CAMPUS NEWS
Blazing a trail for
South African Social Workers
A
Annette Willemse
A trail blazer, this is how one may
describe Elmien Truter. She is a social work lecturer at the Vaal Triangle
Campus and a proud alumna. She is
also the first social work PhD graduate since social work started at the
Vaal Campus in 2008.
Her PhD study is the first of its kind
in South Africa. The purpose of Elmien’s study was to explore pathways of resilience among resilient
South African DSWs by studying relevant literature and examining South
African DSW’s lived experience. A
secondary purpose was to draw on
these experiences and literature to
develop guidelines for South African
DSW supervisors who may encourage the promotion of DSW resilience.
Through her study she confirmed
that there is insufficient understanding about the resilience of South Africa’s DSWs. Through focus group
interviews with experts in the field of
social work she collected and formulated potential indicators of resilience
in resilient South African DSWs.
Next, she asked fifteen resilient
DSWs to write narratives and experiences of workplace risks, as well as
their resilience processes.
The findings concluded that these
DSWs adapted to workplace adversities through four core protective
processes. The first of these processes include living practice and
purpose-informing creeds. All
participants related their calling
to the profession as imperative
to adapt well in child protection
work. The second process that
forms part of resilient DSWs’
lives is enjoying supportive collaborations – a dominant reference to professional, personal
and religious support networks
was unmistakably experienced
by participants as a protective process that safeguarded
them from reported workplace
adversities.
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Engaging in constructive transactions
relates to the way resilient DSWs respect their own personal needs and
boundaries, invest in self-care activities, being solution focused, engaging in continuous training and education, and practising self-control. The
fourth process actively engaged in
by resilient DSWs is accentuating the
positive, which includes celebrating
victories, share humour and choosing positive company. Participants’
emphasis on the positive and preference for positive people offered
several protective processes that
potentially buffer against poor health
and bolster wellbeing.Guidelines
for South African DSW supervisors,
which emerged from these findings
and literature, were proposed to be
framed by reflective supervision as
a step towards promoting South African DSW resilience.
Dr Ansie Fouché, who acted as Elmien’s study promoter describes her
as someone with a lot of perseverance and drive, and a work ethic that
leads her to deliver outstanding work.
These qualities resulted in Elmien
completing her study within three
years of which she devoted only the
first year to full time study. During her
second year she was a designated
social worker and area manager of
the Child Welfare SA provincial office
in the Northern Cape; and in her third
year she moved to the Vaal Campus
after she was appointed as a lecturer
in the School of Behavioural Sciences.
Even more laudable is that her thesis was accepted unconditionally by
three independent examiners who
praised her for the clear and scientific way in which she described and
implemented the process of data
analysis. In addition, they remarked
upon the outstanding quality of the
work she produced, with particular
reference to literature integration and
technical care.
Elmien completed her Master’s degree study at the NWU Potchefstroom Campus in 2010. She continues to work as a social work lecturer
at the Vaal Campus and part time
she manages child protection cases
for Child Welfare SA in Vanderbijlpark. She currently also forms part of
the Optentia Research Focus Area’s
Pathways to Resilience and Posttraumatic Growth sub-programme
(http://www.optentia.co.za/index.php
).