the practitioner holds most of the power (Holmes and Saleeby, 1993). Personal Reflection Of Social Work This aspect of partnership practice was and is very pertinent in the relationship between Alice and her social worker. JK had a long history of substance misuse and mental health problems. This case study has demonstrated the complexity and breadth of contemporary social work. Despite the dogged insistence of the dominant medical model discourse, contemporary evidence points to a causal link between social factors and a diagnosis of schizophrenia (Read, 2010). Woodcock Ross, J., 2011. Within the workplace, after receiving negative comments from a supervisor, the social worker should take the time to carefully consider these comments. Australian & New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry, 46(9), pp. This reminded me that I was more than capable of being an effective social worker. The background to this case study, and my involvement with him, will now be discussed. He had an allocated community psychiatric nurse (CPN) who would visit occasionally, and at times he also met with a psychiatrist. Knowledge and Skills Statement for Social Workers in Adult Services. Child and Family Social Work, 10(2), pp. Teater, B., 2014. I have printed out your article to reread so I can remind myself to self reflect. The new legislation was adopted into Company policy, statutory guidance makes it clear that there is an onus on employers to ensure that staff working in a housing environment are adequately trained in recognising signs of abuse or neglect, which includes self-neglect under the terms of The Care Act 2014 (Department of Health, 2014). `pIs3o+& &;`KAarYP/B%,{gZQ"_nt~u\X]Jet{=s(hglWN_. (2004) Dual Diagnosis in T. Peterson and A. McBride (Eds.) Throughout my social work education, the difference between the medical model and the social model of experiencing mental illness has been stressed to me, and I clearly saw this when working with JK. Holmes, G. and Saleeby, D. (1993) Empowerment, the Medical Model and the Politics of Clienthood, Journal of Progressive Human Services, 4(1), 61-78. 51-55. 1st ed. As a social worker, I hope to have a profession that involves helping children; being a school guidance counselor, a therapist, or possibly even being a social worker in the pediatric ward of a hospital. Change), You are commenting using your Facebook account. Karban, K., 2017. Even where social work is undertaken with the best of intentions, for example in anti-oppressive practice, there is a danger that the voice and knowledge of the service user is lost by the intervention of the expert practitioner (Wilson & Beresford, 2000). Challenging perspectives: Reflexivity as a critical approach to Opinions expressed on this site are the opinions of the writer and do not necessarily represent the views of the publisher. I am going back to school for Social Work. 1st ed. Example of Critical Reflective Log | Values and Reflective Thinking in Social Work: Learning from Student Narratives. As will become apparent, forms of oppression and discrimination are a vital aspect of Alices narrative, and for this reason I propose to apply Fook & Gardners (2007) model to my critical incident and the subject of my case study. Tew, J. Yip, K. (2006)Self-reflection in reflective practice: A note of caution British Journal of Social Work, 36(5), 777-788. Reflective practice is an essential skill for those working in health and social care, but why is it so vital and how can it be learned? Care and Support Statutory Guidance. Forenza, B. more than 2 years ago. Reflection on Group Activities Reflection is equally important in group tasks as in individual tasks. Thank you for sharing! Basingstoke: Palgrave MacMillan. Stephanie also advises young people to improve their situations and gives her professional consultations. These questions can guide the student in reflection before, during or after an interview with a client (Boud, Keough & Walker, 1985; Schon, 1987). The strengths perspective allows social workers to assess and identify talents, strengths, and skills within their clients. It asks the student to consider: How could I improve? What am I still working on? East Brunswick, NJ: Nichols Press. Brookfields areas of reflection can be adapted for social workers and implemented in several areas of field education. 3rd ed. Joe Farrell However, it soon became clear to me that the fast-paced working environment, where at times paperwork was promoted over practice, meant that reflection could potentially be ignored in favour of bureaucracy and targets (DCruz et al, 2007). It is essential that social workers have the confidence to question their own practice, the organisation that they work in, and dominant power structures in society at large (Fook, 1999). The social worker talked through the steps that needed to be taken by Alice and the support that she would need in order to achieve this goal, a process referred to as the amplification of personal agency (Parton & OByrne, 2000, p.60). I found this to be the case at times, when I was expected to write my reflections at a certain time, and have reflective supervision in a certain way. (1993) How we Think: A restatement of the relation of reflective thinking to the education process, Boston: Health Publishing. Beresford, P. & Wilson, A., 2002. Teater, B. Reflection can help increase students awareness of their own thoughts, feelings, and experiences and therefore build a greater capacity for empathy with clients. KW\Q>RMFV! 191-198. Reflections I was able to address issues that I saw and to offer interventions. Gibbs, G. (1988) Learning by Doing: A guide to teaching and learning methods, Oxford: Oxford University Press. However, I do not recall being instructed or advised to use the two collaboratively. What was challenging? Reflective Alice wishes to live independently and this is the preferred option for the social worker. Hall, C. & Slembrouck, S., 2009. i9-i26. When I worked with him, he lived in a housing project that was specifically meant to house ex-offenders. Social workers in England, London: HCPC. You have subscribed successfully. The group members develop feelings of mutual interdependence and a sense of belonging. Being from Nigeria originally, and coming from a different cultural background than myself, meant that I had to be particularly careful in applying theory to the work that I did with JK.However, it is also clear that practice cannot just be based on routine or habit, with no basis in evidence (Thompson, 2009). 1st ed. How can professionals support children and young peoples mentalhealth? British Journal of Social Work, 28(1), pp. A degree of scepticism about existing knowledge, beliefs and values. Norrie, C. et al., 2017. 241-259. Working with Substance Misusers: A Guide to Theory and Practice, London: Routledge. Anti-Oppressive Practice: Emancipation or Appropriation. You may be required to have a take charge attitude as an advocate for your clients. Our regional engagement leads (who are registered social workers), shared their views on peer reflection. Davis, A, (2007) Structural Approaches to Social Work in J. Lisham (Ed.) It can help students to analyze and integrate past and current knowledge into their practice. I noted this in my journal and tried to think, to be self-aware and to question as a first step towards reflecting on practice (Rutter & Brown, 2012, p. 30). We continuously evaluate our impact and benefit to service users. Leung, T., 2011. I then realized that I was being challenged to do things outside of my comfort zone, and when underperformed, I would lose confidence. From a postmodern perspective, practitioners should not seek to totally eliminate risk by a scientized, calculated approach because this is doomed to failure (Parton, 1998, p. 23). I would volunteer less and make myself appear less capable and unable to perform the task at hand. The Development of Reflective Practice in American Education. Reprinting & reuse, The Field Educator is published by the Simmons University School of Social Work. Reflection 1st ed. Goss, J., 2011. Thanks for writing this article. Reflective tool The physical scars on Alices body as a result of these experiences can be understood from a postmodern perspective as embodied manifestations of power and oppression (Tangenburg & Kemp, 2002). Social Work During Session A, the fact that I chose to explore JKs mental distress alongside the other issues that were going on in his life allowed me to identify that his physical health, including intense back pain that he has been experiencing, was having a substantial effect on his mental health, and I encouraged him to seek help and support with this. How we Think: A restatement of the relation of reflective thinking to the education process. Task: The Assessment Process The importance of recognising multiple perspectives and social contexts in a non-linear, fluid and multifaceted way leads to more bottom up practice that in turn empowers marginalised people by recognising and legitimising their experiences and voice (Fook, 2012; Graham, 2017; Parton & OByrne, 2000). Although I will discuss my involvement with JK more broadly,I will focus on one particular key working session that we had, where JK was most descriptive about all his concerns and the issues that were effecting him (session A). h27U0Pw/ For example, could my knowledge of Alices dysfunctional relationships in the past have resulted in me making assumptions about inherent personality traits? He was diagnosed with bi-polar disorder, and dealt with significant anxiety and depression. Fook, J., 2012. 291-307. I will also attempt to view Alices life, and my professional relationship with her, from a broader social work perspective. Dedicated to your worth and value as a human being! 987-1004. 15-25. Values and Ethics The way in which students articulated their perceptions of values and ethics in the field indicated that this Stephen Brookfield, a health educator, says: Critically reflective practitioners constantly research [their] assumptions by seeing practice through four complementary lenses; these lenses are: the lens of their own autobiographies, the lens of learners eyes, the lens of colleagues perceptions and the lens of theoretical, philosophical, and research literature. More time could have been spent on listening to JK and his perspective, rather than trying to fit him into a theory or model for the sake of evidencing my own case notes or reflective journals. If you need assistance with writing your essay, our professional essay writing service is here to help! Social Work Reflective Essay Reflection However, I could have made more of an effort to engage with them, or at least discuss with JK how much consultation he would like me to have with those other workers. British Journal of Psychiatry, 176(2), pp. Jessica Eslinger, MSW 43-52. Health Soc Care Community, Volume 26, pp. 207-216. Luckily there are many models which you can use to guide your reflection. (2010) An Introduction to Applying Social Work Theories and Methods, Maidenhead: Open University Press. British Journal of Social Work, Volume 43, pp. Reflection is a process of people exploring their understanding of what they are doing, why they are doing it, and the impact it has on themselves and others (Boud, 1999, p. 123). & Burke, B., 2006. Through active engagement with reflection, I was able to work with JK using an eclectic theory and knowledge base, but was also careful to note if JK was not comfortable with some aspects of my approach, and adjusted the approach accordingly. There are critics of the way reflection is promoted in current practice environments, with some bemoaning the cult following that has developed around reflection in the social work sphere (Ixer, 1999: 513). By this point, I was able to reflect on my performance, address the negative concerns that needed to be worked on, and highlight my positive attributes and moving toward them. Social Work: A Critical Approach to Practice, Practising Critical Reflection: A Resource Handbook. I am currently on placement in a Supported Housing Hostel for adults in Cambridgeshire. Thank you! (Brookfield, 1998, p. 197). Alices deteriorating mental health led me to conclude that her social worker needed to be informed of the situation. Maidenhead: Open University Press. 1st ed. In your role, youll engage with stakeholders and organizations to manage strategy, advocate for positive change and maintain relationships. Social Worker's Learning by Doing: A guide to teaching and learning methods. Do you have a 2:1 degree or higher? This more informal working setting was where he felt he could speak most openly to me. British Journal of Social Work, Volume 47, pp. [Online] Available at: www.parliament.uk/documents/fair-society-healthy-lives-full-report. Trevithick, P. (2012) Social Work Skills: A Practice Handbook, Maidenhead: Open University Press. If your specific country is not listed, please select the UK version of the site, as this is best suited to international visitors. British Journal of Social Work, 27(1), pp. The increasing influence of post-modern theory, which does not promote one paradigm over another, but focuses on the subjective nature of truth, has helped to alleviate these issues in social work to some extent (Fook, 2012). Free resources to assist you with your university studies! 2; )Is L@LL X.V? U? The asymmetry between the social worker and service user emphasises the need for the practitioner to be cognizant of the inherent power imbalance in the relationship (Leung, 2011). In virtually all cases the people that live at the project either have an underlying mental health condition or experience drug or alcohol misuse, often there are a combination of these factors. Reflection was particularly important when making the transition from university learning to the learning experienced in a placement setting. This type of critical reflection should be ongoing for social workers in practice, and to some extent it would be difficult to work in a complex setting like I was without being reflective. In this social work reflective log, I will focus on the social work. Except where otherwise noted, this work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike (CC BY-SA) 4.0 International License. JK clearly appreciated my anti-oppressive approach, where I tried to work with him in partnership, and he was always keen to know when we would meet next. What qualifies as a critical incident is not rigidly defined but the event should be important or significant in some way to the practitioner and should offer the opportunity for professional learning (Fook & Gardner, 2007, p. 77). Ixer (1999) recognises that focusing too much on assessing reflection can lead to a prescriptive approach to reflection that is uncompromising. Is there a schizophrenic language?. REFLECTIVE Social Work October 2011 However, these power dynamics cannot be ignored, and underline all social work practice.I acknowledged the inherent power dynamics from the inception of my interactions with JK. Maintenance of the Effect of Training in Communication Skills: A Controlled Follow-Up Study of Level of Communicated Empathy. I know what I need to do, but doing it regularly is tough. Alice showed me a scar on her right wrist and stated that she had tried to commit suicide in the past and was now experiencing suicidal ideation once again. Adopting this process has helped me to identify possible assumptions that I suspect I may have held. Rain: What didnt go well? There are several reflective models such as Rolfe et al. Therefore, social workers need to look at their own underlying assumptions, as well as dominant social narratives, in order to shape their holistic understanding and experience of a given incident. .HLNq 2Avv%%% w T-?(b`n1 There is a stigma attached to having a mental illness, and even when contact with services has ceased, that stigma usually persists (Miles, 2005). Supported housing for adults with psychiatric disabilities: How tenants confront the problem of loneliness. Reducing the gender pay gap: Could more women in STEM be theanswer? Social Workers However, it is essential that social workers do not become complacent in their personal reflection, and they cannot fall back on these types of guidance and procedures as a shield against engaging in reflection on complex ethical subjects (Banks, 2006). WebReflection involves thinking about what needs to be changed to improve future outcomes. WebAccountable: [the] social worker shouldnt be scared to ask for guidance and support. My vague sense of unease and concern about Alice and her general well-being crystalized early one morning as I arrived at work to find Alice upset and in tears in the communal lounge. WebThere is something called reflection and it has value, but it also has limits, which need to be understood if we are to achieve a deeper appreciation of the complex nature of social work practice, the demands the work makes on practitioners and the implications for service users. British Journal of Social Work, 45(1), pp. Working closely with JK over a period of several months supported me to be able to identify any issues quickly, and by the time I we were engaged in Session A, we had a good working relationship. British Journal of Social Work, 30(1), pp. Fook, J. Your subscription could not be saved. 705-722. Although I met his CPN and his drug worker, at no stage was a multi-agency meeting held that I was invited to. Critical Thinking and Professional Judgment for Social Work. This involves revisiting your prior experience and knowledge of the topic you are exploring. Lam, C. M., Wong, H. & Leung, T. T. F., 2007. However, I believe the key lesson that I take from my professional relationship with Alice is to try and show the same level of astonishing resilience and generosity of spirit that Alice has demonstrated throughout her life to the present day. (2012) Social Work: A Critical Approach to Practice, London: Sage. Department of Education, 2018. The Context of Risk Management in Mental Health Social Work. (2010) Getting Started in C. Knott and T. Scragg (eds.) The assessment stage typically involves: Collecting, organizing, and interpreting data. Modern Social Work Theory. Nerdrum, P., 1997. Ameican Educational History Journal, 40(2), pp. This is helpful in reconsidering an event, and determining whether something could have been done differently or better. McCarthy, T. and Galvani, S. (2004) SCARS: A new model for social work with substance misusePractice, 16(2), 85-97. Basingstoke: Palgrave MacMillan. Although I noted some areas I could have improved on in my interactions with JK, what was most apparent in my work with him was that my willingness to explore his paradigm and perspectives opened him up to engaging with me on a range of issues, that otherwise may have remained hidden. Specific guidelines are useful for field educators in encouraging student reflection. All work is written to order. Reflective In this example of a critical reflective log, I will focus on the social work PCF domain 2: Values and Ethics I will also draw on other domains such as values and ethics, rights, justice and economic well-being, critical reflection and analysis, diversity and knowledge. This assignment is based on my work with one particular resident who I will refer to using the pseudonym Alice. The diversity of roles within Alices network highlights the danger that various professions and agencies may assign different levels of priority or even conceptualisations to the arising issues (Hudson, 2015). The issues that social workers are engaged with, and that I have discussed here, do not only reflect the concerns of the service user, but are a reflection of the issues that are inherent in wider society (Davis, 2007). Boud, D., Keogh, R. &Walker, D. 553-573. Like this article? The concept of reflection: is it skill based or values?. Reflection: Turning experience into learning. The family had a lot of questions about the rehabilitation process and wanted to know what was going to happen for James. I want to be able to help people who need the help. Genes Spell Danger: Mental health service users/ survivors, bioethics and control. Developing and building self-awareness is important so you can recognise areas for improvement and identify your learning needs to make positive changes. During the course of this exchange Alice disclosed to me that she felt trapped, bullied by a member of staff and other residents, and that she was feeling utterly powerless with no hope of moving on from the hostel. This article aims to demonstrate being reflexive and doing reflexivity through reflection where, within the research, for example, the first author addressed the difference between meanings of research participants perceptions of their experiences and her own interpretations of the meanings. Did my upbringing, that instilled and encouraged a deference to authority and professional figures, blunt my critical faculties in relation to the care and support offered by individual staff members? This involves revisiting your prior experience and knowledge of the topic you are exploring. For this example reflective log, I will use Gibbs reflective piece to unpick the learning gained. The worker expressed a great deal of frustration at the lack of inter-agency communication, written or otherwise, and a failure to disclose key pieces of information.