Paper Related to the Interrelationship of the Three Levels of Practice

Paper Related to the Interrelationship of the Three Levels of Practice Capri L. Jackson Wayne State University SW 3010 Practice Methods I October 22, 2012

Paper Related to the Interrelationship of the Three Levels of Practice In this paper I will demonstrate my beginning understanding of the importance of all three levels of practice and the way the different levels of practice overlap and contribute to the

overall practice of social work. My paper will be based on case 5, Carla Fights the System, by Mary Anne Poe. Throughout this paper I will identify the value and ethical dilemmas and how they might be addressed, along with the overlap of all three levels of macro, mezzo and micro social work practice. In discussing and addressing these matters, I will also answer a series of additional questions that will help to clearly understand the current situation within this case. Carla Hudson is a social worker with the Womens Resource Center (Poe, 2005). While working with her BSW in the social work field, she has been known to operate from a strengths perspective that empowers many women affected by violence to regain control of their own lives (Poe, 2005). Maria Velasquez, a 24-year-old Mexican-immigrant, is a new client that Carla will be assisting throughout the case. Maria has two children, ages 6 and 3, and has a long history of sexual abuse by her stepfather. She wedded at the young age of 18 to a black man named Rodney Johnson. He was enlisted in the U.S. Army which required Maria to relocate with him to Spain away from her family for over a year. Maria was not only being sexually and verbally abused by her husband, she was also having a hard time receiving assistance from Head Start. The challenge in this case is that Marias literacy skills were limited (Poe, 2005) and she does not have any family or other support group(s) to assist her. She could speak English, but could not read or write English. This particular challenge can have a great effect on special populations such as ethnic minorities and women. Not only does this affect Maria because she is a woman, but she is also a Mexican-immigrant, which could be considered as a special population group in the United States. It is important for social workers to have an understanding of what these special population groups face on a daily basis and how to assist them in

Paper Related to the Interrelationship of the Three Levels of Practice overcoming many barriers and challenges they encounter. Considering the fact that Carla was well acquainted with the experience of being a minority (Poe, 2005), as well as being a woman, she was more equipped as a social worker to deal with Marias case.

A macro/mezzo level change that I believe a micro level practice social worker might be faced with is being able to switch gears of focusing on a client in a one-on-one setting, to being able to deal with individuals in a group setting, as well as being able to advocate for a client on a government level. In Marias case, Carla was already prepared to deal with Marias dilemma. On a mezzo level, she was experienced and well versed in group settings. Though Carlas primary job was to respond to crisis calls on a more micro level, she was able to start a group for these women whom she had worked with individually and bring them together as one. Although Maria was Carlas first Spanish-speaking client, she was able to assist Maria with the difficulty of the overwhelming paperwork necessary for Maria to receive supportive assistance. Carla was able to take on the role of a macro level social worker which in turn allowed her to advocate for Maria when it came to communicating with another government agency/program, Head Start. In reviewing chapter 1 of the text, it can be noted that macro events involve peoples transactions with large organizations and systems around the individual in the macro social environment (Kirst-Ashman, Karen & Hull, Grafton H., 2009). Thus, social workers must focus their assessment on many levels. Carla displayed many characteristics of a macro level social worker. Carla was able to assist Maria at the DHR office and upon Marias return to the shelter after she came back for the second time. She was able to connect Maria with a local relief agency that helped in the security of an apartment and a car. It wasnt too long after where Maria was able to receive Section 8. Carla continued to put her macro practice skills into

Paper Related to the Interrelationship of the Three Levels of Practice play by assisting Maria with help from legal services to obtain a divorce from her husband, Rodney.

The biggest change that Carla had to pursue for the benefit of her client was her approach in dealing with Head Start, a government agency/program, which seemed to be giving Maria a very difficult time in obtaining assistance. Maria had been in dire need of assistance from Head Start in order to excel in her studies at the community college in which she was attending. After all, it was the duty of Head Start to provide educational assistance to parents of children in their program when the parents education or lack of education affected their children (Poe, 2005). Carla contacted Head Start and she was also unsuccessful in getting help for Maria from her current caseworker, Kristin. The caseworker, Kristin, seemed continually unresponsive to the difficulties that Maria experienced. When Carla realized what was going on, she decided to go to the director of the program. Kristin lied to the director to save face from the fact that she had not been assisting Maria properly. Marias case was sent to a new caseworker not too long afterwards and Kristin was no longer employed at the agency. In meeting with Andrea, Marias new caseworker, Carla found that her response was no different than that of Kristins. Carla clearly thought that there was an issue of discrimination within this agency and even considered contacting the Latino legal advocacy group in Montgomery, another government agency. Before identifying the value and ethical dilemma in this case, we must first understand what our own personal values as a social worker are and exactly what an ethical dilemma may include. According to the text, in order to achieve competency in ethical practice, we must steer clear of personal opinions by valuing the client-worker relationship. An ethical dilemma can be defined as a problematic situation in which ethical standards are in conflict (Kirst-Ashman, Karen & Hull, Grafton H., 2009). By understanding that each ethical dilemma is different, we as

Paper Related to the Interrelationship of the Three Levels of Practice social workers must be able to apply our strategies of ethical reasoning. Two core values from the NASW Code of Ethics that I feel would apply to this case are: the dignity and worth of a person and the importance of human relationships. In reading and studying case 5, I believe that the caseworkers at the Head Start agency did not value the dignity and worth of Maria. Andrea clearly stated in the case that she did not know what else to do for someone like Maria and that Maria wanted someone to do everything for her. She then goes on to say the following,

Theyre all like that. It was obvious that Andrea did not see Maria as an individual, but instead chose to categorize her based off of her own personal views and beliefs of this particular minority group. It seems as though no one in the Head Start agency tried to establish a clientworker relationship with Maria. This just goes to show how important it is for one to establish a good rapport with their client(s) so that they will have a better understanding of their clients need(s). It is also important to know the NASW Code of Ethics as a social worker in order to make the appropriate decisions for the client(s) that one services. At the end of case, Carla seemed to be in an ethical dilemma as to whether or not she should contact the director again, call the Latino legal advocacy group in Montgomery or simply look elsewhere for assistance for Maria. Carla seemed to be aware of the importance of the progression of her client, which is why she considered going to extreme measures by contacting the Latino legal advocacy group in Montgomery. She knew that she held an ethical responsibility as a social worker. I believe that if Carla would have eventually contacted the Latino advocacy group, this would have not only resolved Marias problem(s), but possibly the problem(s) of so man y others like Maria who may have been going through a similar situation. Another ethical principal that might help resolve the problem is being sure that we as social workers, along with many other professions that we will encounter when dealing with a client, is the importance of cultural

Paper Related to the Interrelationship of the Three Levels of Practice competency. Cultural competency is the set of knowledge and skills that a social worker must

develop in order to be effective with multicultural clients (Kirst-Ashman, Karen & Hull, Grafton H., 2009). I believe that if we are culturally competent, then we will have a better understanding of the different minority groups. We will also know how to be of better assistance to each one of their needs, seeing each client as an individual and not as a whole (viewing one person out of a group as though they are similar to someone else in the group because of race/ethnicity). I think it may have also been helpful for Maria to receive family counseling to possibly reconcile some issues that she had as a child regarding her mom (in her witnessing the sexual abuse) and growing up in an abusive home. Maria may also want to consider one-on-one counseling with Carla in regards to how her childhood experiences had an effect on her adult life and the decisions she has made over the years. I think it would be helpful for Maria to continue to go to the group sessions at the Womens Resource Center so that she is able to maintain the strong and confident attitude that she has gained over the months of attending the group. In the future, Maria may want to keep an eye on her children, watching for certain issues or behaviors that may surface due to the relationship she had with their father and things that they may have witnessed as small children. I think that it is important for Carla to suggest this as an option so that they can have an idea of what the children may be feeling about their parents separation. There should be regular visits with the dad as well, focusing on the child-father relationship that the children have with their dad. I believe that the dad should also have regular screenings to ensure that the children are in a safe environment when they go for visits. In conclusion, there is a lot that we can learn from this case. We must remember not treat everyones problems the same as we would our own or anyone elses. As social workers, we must realize that each ethical dilemma is unique. It is important to be open to the needs of our

Paper Related to the Interrelationship of the Three Levels of Practice clients and their family or support system. In order to do so, we must remember to sit our own

personal values up on the shelf, listen actively and advocate for our clients in every way possible. I believe that we can definitely gain a lot from Carlas actions in this case and the many hats that she wore as a micro, mezzo and macro practice social worker.

Paper Related to the Interrelationship of the Three Levels of Practice References Kirst-Ashman, Karen & Hull, Grafton H. (2009). Understanding generalist practice. (5th ed., p. 14,19,25). Chicago, IL: Nelson Hall Poe, M. A. (2005). Carla fights the system. In Thomson Learning.