Social workers choose more than just a career or a salary. They choose a way to impact our lives and everybody else around us. A typical image of a social worker is an overworked government employee with a desk full of case files. However, the reality is far from that. In today’s social working scenario, a person has more energy, better creativity, inspiration, and more vibrant. During the last few years, the workforce associated with social working has reinvented themselves and their careers. 

This transformation is also awe-inspiring as the field remains understaffed and under-compensated than before. Social work’s primary objective is to facilitate people to meet their basic needs and promote their well-being. They focus their attention mainly on the need and empowerment of those oppressed or impoverished. Social work is an essential aspect of society to contribute and address living and lifestyle problems. They govern their impact from government agencies, nonprofit organizations, private practices, law firms, hospitals, etc. 

The truth is, social workers have a significant effect on our lives, but how they choose to make their impact varies. Some of these include:

• Promoting Civil and Worker Rights

Social workers have been at the forefront of civil and worker rights since we remember. They have played an active role in securing people’s rights irrespective of race, gender, religion, etc. They understand that discrimination can affect people’s living standards. They ensure people have all the opportunities to live everyday life. Similar to civil rights, social workers also support worker rights and movements associated with them. They know that lack of a job or employment has deliberate stress on life. They become a key player in reforming labor laws to mitigate these problems and design programs to cope with losing a job. Some of these programs include unemployment insurance, compensation for workers, or social security. Usually, the institutional or online DSW considers human rights as necessary and works toward their fulfillment. 

• Evidence-Based Practices

Over the past few years, the term ‘evidence-based practice’ has become the core of social work. The driving forces to consider the practice depend on building effective workers, increasing accountability, and competing for resources. As the evidence-based practices become recognized, the profession itself adapted the best ways to complement client experiences. 

• Mentoring the Society

Social workers stand for oppressed for all walks of life regardless of their race, color, gender, or sexual orientation. Some of them may struggle from addiction, while others have crime, domestic violence, or homelessness. Social workers raise the lack of proper mentoring among the youth today and act as one themselves. Social workers cannot do everything, so they start movements and programs that facilitate social mentoring. They establish a society where the youth have more support from adults and receive mentoring from experts in the field. 

Sometimes, professionals from various fields are interested in the programs to offer their support for the young and show concern for their mentorship. The simple yet effective step gives an adequate support system for the youth to succeed in their life. 

• Handling Mental Illness

Due to a lack of knowledge regarding mental issues, many patients in asylums receive inhumane treatment. Social workers help in raising awareness about mental illness while fighting to reform treatment procedures. They change how we perceive mental illness in society and work towards implementing a humane system to treat the patients. Their efforts bring better changes in mental illness treatment and make the patient a better part of society. 

• Addiction and Substance Abuse

Unfortunately, the use of drugs and substance abuse has become a norm in today’s society. Before social workers can engage in family conflicts or other issues, they have to deal with addictions and abuse problems. Like mental health awareness, social workers put their efforts to advocate rehabilitation programs and treatment processes that facilitate such issues. They work towards implementing public health initiatives that aim to overcome addictions and abuses. 

• Children Safety

Child abuse and neglect have also become a plague in our society that has given rise to countless social issues. Mostly, addiction, drug usage, domestic violence, or family issues are the factors that contribute to child neglect. In turn, it causes a ripple effect in a society where children suffer traumas that scar them for life. Social workers work towards providing safe heavens ad foster care for the children to become a productive part of society. 

Final Word

We cannot neglect the continuous efforts of social workers to better the community and the world today. While every worker has their area of expertise, their objective to facilitate society remains the same. With their efforts, society today has become better and more productive today.