Social Work in Barangay Concepcion Dos
Hello
and welcome to a new blog post! In this post, we will be tackling social work
from a new perspective—one that is more local and applicable to us. Continue reading
to learn more about social workers and social work programs in our community.
Who are
Social Workers?
Social
workers aim to help the people in fulfilling their needs especially their
overall well-being. There are different kinds of social workers such as medical
social workers, mental health, family social workers and several more, but
there is a kind of social worker who focuses on either individual, families or
small groups which is the community social worker.
The members of a community are diverse since it is composed of different gender, races, religions and different social economic classes. They are unique since they encourage the people to actively participate with the social worker. Also, they help their clients regain strength after being affected by whatever issues or calamities that has discouraged them to live normally as explained in the site (“Social Workers”, 2017).
The members of a community are diverse since it is composed of different gender, races, religions and different social economic classes. They are unique since they encourage the people to actively participate with the social worker. Also, they help their clients regain strength after being affected by whatever issues or calamities that has discouraged them to live normally as explained in the site (“Social Workers”, 2017).
In the
Philippines, social work is considered a professional work. An official social
worker needs to pass the licensure exam and be acknowledged by the state before
they could start practicing social work. Several programs are made that focuses
on helping the Filipinos especially communities which are often affected by
natural calamities and are negatively affected by the social issues in the
country. An example is when social workers from two popular TV stations (GMA
and ABS-CBN) helped the victims of typhoon Yolanda in Tacloban and also the
victims who are in Marawi. These social workers assess the needs of the
citizens. Also, they interact with them to make them feel at ease making the
clients feel that they can trust the social workers in telling their concerns.
Our
Community: Concepcion Dos
In order to have a more in-depth perspective on social workers in a local setting, let’s take a look through the lens of Concepcion Dos, Markina City. We have interviewed Kagawad Frederick Ifurung, a three-time elected kagawad in the barangay. He heads the committee on Senior Citizens and Transportation. He is as well the chairman for peace and order in Barangay Concepcion Dos. The interview mainly consisted of discussions about Barangay Concepcion Dos and the social work aspect in the locality.
In order to have a more in-depth perspective on social workers in a local setting, let’s take a look through the lens of Concepcion Dos, Markina City. We have interviewed Kagawad Frederick Ifurung, a three-time elected kagawad in the barangay. He heads the committee on Senior Citizens and Transportation. He is as well the chairman for peace and order in Barangay Concepcion Dos. The interview mainly consisted of discussions about Barangay Concepcion Dos and the social work aspect in the locality.
However
to be more precise and accurate on our understanding, a short introduction from
Kagawad Ifurung on Barangay Concepcion Dos would be necessary. Kagawad Dick
proudly shared that barangay Concepcion
Dos is different from other barangays. Barangay Concepcion Dos, as said by
Kagawad Ifurung is a “non-problematic barangay” and “is mostly filled with
residents who are financially capable”. Fortunately,
there are no major problems encountered such as killings. Most of the problems
or crimes reported in the barangay are considered light such as pick pockets,
snatching and akyat-bahay as one of the most intense. Moreover, 90% of
Concepcion Dos are made up of private subdivision and there are no squatters. The
locality is very peaceful and the residents are very disciplined in following
simple rules and regulations that are given in their area. Thus, it can be
concluded that Concepcion Dos is a barangay that does not experience much
problems in terms of crimes and finance unlike other localities.
The
barangay hall wherein the interview with Barangay Kagawad Ifurung was conducted
is located in Pio del Pilar St., Markina City. The main service that the
barangay hall focuses on is health services. A small health center is located
beside the barangay hall wherein there were always ample amount of residents
getting check-ups or treatments.
Social
Workers and Social Work Programs
After
the brief introduction of the barangay, the discussion proceeded to the main
topic which is social work. Kagawad Ifurung shared information and his insights
on the aspect of social work and the social programs in Concepcion Dos.
The
functions of the health social workers include enabling and helping the sick,
helping pregnant women and educating them proper ways of breastfeeding and
other tasks needed to be learned by mothers. They also serve as case managers
who help the residents get access to free services such as anti-flu
vaccinations, anti-dengue vaccinations for children below eight (8) years of
age, medications for senior citizens, and much more. In addition, the health
social workers of Concepcion Dos are also brokers who refer the residents in
need of more medical consultations and treatments to medical professionals such
as doctors who are also available in the health center. They may also refer to
specialists from the Red Cross.
Recipients
of Social Work Programs
Many residents have been receiving the social work programs in Concepcion Dos. Recipients include the children and babies for they are able to get vaccinations such as anti-flu vaccinations, anti-dengue vaccinations and measles vaccine. They are also able to receive check-ups from in-house medical workers and health workers.
Other recipients are the pregnant women who are taught by the health workers proper ways of breastfeeding, what to do during pregnancy and are checked-up regularly to assess the situation of both the baby and the mother.
Lastly, the elderly are also recipients of the social work programs of the community for they are given help in terms of medical concerns. Moreover, all residents of the community especially those who are unable to pay for private hospital treatments are recipients of the programs carried by health workers.
Other recipients are the pregnant women who are taught by the health workers proper ways of breastfeeding, what to do during pregnancy and are checked-up regularly to assess the situation of both the baby and the mother.
Lastly, the elderly are also recipients of the social work programs of the community for they are given help in terms of medical concerns. Moreover, all residents of the community especially those who are unable to pay for private hospital treatments are recipients of the programs carried by health workers.
Dealing
with other Social Problems
Problem with DSWD Social Workers
However,
Kagawad Ifurung said that a huge downfall of the social workers in DSWD is that
they “do not take immediate action on the issues”. He told us that there are
instances wherein the children whom they referred to DSWD were found in
Concepcion Dos just a few weeks after they were taken by the social workers.
This means that the social workers and the institution may have failed to serve
their purpose of assisting and teaching child delinquents. He wants the social
workers from DSWD to give more focus on their jobs in order to fully help the
people in need of their guidance. However, he also said that the DSWD is a
state-funded institution and not locally funded by their barangay. They may be
more focused on other more extreme cases on different parts of the country. We asked
Kagawad Ifurung if he wants to have an in-house social worker that would attend
to the problems of the barangay handled by the DSWD instead. He answered no
because he wants them to be directly and straightly attended by social workers
from DSWD who can more easily give them resources and direct them to other
professionals because DSWD is state handled and can acquire more resources to
those in great need.
Synthesis
All
in all, Barangay Concepcion Dos is a barangay that focuses on health social
work. Health social workers are readily available at the health center beside
the barangay hall. Various treatments, consultations and programs are executed
by health workers to assure the medical well-being of the residents. Those in
need of other form of social work assistance such as problems regarding mental
health and child delinquency are redirected by the barangay officials to DSWD.
However, the barangay officials are unsure of DSWD capability of helping their
clienteles because there are instances wherein they see the clienteles out of DSWD’
headquarters a short time after they have been redirected. Thus, Barangay
Kagawad Ifurung urges the DSWD social workers to improve their work to ensure
that the better lives that social workers are tasked to help humanity achieve
Social Workers (2017). Retieved from https://socialworklicensemap.com/become-a-social-worker/social-worker-careers/community-social-work/
.
Social Workers (2017). Retieved from https://socialworklicensemap.com/become-a-social-worker/social-worker-careers/community-social-work/
.