This past week I was only in the
office for half of the week because I was pretty sick with a cold or sinus
infection. The two days that I was in
the office, I attended my usual meetings, children’s group, and then did some
research around substance abuse. My
supervisor has mentioned that volunteers need more training around how to
assist clients who have mentioned that they abuse a substance while working on
the crisis line, and I believe this is good information to know anyways.
This week was rewarding because I
have grown closer with the other interns at my placement and I feel like part
of the team. I also found it rewarding to
learn more about substance abuse and how different drugs affect people, as well
as some of the symptoms of withdrawals that individuals face. It was very interesting, and I think this
will be useful in any aspect of my life.
Some challenges I faced this week
were being sick and not being able to do anything for a few days, as well as
managing a rambunctious group of kids.
In my group, there are two young boys who feed off of each others
behavior, and it causes chaos for everyone else in the group. The other facilitator and I have tried a few
different strategies to reign in the bad behavior but nothing seems to be
working so far (if anyone has any ideas, I’m open for anything!).
Levels of Practice
Throughout my time here at Sarah’s
Inn, I have noticed that my colleagues practice social work values by advocating
for our clients at the micro and macro levels.
Some advocates go with their clients to court or when they meet with
their lawyer; our legal advocates assist our clients to obtain orders of
protection as well as educate them about the legal system; and other staff
members track important pieces of legislation and educate the rest of the staff
so we can contact our representatives or create witness slips online.
Sarah-
ReplyDeleteI'm sorry you were sick for half the week- that must have really been awful. You took care of yourself though and did what you had to do to feel better. It is great that you are researching substance abuse outside of your usual daily task- that is a good topic to learn about and that information will help you in any type of social work that you choose to go into. I am happy that you are becoming close with the other interns-I've also become close with the other intern at my placement, and I feel that I have learned a lot from her and we are becoming good friends :). For the two boys who feed off of each other's behavior- i would say keep trying different strategies- even ones you think may not work- you never know what could happen. I am glad that your agency is involved in all levels of practice, it is so important in social work to know what is going on on the micro,mezzo, and macro level because they are all connected and they all affect one another. Keep up the great work!!! :)
Sarah,
ReplyDeleteMaybe meditation activities could help, if you want more info there are links for these type of activities for kids, maybe they all could benefit from something that required them to place their attention elsewhere. Overall though, it's great to hear that your placement has multiple people working at different levels to assist clients. I'm sure your supervisor appreciates all they work you do and will continue to do as we head into the last few weeks!