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Hospice Social Work is something I've been interested in, It's quite a different role in Social Work. 

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Hospice Social Work is something I've been interested in, It's quite a different role in Social Work. 

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Five Things Hospice Social Workers Do for Patients and Families

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Working with Veterans & Military Families.
http://www.socialworktoday.com/archive/031513p12.shtml

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Military Social Work Info.

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Military service members, veterans and their families have special needs that may necessitate working with a social worker. For example, military personnel may be dealing with psychological and emotional disorders, including depression, anxiety and post-traumatic stress, especially if they have been fighting on the front lines of war. Families of veterans may be struggling with domestic violence, child abuse, substance abuse or suicide. Military social workers must be prepared for the complexity that comes with treating both active-duty and civilian clients who are part of military culture.

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What is Military Social Work?

Military social work is a specialized field of practice that provides necessary support and interventions to military personnel, retirees, their spouses and their dependents. Military social workers receive specialized training that allows them to serve the needs of military clients. They must understand the individual's role within military and veteran cultures and take the complex responsibilities of military personnel into account when making assessments. It's also important to know the Uniform Code of Military Justice and the history of military social work, as well as what is currently happening in the social work field.

Clinical social workers who work in a military setting must be prepared to address the mental, physical and emotional needs of military personnel. Clinical social workers must also be prepared to treat the needs of veterans from World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War and conflicts in the Persian Gulf and Somalia. Members of the Department of Homeland Security and the commissioned corps of the Public Health Service are also served by military social workers.

Individuals with a master's in social work are eligible for positions as commissioned officers in the military or military reserve. Job duties include providing direct services, such as counseling, crisis intervention and debriefing after critical events. Military social workers also plan and implement disease prevention and health promotion programs for service members, conduct research on social issues and assist in the training of medical personnel. Training for military social work includes access to the most current treatment approaches, the opportunity to consult with experts in the field and encouragement for professional growth through continuing education.

Military Social Work Jobs

The U.S. Army, Navy, Air Force and Marines use the services of both military and civilian social workers to provide social services and crisis intervention support. Some civilian military social workers help military service members and veterans through private practice, while others are employed by veterans' service organizations or other military-related agencies.

Social workers who work on base, in the field and in military hospitals help wounded personnel adjust to injury and reintegrate into military or civilian life. They also help facilitate their clients' ability to cope with a wide range of psychological and social issues. In addition to working with service members, military social workers provide general support for the family of active-duty service members.

Military bases for each branch of the military have Service Centers that are staffed with social workers and other types of human services professionals and volunteers. Services that are typically available for family members include individual and family counseling, financial management assistance, relocation support and services for family members with special needs.

In the U.S. , officers with the Social Work job title hold positions within the Department of Social Work, the Family Advocacy Program, the Community Mental Health Service, and the Alcohol and Drug Abuse Prevention and Control Program. Similar positions can be found in other military branches.

Become a Military Social Worker

Earning a master's degree in social work with a military social work concentration is the best way to prepare for a career working with service members and veterans. This specialization is available at several universities, including our partner the USC Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work, which offers coursework in military culture and military clinical practice as part of its MSW degree. The concentration also provides a range of field placement options that allow students to work directly with military populations.

Social workers who are trained to work in an advanced practice area such as military social work are eligible to earn an Advanced Practice Specialty Credential from the National Association of Social Workers ( NASW). Both the MVF-CSW (Military Service Member, Veterans and their Families - Clinical Social Worker) and the MVF-ASW (Military Service Member, Veterans and their Families - Advanced Social Worker) require a master's degree in social work and three years of professional military social work experience.

Further Reading

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Military social work is a specialized field of practice that provides necessary support and interventions to military personnel, retirees, their spouses and their dependents. Military social workers receive specialized training that allows them to serve the needs of military clients.

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https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.goodtherapy.org/blog/the-important-role-social-workers-play-in-mental-health-1214157/amp/

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Being a social worker is often a challenging, yet rewarding career. Social workers are responsible for helping individuals, families, and groups of people to cope with problems they're facing to improve their patients' lives. One aspect of this is teaching skills and developing mechanisms for patients to rely on to better their lives and experiences.

However, many social workers find that direct counseling of patients, families, and groups is only one aspect of their broader set of responsibilities. Social workers will often serve as liaisons between different institutions to assist patients and collaborate with other health professionals to ensure patient wellness. They will become familiar with, and refer clients to, community resources. Social workers address legal issues, such as assisting with hearings and providing testimony relating to their patients. They also engage in research, policy development and advocacy for services. And of course, social workers must maintain case history records and prepare reports. Social work can be the kind of job that requires a great deal of overtime, and separating the emotional aspects of the job from the duties required can be a difficult undertaking. But there are plenty of resources, including websites, books and social media users, that can offer great advice.

Skills

In dealing with the multitude of problems that social workers address, they must employ a variety of skills depending on the job that needs to get done. While some of these skills may be natural, many of them are honed while a social worker earns his or her bachelor's or master's degree. Below is a list of traits that a well-trained social worker might employ while assisting and guiding a client from o*net online.

Active Listening - Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.

Social Perceptiveness - Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.

Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.

Critical Thinking - Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.

Coordination - Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.

Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.

Service Orientation - Actively looking for ways to help people.

Writing - Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.

Complex Problem Solving - Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.

Judgment and Decision Making - Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.

Specializations

Within the field of social work, there are many different specializations and industries that professionals can pursue and focus on. While these different fields all require practitioners to show the cornerstones of social work: empathy, flexibility, and persistence, and respect for different circumstances; there are some skill sets and knowledge that social workers will need to utilize in order to become the as effective at their jobs as possible. Social workers can be required to aid with issues directly caused by trauma, disability, poor family circumstances, abuse, mental and emotional problems, addiction, and acute, chronic, or terminal illnesses. Some social workers prefer to focus their skills on one area of expertise by going into specific fields.

Family, child or school social work involves providing assistance and advocacy to improve social and psychological functioning of children and their families. These social workers attempt to maximize academic functioning of children as well as improving the family's overall well-being. These professionals may assist parents, locate foster homes, help to arrange adoptions, and address abuse. In schools they address problems such as truancy, bad behavior, teenage pregnancy, drug use, and poor grades. They also advice teachers and act as liaisons between students, homes, schools, courts, protective services, and other institutions.

Public health social workers are often responsible for helping people who have been diagnosed with chronic, life threatening or altering diseases and disorders, helping connect patients with plans and resources in order to help them cope. One of the most difficult things a person can go through is dealing with acute, chronic, and terminal illnesses and these social workers provide services to ease these patients' process. These services include advising family care givers, providing patient education and counseling, making referrals to other services, case management interventions, planning hospital discharge, and organizing support groups. These social workers are often employed at health care centers, assisted living homes or in hospitals.

Addictions and mental health social workers offer support and services to those struggling with unhealthy grounding techniques, connecting them with facilities that serve to teach healthier behaviors and get patients back on track. These patients often struggle with mental and emotional problems as well as addictions and substance abuse problems. Services that mental health and substance abuse social workers provide include individual and group counseling, intervening during crises, case management, client advocacy, prevention, and education. They also focus on counseling families to assist in understanding and dealing with the patient's problems.

Other Social Work Tasks

Accomplishing administrative duties and diligently completing paperwork are generally a requirement for social workers, no matter what their specialization is. Social workers are generally employed from 9-5, but those who offer emergency services in hospitals and other industries can also be assigned to shift work. For many social workers, outside visits and meetings are a constant challenge, as well as high case loads and understaffing. These obligations can often make it seem as though a social worker's job is never done, but the most successful professionals relish the challenge. Many social workers find that despite these obstacles and the difficulties presented by these strains, this field can be a very satisfying career path.

In case you're still unsure of what exactly a social worker does on a daily basis, peruse the helpful list of responsibilities and duties below, provided by o*net online, to get a better idea of what the job is all about.

Collaborate with other professionals to evaluate patients' medical or physical condition and to assess client needs.

Advocate for clients or patients to resolve crises.

Refer patient, client, or family to community resources to assist in recovery from mental or physical illness and to provide access to services such as financial assistance, legal aid, housing, job placement or education.

Investigate child abuse or neglect cases and take authorized protective action when necessary.

Counsel clients and patients in individual and group sessions to help them overcome dependencies, recover from illness, and adjust to life.

Plan discharge from care facility to home or other care facility.

Monitor, evaluate, and record client progress according to measurable goals described in treatment and care plan.

Identify environmental impediments to client or patient progress through interviews and review of patient records.

Organize support groups or counsel family members to assist them in understanding, dealing with, and supporting the client or patient.

What to Consider When Evaluating MSW Options

Online programs are designed for students who want to complete their education without the constraint of traditional classroom scheduling. When considering an online option, keep the following in mind:

1. Is the program accredited by the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE)? (Online MSW programs must meet the same CSWE accreditation standards as campus-based programs.)

2. Does the program offer the area specialization or concentration you want in addition to ample field placement opportunities in your area of interest?

3. Does the program offer on-campus or online research facilities, academic advising, classroom training, or internships?

Below you'll find a list of accredited schools that meet the above criteria and offer a number of quality degree options:
Click here to learn about more Social Work colleges

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Understanding the Role of a Social Worker

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Being a social worker is often a challenging, yet rewarding career. Social workers are responsible for helping individuals, families, and groups of people to cope with problems they're facing to improve their patients' lives. One aspect of this is teaching skills and developing mechanisms for patients to rely on to better their lives and experiences.