Season 1 Review: So, What is Social Work?

Welcome back to the Social Work Café blog, where this week we tie a nice bow around season 01!

I am so excited that we made it to the end of the season, as I started this journey with no real idea where it would lead me.

I wanted to have interesting conversations with fellow social workers while indulging in my coffee obsession.

Well, that goal was certainly met.

Not only did I get to spend time with amazing social workers I have known for years, but I also got to meet social workers along the way, including our final guest for episode 20, Kasey Henshaw.

Kasey is on the verge of finishing her social work degree, and during our conversation, I felt like I was talking to a seasoned social worker.

She brought so much wisdom to our review of season 1, where we talked about our favourite episodes and definitions of social work.

Kasey highlighted my conversations with:

1.      Andreia Schineanu: What does trauma-informed social work really mean?

2.      Patrick Lloyd: Why are social workers hanging out in public libraries?

3.      Vicki Shevlin: How can newly qualified social workers set themselves up for a long career?

I am not surprised Kasey loved our trauma-informed episode; it is currently second in episode rankings for season 1.

Trauma-informed practice is a hot topic in the social work and human services sector, as organisations and professional groups embrace this framework.

I like how Kasey points out that social work has always been trauma-informed; we just now have the language of the framework.

Her second favourite episode about social work in public libraries resonated with me as well.

Both of us really enjoyed learning about the importance of these civic spaces being freely available to members of the public and the dynamic nature of social work practice in this field.

I was not surprised that Kasey also chose my conversation with Vicki Shevlin, considering she is at the beginning of her social work career.

Kasey has such a bright future ahead of her and wonderful professional development goals, including pursuing a Master of Counselling next year.

I also love how Kasey gave an honourable mention to Jac McNamara: Is Social Work Feminist Enough?

That episode only came out a couple of months ago, and it has been steadily climbing the episode rankings, so that tells you something about the importance of the topic!

Kasey and I then talked about our favourite definitions, as well as words that we might like to avoid when explaining social work to others.

I’m not surprised she chose Andreia’s definition because of its multidimensional, holistic, and political focus:

My favourite definitions were from Katrina Gersbach and Seb Cordoba, as both were quite similar:

Kasey and I agreed that there is no one definition of social work that will rule us all.

We have a common professional language that we all speak, but each of us will have our own nuanced definition to share with friends, family, and the communities we work alongside.

Moreover, Kasey points out that our definitions will continually evolve because the language we use and the societies we live in continually change.

So, after all of that, what about our definitions of social work?

Here is what Kasey devised:

Social work means to look at a whole person in their environment and then walk alongside them, providing support to navigate that environment, where both the client and the worker feel necessary.

What a lovely definition.

It honours client expertise and how their environment is changeable, as well as how the social worker operates within socio-political and organisational contexts.

I actually have two (I know, I cannot help myself).

My first actually comes from a former student, Tegan Pollack, who came up with this gem in class way back in 2016 and gave me permission to share it with others:

A social worker is a professional who advocates and promotes the wellbeing of those in need.

I’ve always loved this definition from Tegan because it is concise, would make sense to service participants, and it captures our multidimensional work!

It might not capture everything, but I think we can say that about all the other definitions our guests provided.

And so, here is mine:

Social work is a profession that works alongside individuals and communities to address needs related to their wellbeing, which includes pursuing social change.

I was keen to ensure the definition emphasised that we are a profession that works across multiple levels with the intention of achieving social change.

I can still see room for improvement, and no doubt I will keep tweaking this in the future.

Where to from here?

Well, planning for season 02 is well underway.

My dear friend Katie Murrell-Orgill (Is Social Work Sexy Enough?) recommended that I keep the same theme, but I am keen to explore something new.

Plus, I have no doubt this podcast will continue to explore the nature of social work.

I cannot wait to reveal the season 2 theme to you in the launch trailer.

It will be out in early 2024.

We will definitely have Kasey back in the café to hear how her first-year post-qualification unfolds.

Stay tuned social work!

Dr B.