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February 21, 2018The Role of Social Work in Mental Health Treatment
People who are new to the world of mental health treatment may be unsure about the type of professionals that work in the facility, helping patients.
These professionals range from nurses, therapists, doctors, behavioral health technicians (techs for short), case managers, social workers, and more. There are many different types of medical professionals within the healthcare system, and knowing their roles and functions will help you become acclimated with the ways in which they can help you during your treatment stay. The role of social work in mental health treatment is very important. Here at Banyan Mental Health, we employ the most experienced and highly skilled social workers who share a passion for this field and helping patients.
What Is a Social Worker?
A social worker is a trained professional who strives to enhance the well-being and quality of life for people, families, and communities. Schools, hospitals, non-profit organizations, government agencies, and other businesses that offer social services frequently employ social workers.
The definition of social work is “a process where an individual in a setting is helped to attain freedom from overlapping internal and external problems.” This may include social and economic situations, family and other relationships, hardships, legal problems, psychiatric symptoms like anxiety, and others. Social work is needed to keep harmony, quality of life, self-actualization, and personal adaptation across all internal and external environments, including treatment, home, work, school, hobbies, and more.
What Are the Social Work Values?
Social work values are fundamental principles that guide the profession and functions of social workers. They are derived from ethical principles and serve as a foundation for the practice.
These values include:
- Respect for human dignity: Social workers value each person's individuality and appreciate their inherent worth and dignity.
- Social justice: Social workers are dedicated to advancing social justice, which entails removing institutional obstacles and securing equal access to opportunities and resources.
- Competence: In order to deliver successful services, social workers must maintain a high level of knowledge and expertise in their fields of practice.
- Integrity: Social workers must always conduct themselves with candor, openness, and responsibility.
- Empathy: In order to deliver kind and efficient services, social workers must be able to comprehend and relate to the experiences and viewpoints of their clients.
- Service: Social workers are dedicated to providing for the needs of their clients and promoting their well-being.
- Confidentiality: To protect the privacy of their clients, social workers must uphold confidentiality in all professional interactions.
- Collaboration: In order to offer comprehensive services to their clients, social workers frequently work in teams and must collaborate well with other specialists.
- Diversity and inclusion: Social workers are dedicated to advancing diversity and inclusivity and striving to remove oppression and discrimination based on racial, ethnic, gender, sexual, or other distinctions.
These values fuel every interaction between worker and client and highlight the similarities between social work and mental health and how patients/clients can both benefit from these services.
What Is a Psychiatric Social Worker?
Psychiatric social workers are mental health professionals that assist patients and their family members in coping with issues that are caused by mental illness or psychiatric dysfunctions. Some of the issues individuals with mental health disorders deal with may include financial hardship and unemployment, poor hygiene, and lack of ability to complete activities of daily living like bathing, feeding, grooming, homemaking, and similar.
Social workers help these individuals by providing them with education and resources, showing them how to maintain healthy hygiene, social reintegration, life skill building, smart budgeting, money and self-management skills, working with outside agencies for job opportunities and community-based programs, and even post-discharge follow up and aftercare once the patient has completed their inpatient stay. The goal is for the patient to adapt to a healthy lifestyle where they can be self-sustaining in the best way possible and for them to achieve the best quality of life.
The role of social work in mental health is an important one, allowing our patients to feel seen in their struggles while being offered real solutions that can help. Whether a person requires residential treatment or partial hospitalization, Banyan offers these options at our facilities for mental health. The social workers at Banyan Treatment Center are here to help provide growth through the recovery process, from detox to aftercare.
At Banyan Mental Health, we are here to help. If you or a loved one is struggling, seek out our adult mental health services. Call us anytime at 888-280-4763.
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At Banyan Treatment Center, our social workers are here to help provide growth through the recovery process, from detox to aftercare. At Banyan Mental Health, we are here to help. If you or a loved one is struggling with a mental health or co-occurring disorder, seek help now. Call us anytime, we are here to help: 888-280-4763.
