In the healthcare sector, there are numerous people at work. While you have doctors and nurses to help patients, social workers are also essential. As a social worker, you’ll meet with patients and families to ensure all their needs get met. You also want to know if the family is following a proper insurance plan. Similarly, you want to know that the family didn’t face any abuse while getting treatment. Every patient’s case is unique. You need to pay attention to each case slowly. However, if you’re interested in social work, we have laid down a few guidelines. You may find what it is about social work that stands out and makes you want to pursue it professionally. Here’s what you need to know:
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Conduct A Patient Assessment
When doctors administer care, they only know about the patient’s ailments, symptoms, and a basic understanding of their family history. However, when a social worker meets a patient, the situation is different. Social workers assess a patient’s needs first. They need to know how the patient felt physically, mentally, and emotionally about the treatment. They’re also not afraid to deep dive into finances. A social service worker will also talk to a doctor to make sense of the treatment plan. If the patient needs extensive help, they’ll talk to their family to give them appropriate support.
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Work In The Community
If you want to be a social worker, you need to get a degree under your belt. There are plenty of programs available such as the online masters social work, that can help you pursue your career. With the self-paced learning environment, you wouldn’t want to miss out on such opportunities. Social workers weave themselves into communities, with the purpose behind community engagement is to find out where the healthcare system is lacking. The information they collect is necessary to allow them to convince policymakers to get more funding. It also helps them decide why some communities are suffering health-wise and others are doing well.
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Connect People To a Help
Social workers see drug abuse and substance abuse first hand. They get to witness the toll it has on families on the person. They understand that if these people don’t get help, they can become a hazard. Indulging in substances takes away your inhibitions. Abusers may share syringes, alcohol and even practice promiscuity. When there is sharing of body fluids through dangerous means, it can cause a wave of diseases. If the person abuses substances while pregnant, they can pass on the infection to their children. Conditions such as Hep C and AID are lethal. They can take a toll on a person’s immune system.
Social workers help such people get the appropriate help and get into rehab. Unless they administer care, they may put a burden on the healthcare sector.
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Intervene For Abused Children
Abuse has varying degrees and, in some cases, may have heavy abuse elements in them, while some may be mild. Social workers always take children to an ER first. It is essential to know how deep the injuries go. Social workers also need to know if the assault was limited to physical injuries or was also sexual. Children who come from abusive homes may not readily accept help. They need a social worker to help calm them and explain the situation to them. The process may require a few days of counseling. The healthcare industry cannot go out of its way to pluck these children. So social workers ensure that people who need help find it. They also ensure these children are getting treated for the mental scars they may harbor. When they’re sure these children get treated, they go into safe foster homes.
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Advocate For Mental Health
Social workers see some of the worst mental health cases. They know how important it is to administer mental health counseling. If we ignore our depleting mental health condition for long, it can get worse. Our body starts shutting down when it’s working on maximum stress and in poor conditions. Mental health counseling helps people get the help they need. It prevents people from getting into drugs or self-injuries or falling back onto vicious cycles. For the healthcare system, advocacy is essential. It contains the industry collapsing under the weight of numerous mental health cases. Mental health is also one of the most complex cases since human psychology is still under research.
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Prevent Addiction
Prescription pills are addictive. While it’s a doctor’s job to provide you with medications, sometimes it can get out of control. Social workers can help hospitals realize how they’re contributing to the drug crises invariably. They may suggest hospitals keep a close eye on who they’re prescribing pills. They may put pharmacies under strict control to not allow high dosage pain killers to get filled by the bottle. They need a strict rule on how much people use painkillers and put a gap between each dose.
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Help Sexual Assault Victims Get Help
Sexual assault leads to many complications. The person may have internal injuries, diseases or may have conceived a child. Unless appropriate help gets administered, people may get desperate. Desperation doesn’t end well. It can cause more infections and problems for people. They may get illegal abortions, steal pills or try treating their wounds at home. Hospitals can guide sexual assault victims to appropriate help. These people can go under proper counseling and treatment to avoid aggravating their condition further.
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Help People Collect Funds
Not everyone is on insurance. However, there are still people who need extensive treatments and aftercare. By helping people collect funds, social workers can help people get appropriate treatment. They can also help these families tap into hidden financial resources that they can use in the future. Social workers can create social awareness on what communities need charities and funding for healthcare. Education gets a conversation going. The conversation is essential to ensure that people get educated on what we are fighting in society.
Wrap Up
Social workers play a pivotal role in the healthcare industry. They help people find the assistance and proper healthcare they need. In addition, they help ease the burden on the health sector by helping patients who need help. The healthcare sector is up against many challenges. Social workers can ensure that by taking care of people appropriately, they can keep from passing away. Communities are struggling against the weight of many infectious diseases. It is only by acknowledging and treating them that the burden of the healthcare system gets lifted. Finally, social workers can also educate the healthcare sector on who they’re contributing to the crises.
