ARE YOU A CHEERLEADER?IF NOT BE ONE!

As a Social Worker, sometimes I just tell people I am your cheerleader. Wanting the best possible outcome in a bad situation. May not win the game of life but will do the best! No one can be happy, happy, happy all the time! But one can look as if there are happy things in life. So what is a cheerleader! Well there are at most sports games. Some squads are actually quite incredible with lifts and flips and pyramids. So no I am not that kind of cheerleader, I would hurt myself! Just the kind that honours and listens to the problems in the day. Find the right resources for the person. Smile. Acknowledge. Check in! Families have cheerleaders. The favourite aunt or uncle. The favourite family friend. The neighbour that gives a little! Sometimes just being there when needed. So are you a cheerleader? Or do you need one? What are your thoughts?
#cheerleader#life#socialworker

SOCIAL WORK ON THE CUTTING EDGE

With all the modern technology, feelings and needs do not change. If anything with cyber bullying, and other difficulties the Internet has brought, the increase in people problems means the skills and knowledge of social workers helping others in social situations will not end. Understanding the profession and what it entails is considerable. If you want more information, simply visit the College in your province. In Ontario, it is the College of Registered Social Workers and Social Service Workers. In order to call oneself a Social Worker by law, one must be registered with the College. The public is protected meaning that the values, standards and expertise must meet the requirements of the College. It has been a great Social Work Week. An honest time to celebrate one of the many valuable professions in Health and Social Services that serve the public. At the very least, acknowledge your friendly Social Worker!

SOCIAL WORK EDUCATION CELEBRATES 100 YEARS AT THE UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO

October 29th- What an amazing night! I attended the opening of the Special Exhibit at the Royal Ontario Museum entitled " Classroom to Community: A Century of Social Work in Toronto." Entering through the new doors on Bloor Street, a stringed Quartet was playing music to set the mood. Food stations, wine and conversation were the hit of the evening. Speeches of course thanking and acknowledging generations of Social Workers. Cheryl Regher once Dean of the Faculty is now the Provost for the University. Honouring the work accomplished in the city by Social Workers is written  in a book given to everyone who attended. Lots of historical pictures and text. The Faculty is now called- Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work due to a large donation by Factor-Inwentash to promote research and excellence in social work practice. Masters, Doctorate and post doctorate courses are the norm. There are combined degrees of Social Work and Law as well as Social Work and a MBA. Being with a room full of Social Workers was rewarding. Being asked by very young students- are you still working was challenging. They were younger than my daughters!! The fun of being downtown with the ambiance and lights, travelling home by subway to be picked up at the Finch station by my husband reminded me of my young days as a student. Hard to believe it will be 40 years in the spring since I graduated from the Faculty. I plan to take my granddaughter for a ROM visit and to see the exhibit to show her what her Nana did in her youth. Reflection of an education is always a good thing!!

NANA SAYS LISTEN TO THE SUGGESTIONS OF EXPERTS

Children and teenagers with learning disabilities, special needs or complex issues need a different approach than other regular kids. In Ontario, if there is a special learning plan then the child is allowed different concessions. For example, if there are visual issues and the child needs a test orally then it can occur so the knowledge can be tested accurately. Some individuals may need more time to complete a test. Expressing feelings through art and music many help the child to explore and process any emotional issues. Children who have experienced PTSD may manifest the difficulties through diminished results on school work. The emotional piece over rides the learning. Friends and family may be helpful but they can also be detrimental. A friend with a special needs child may give false advice by saying- in my situation all the experts were stupid! Whether you like it or not, the psychologist, special education teacher and social worker or whoever else is involved are on the side of the child to try to find ways to enhance the school experience. Let yourself be part of the team-you are the parent knowing your child best. It can be exhausting trying to manage the situation alone. Yes a diagnosis helps with a plan. Each child with a similar diagnosis needs a different approach that meets the individual needs. It is a struggle but taking the route with expert help takes the pressure off- you are not alone.

EVERYONE'S A THERAPIST

As a trained Social Worker-Therapist, it is always interesting how many people think they can do what I do. Speaking to, giving advice and knowing the right answer is not therapy. It is speaking and giving advice. In my current employment, there are many times when providing resources to a patient and/or family, there is minimal clinical depth. Other times there is a real therapeutic process occurring. Counselling is not just talking. It is a skill that comes with training, experience and continued learning. There are different theoretical bases, types of counselling and modes of intervention. Crisis counselling is different from relationship,adjustment and family counselling. Often issues are recognized but can not be addressed as a discharge is all that is being discussed. Trying to fix a family's dysfunction is not the problem of the team. Friends in social circles think they can counsel and fix their friends. Stay friends! Be a good friend but do not ever think you are a therapist! Even work colleagues think they should try to fix each other! As a therapist, my view is very clear- fix yourself first! Projecting your own issues on others, keeps the spotlight off you is a nice decoy! Be a good work colleague- kind and supportive! Remember not everyone is a therapist and does not have the same skill and professional boundaries needed to respect you and your issues. If you need a good therapist, ask your friendly Social Worker who can recommend one for you!

CANADIAN HEALTH CARE AND OUR NURSES

As Nursing Week is ending in Canada, I thought about some considerations of the ideas and events of the last week. One nursing speaker asked the audience what made a good day at work. My response as I was one of 3 people that actually put up my hand and answered the question was the chance to work in a health care setting with so many wonderful staff and many of them are nurses. As a Social Worker, my role is a secondary, supportive one to the team. Primary medical and nursing care are the norm in a hospital setting. Counselling, bereavement, resources, team support, discharge planning and many miscellaneous tasks and processes are the standard requirements for many social workers in health care settings. So what makes a good work day for me- when I am challenged by complex cases and situations, when I am able to console and counsel a patient/family in a difficult situation and when I witness the appreciation that many of our families show for the staff. The hospital setting is complex with many different programs and services. It hums! But it saves lives or gives compassionate care at the end of life and everything in between! I am hoping I will be able to end my career in this hospital setting. I work at York Central Hospital in Richmond Hill, Ontario, Canada. It is an amazing thriving setting. As for our Nurses, I hope they enjoyed their special week! Do you have a favourite hospital? Have you had an experience with a nurse that was memorable? Are we the best health care system in the world? Perhaps,but it is the one I know and I try to work every day to put it on the road to being the best. If you work in health care, what are you doing to ensure Canada ranks the best in the world? What do you bring to your job? If you are not a nurse, congratulate the nurses in your area for the fine work they do!

SOCIAL WORK WEEK

What a fun week to celebrate the profession I have chosen. An open house, a luncheon, sweatshirts and giving out gift bags to all the units the social workers provide care and support. Do you know a Social Worker? Well, remember to celebrate the profession. You can find social workers in hospitals, schools, welfare agencies, protecting abused children and women, in mental health clinics and units, as family and marital therapists, on trauma teams- just to name a few places and roles. The theme in Ontario this year is getting people back on track! If you need some assistance getting someone back on track call your nearby Social Worker. Yeah- Happy Social Workers' Week!

THE CHALLENGE OF WRITING A BLOG

This is blog 501. It has been an adventure to find ideas and themes to keep writing. The advice of other bloggers is to write every day. It is such good advice as it creates a discipline of blogging. Wednesday is easy- now it is my Nana says theme. Sunday too- with a Postcard From! The other 5 days bring many challenges and sometimes a photo I took weeks ago with a blog idea in mind which can finally be used. Since I can follow how many pageviews occur on each blog and who in the world is reading me, I am constantly amazed at the the blogs with the most "reads". People in the world are interested in the down to earth Canadian themes I have written. Yes, not regularly but I have had readers from every continent. There are regular readers not only from Canada and the United States but Germany and Russia. So to those readers thank you for visiting. Writing advice from years ago states to write about what you know. Trying to be an expert on everything, well it does not work. Some of my clinical blogs have responses on my private email. Some people have complained they can not comment so email me your comments or find me on facebook and comment there. I will add your comments to the blogs. As most of you know, I love Narrative Therapy which using your story to help to reflect and honour your strengths. Thus I want to hear and know and think about your reactions and real thoughts to any blog. Do they conjure up ideas and thinking?
As a clinical Social Worker, I always want to reach others who may be struggling with a problem and need some guidance to find the right person or resouces to help. Even the right book! Like my favourite- A Grief Observed by C.S. Lewis on his journey with his grief after his beloved wife died.
I love blogging as it helps me to consolidate many areas and interests in my life. I hope you have enjoyed reading and sharing with me. Are there any favourite blogs you have enjoyed? Tell me. Are there themes you would like me to consider for you and your group? What do you want to know about Canada and this Canadian? Are there parenting or family issues you are seeking guidance? Crafts, gardening, photography can be used to work with problem areas in your life-they work for me! So please keep on reading and helping me to challenge myself to write!

INSPIRATION IN RUSSIAN

A Russian born colleague gave me a chocolate bar when she was leaving the job. She told me the title means Inspiration and it was very good Russian chocolate. She wanted me to know I was the best Social Worker she had ever had on a team and as a person. I inspired her. The gesture was very sweet but also very humbling for me. To know I had inspired her made my day. In my life, there have been people who have inspired me. Inspiration can mean a force on poets, artists, musicians, stimulating creative activity, excited thoughts etc. Thank you to my colleague for such an acknowledgegment. Have you inspired someone? Have you been inspired by someone? Are there events in your life that have lead to creative endeavors? Do you recognize others need to create and allow for those moments? Inspiration- a noble virtue! Let's have more of it around us!

THE RESCUE SYNDROME

Exists in many different circles. No matter how much is done for someone there always seems to be more needed. Helping those to help themselves is adherent in my profession. However, if there are unfixable chronic items, the focus is on the areas that can be assisted. What could be chronic- old age, empty nest, illness that is debilitating, etc. If you feel sorry for someone then the line is crossed. Everything is not fixable! My dilemma comes working with some individuals who think they alone can fix everything in the patient's, family's and friends' lives. Do you think it can be annoying? Is it fun to work beside a constant crusader for everything- Not! A good clinician regardless of the field, knows clinical boundaries and works with the team to determine a good treatment plan. Frankly, in most situations there are few solutions to any problem and a team consensus works well. We have all worked for micromanagers who must be involved in every detail of the team's undertakings. We have had or know of a mother or father who must control and be involved in every aspect of their child's life. Marriage has rescuers. Friendships have rescuers. After awhile the rescuer starts to notice how people pull away. Everyone likes the opportunity to figure out what needs to be done. The good therapist is a facilitator, not a solution adviser and a takeover champion! The rescuer always tries to make others feel guilty because no one's efforts are quite as good! Actually, I find it boring! I like my work where a person can be heard then perhaps guided to find solutions for life that work for that person not what I think should work. My efforts are just an instrument not the be all and end all! I question where does the need to rescue originate? Why does the rescuer not trust others to assist with the solutions? What is quite funny is Social Work has the reputation of trying to save the world! Actually, a good Social Worker works with their client group to assist, direct, encourage a course of action but does not rescue! What is needed is assessed and what are chronic issues are filtered! Are you a rescuer? Do you like that role? Do rescuers annoy you? Do you ever play helpless so you can be rescued?

YOUR KNIGHT IN SHINING ARMOUR

Are you a knight in shining armour? Do you try to rescue people when needed? It's not just in fairy tales or the Middle Ages long epic poems that find people that rescue us- our doctors, teachers, nurses, police and fire people, military personnel, parents and even the odd social worker or 2 can be our modern heros. They get paid anyway. There are so many ordinary people in our lives and world that make a difference for the good. It does not have to be anything too special or over the top. Kind words to the store clerk, a good morning when encountering someone near your home, holding the door for that gentleman with his arms full, well you get the picture! Make sure you are a good Knight and not a Black Knight! Do good more often because you don't want the armour to get rusty!