Social Work / Maatskaplike Werk (E-Journal)
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EVALUATION OF THE TRIAL IMPLEMENTATION OF A PROTOCOL FOR ASSESSING AND SUPPORTING CHILDREN WITH DEVELOPMENTAL DELAYS AND DISABILITIES AT RURAL CHILD AND YOUTH CARE CENTRES
Get PDFThe Ecological Assessment and Intervention Protocol (ECO-AIP) was designed by Heyns and Roestenburg (2021) to address inadequate service rendering to children with developmental delays and disabilities (DDDs) at rural Child and Youth Care Centres (CYCCs). This article presents the results of a trial implementation of the ECO-AIP at two rural CYCCs to ascertain whether the protocol made any difference to the care practices of the staff and the developmental health of the children. Qualitative focus groups were conducted using a semi-structured interview schedule and thematic analysis. This research study found that the ECO-AIP added substantially to the staff’s knowledge and skills base, leading to a general improvement in the quality and sophistication of service rendering. The ECO-AIP guided multidisciplinary CYCC teams in identifying DDDs in rural children and in supporting them to reach developmental milestones
EXPLORING THE PERCEPTIONS OF CORRECTIONAL SERVICE PROVIDERS AND ELDERLY PAROLEES OF POST-INCARCERATION SOCIAL WORK PROGRAMMES IN ETHEKWINI METROPOLITAN
Get PDFThis qualitative study explored the perceptions of correctional service providers and elderly parolees regarding post-incarceration social work programmes. Primary data were drawn from semi-structured interviews conducted with 15 (n=15) elderly parolees, three (n=3) social workers and two (n=2) correctional officials from South Africa’s Department of Correctional Services. The findings of this study indicated that correctional social work programmes often did not prioritise the unique needs of elderly parolees; the study findings also revealed the urgent need for developing social work programmes that cater exclusively to the needs of elderly parolees. Moreover, the study found the need for developing ongoing training programmes to strengthen reintegration services offered to the elderly cohort, and finally, the study also revealed that the increase in the number of elderly offenders being released on parole impacted negatively on the responsiveness of social work post-incarceration programmes. This article concludes by offering recommendations to the Department of Correctional Services and social workers working in community correctional centres
THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN PSYCHOSOCIAL WELL-BEING AND SUPERVISION OF CHILD AND YOUTH CARE WORKERS IN CHILD AND YOUTH CARE CENTRES
Get PDFChildren who are placed in residential care have been severely traumatised, and the implication is that it has a direct impact on the psychosocial well-being of the child and youth care workers who work with the vulnerable children daily. How the care workers perform their daily tasks are impacted upon and can even lead to emotional burnout. The aim of the study was to quantitatively investigate the relationship between supervision and the psychosocial well-being of child and youth care workers.
Seventy-seven child and youth care workers (CYCW) were purposefully sampled for this study. Three questionnaires were used to collect data. The IBM SPSS version 25 software was used to analyze the data. In some cases, there was a small effect size, yet it seems that ethnicity, gender, marital status, and income influence the psychosocial well-being of CYCW. The study also shows a connection between CYCW who received supervision and those who did not receive supervision
SOCIAL WORKERS' EXPERIENCES OF WORKING WITH CHILDREN AND YOUTHS AT CHILD AND YOUTH CARE CENTRES IN DURBAN
Get PDFSocial workers employed in Child and Youth Care Centres (CYCCs) play a critical role in offering therapeutic services for children and youths in need of care. This article explores social workers' experiences working in seven different CYCCs in Durban. It is based on qualitative research using an exploratory, descriptive research design with a sample of eleven social workers. Social workers in CYCCs faced challenges including role overload and overlap, lack of adequate resources, safety and security concerns and limited support, which caused strain and compromised social workers' core role in CYCCs. The article offers practical solutions and recommendations for addressing these challenges
CHALLENGES FACED BY SOCIAL WORKERS IN RENDERING SERVICES TO NYAOPE SUBSTANCE USERS
Get PDFUse of nyaope amongst South Africans has risen dramatically. Concerns have been expressed about the negative effects this illicit drug has on communities. Currently, there is a dearth of scientific evidence on the challenges facing social workers rendering services to nyaope users. This study adopted a qualitative approach guided by ecological systems theory; data were collected through semi-structured interviews through purposive sampling and analysed through identifying themes. The study established that there are many challenges facing social workers working with nyaope substance users such as dishonesty and unreliability of clients; dealing with reluctant and non-voluntary clients and dealing with clients who return to using illicit opioids
WITNESS PROTECTION PROGRAMME: THE VIEWS OF WITNESSES AND STAFF MEMBERS ON HOW CHILDREN ARE AFFECTED BY THE ADMISSION OF THEIR PARENTS INTO THE PROGRAMME
Get PDFChildren, although innocent, are often admitted into the witness protection programme with their parents and, as a result, they experience isolation and social uprooting. This qualitative study aimed to describe the views of witnesses and staff members on how children are affected by the admission of their parents into the witness protection programme in South Africa. The ecological systems perspective, which recognises the impact of the environment on human functioning, and the person-in-environment perspective provided the theoretical framework. The findings confirmed the hardships of children in coping with the admission of their parents into the witness protection programme
A THEMATIC SYNTHESIS OF STUDIES ON INCOME-GENERATING ACTIVITIES CONDUCTED FROM 2007 TO 2012 IN GAUTENG, LIMPOPO AND KWAZULU-NATAL: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW OF THE QUALITATIVE EVIDENCE
Get PDFThis paper describes a systematic review of studies on income-generating projects in poor communities. The review found that the beneficiaries experienced their participation in such activities as empowering, particularly in terms of accessing moral support. Their self-esteem was enhanced by their ability to contribute to their family’s livelihood. Yet it also emerges from the evidence that the long-term impact of income-generating projects is uncertain, because of concern about the beneficiaries’ abilities to independently sustain the gains. The paper recommends more complex and large-scale qualitative and quantitative systematic reviews to test more accurately whether systematic reviews of the data from income-generation programmes make better sense of developmental interventions
ARE WE READY YET? SOCIAL WORKERS’ PREPAREDNESS TO RENDER SOCIAL SUPPORT TO PERSONS WITH SUBSTANCE ABUSE CHALLENGES
Get PDFChemical substance abuse remains a major health and social problem globally and in South Africa. Considering the drug-use-related challenges faced by South Africa’s youth, there is a need to design and implement robust interventions to mitigate the impact of chemical substance use. Social workers are not prepared enough to provide drug-dependency treatment to persons with substance abuse challenges. To address this issue, a qualitative research approach was adopted with seven participants who were selected using the non-probability technique of purposive sampling. Data were analysed using Tesch’s eight steps and verified using Guba and Lincoln’s model to test the trustworthiness of the data. Ethical considerations were adhered to throughout the study. The findings highlight that social workers need urgent intensive training and resources to execute their tasks effectively in the field of substance abuse
THE SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT APPROACH TO SOCIAL WORK IN HEALTH CARE
Get PDFSocial work in health care delivers essential services to South Africa’s vulnerable populations. The social development approach attempts to address inequalities and uplift vulnerable people. An explanatory-sequential mixed methodological study explored the application of the social development approach to social work in health care in the Gauteng Department of Health. The findings indicated that social workers in health care deliver a diverse service in attending to patients’ needs and are ideally situated to address and implement the social development approach. However, challenges are experienced in the absence of strategic policies regarding the implementation of the social development approach in health care
WHAT IS HAPPENING IN AN INDIVIDUAL SUPERVISION SESSION? REFLECTIONS OF SOCIAL WORKERS IN SOUTH AFRICA
Get PDFThis article reports on qualitative research, aimed at acquiring an understanding of what transpires in an individual social work supervision session in South Africa. Findings reveal that supervision sessions are chiefly “open door” and “on the run”, with minimal evidence of critical reflection. A key recommendation stresses that the evolution of supervision in the country should enter a new phase as response to the hegemony of a neoliberal inspired managerial discourse in social work. The deliberate utilisation of more clinical educational and supportive elements, and critical reflection-in-action and reflection-on-action in supervision sessions is therefore recommended