Inserting thoughts into brains one child at a time!

I love the work that I do. I love what the role stands for in general. Caring for the underserved and disadvantaged populations of the world. Taking a non-judgemental stance when working with people and analyzing their big picture and empowering each and every person. Listening to the client and hearing what it is they need as opposed to what the "system" believes that they need. These are the fundamental characteristics of social work, and for the most part they are transferable from the US to the UK. Beyond those basic ideas that this work is predicated on, there is little that is the same. I have wanted for some time to write about the major differences between social work in the US and social work in the UK. Many of my colleagues and the student social workers ask me if it is very different....and the truth is, it REALLY is incredibly different.

First off social work in the UK is almost entirely associated with Child Protection. Part of the struggle in my current role, is trying to reduce the stigma that is associated with being a social worker in this country. While there is a stigma that is similar in The States, i.e. if you are a social worker, your job is to take people's children away, it is much more pronounced here. You even say the words "social worker" and you can watch people shifting their weight in their chairs and tensing up almost instantly. At one meeting, I introduced myself to about 50 parents, one of them expressed fears that I was going to "put thoughts in their child's head". As irrational as that may sound, I respect her fear as it has been fostered over many years of media vomit about the shortcomings of social service in this country. I really can't stress enough how much people genuinely HATE social workers here. Several of my schools have even asked "can we tell families that you are something other than a social worker?" I politely say "no you may not". If I wasn't called a social worker, and families actually began to trust me and realise that I am not some malevolent villain, how would the perception of social workers ever change? Not to mention I worked my a** off to get to where I am and I earned the title!

As some of you reading this may know, social work in the States is actually quite clinical... hence the title "Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW)". In the States, social work is arguably the most versatile graduate degree one can have. You can work in a hospital, a prison, an outpatient clinic, a rehab, a school... the list goes on. But in each of these posts there is some level of therapeutic work going on. Particularly in schools. In every school across America, Elementary, Middle, and High School, there is a social worker doing some sort of work that at least has clinical components. Here, in the UK, there are not social workers in every school. Schools actually have to "buy" a social worker from the local government and they are not in the same school every day. They bounce from school to school, being at each only one day per week. That, of course, has it's ups and downs. I like having a different atmosphere every day, but it is incredibly difficult to sustain relationships with parents, children, and school staff when only seeing them one day a week.

Another major difference is that in the UK they have 7 different people in 7 different positions to do the job that 1 social worker does in the US. In every school they have a Home School Support Worker, a Learning Mentor, a Behaviour Support worker, an Attendance Welfare Advisor, a Special Education Needs Coordinator, a Child Protection Lead, and a school Counsellor. In the US one social worker does the jobs of all of these people. You can imagine that for families it can be frustrating to have involvement with so many different members of staff. It has been difficult for me as well, as I am trying to solidify for myself and for the schools what exactly my role is. There is so much overlap with these other workers that it can get very confusing and has sometimes left me asking the question "why did this school even ask for a social worker"?

The truth is, a social worker is really the only person out of the aforementioned group that is qualified to do all of those jobs..., and from the way that senior management has been talking lately, I think they are attempting to make a shift towards putting a social worker in every school and try to slowly get rid of some of the other positions.

Even in other positions, other than schools, social workers are basically, what we know in the US to be, glorified case managers. Basically just assessing and making outside referrals, making sure files are up to date, etc. For example, even in Community Mental Health Teams, there are many social workers, none of whom are doing any direct provision of mental health treatment, which I find quite shocking. They are basically "assistants" to the psychologists and therapists. In the US, in settings such as these, social workers and psychologists work side by side, doing the same exact therapeutic work.

I feel very fortunate to have acquired the position that I did because there is so much opportunity for autonomy and for my own interpretation of the role. I have made it very clear that mental health is my interest, and I feel certain that the schools are understanding the type of work that I am capable of doing. I actually just received a referral yesterday for a mom who is suffering from severe panic attacks and her GP (General Practitioner, aka what we know as a family doctor) is doing nothing to help her. The school, knowing my background and training, directed her to me for treatment. I am hoping that those are the sorts of things that I will continue to do within the schools, because that is what I love. And I certainly didn't go to school for six long years to be a case manager! Again, I think my previous experience played a huge part in why I was actually hired...a qualified social worker that was trained completely different from every other in this country.

Well, all of this should give you some idea of what I'm talking about when I say "It's VERY different!" And now, I must head to my wonderful job for the day and then come home and pack to get ready for GERMANY TOMORROW!!! Woot Woot!!!!

I'll be sure to let you in on all of the crazy details when I return! Happy Easter everyone, and I hope you have a great holiday weekend!

P.s. Yes Dad, relax, I will get you a damn Harley Davidson t-shirt from the motherland!