Disability & Social Work

Within my graduate program and my work as a para in a school, I have been reflecting on disability and social work frequently. I am thinking about how often social workers interact with individuals who have a disability and how well prepared are social workers. It is what lead to my choice of a research topic and is also impacting what I think my capstone topic will be focused on. I think about social work and disability specifically within child welfare as that is my focus area.

I have a sister with disabilities and I have thought about what kind of social worker I would want to interact with her. I also know from working in a school that on a few occasions when a social worker came in to talk to a student with disabilities they didn't know how to interact or assess because the student was non-verbal. This is where I feel growth is needed. Social workers need to be creative in looking for ways to still communicate, assess, and engage with individuals. I would recommend asking to observe in the classroom and how they interact. I would also ask to interview paras in the classroom and the classroom teacher. Ask what staff that student interacts with the most or connects with best and interview those people. As social workers, we need to be comfortable thinking outside the box to get our job done and done well. What is best for an individual to meet their needs. I have also had other experiences in my practicum of social workers not knowing how to work with individuals with disabilities both adults and children.

I know social workers, especially in child welfare,  are overworked but this is not an excuse to simply give up on interviewing an individual who is non-verbal. Social workers are not alone to blame for this. Those who educate and train social workers need to step up on providing training and resources to help social workers do better. Social workers need support to be able to do well in their job. I want to see more research done asking social workers what they need, more research on what individuals with disabilities need from social workers, and what families need social workers to know. Perhaps in the future, I can help achieve this. Right now is not the time but who knows what the future will hold.