Publications from ODSW Social Insights: Letters by DSW (Vol 1) | Page 20

Refreshed Opportunity for Social Workers

Dear Students of Social Work
and Fellow Social Workers,
Refreshed opportunity to make an impact
The world we live in now has become volatile, complex, uncertain and
ambiguous. The environment has become more dynamic and complex. In
this dynamic and complex environment, social work as a discipline that helps
individuals, groups and communities to thrive has a refreshed opportunity
to make an impact and assume leadership roles through its involvement,
intervention and initiatives.
Social work is crucial to delivering social good or social services. Good quality
social work can transform the lives of vulnerable people and is an essential
part of multi-disciplinary and multi-agency work. Alongside professionals in
health, social care, housing, employment and others, social workers play a
key role in:
• identifying and helping people to access services which meet their needs
at an early stage;
• helping to improve their overall well being; and
• reducing the risk of crisis and more costly demands on acute and statutory
services.
Increasingly, there is a role that specialist social workers will play and a
contribution that they will make to deepen expertise in specialism that is
emerging to address the demographic changes and needs in our population.
Specialists in social work with in-depth competencies and expertise will widen
our ability to address issues more sharply in the new environment with deeper
understanding. These must however be built on the fundamentals of what is
core to social work in uplifting the lives of those who are being helped.

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