1. Social Work A Practice-based Profession

2. Social Work as a profession
“Social work is a practice-based profession and an academic discipline that promotes social change and development, social cohesion, and the empowerment and liberation of people. Principles of social justice, human rights, collective responsibility and respect for diversities are central to social work.” IFSW, 2014.

3. Purpose
The purpose of the social work profession is to “promote human and community wellbeing” (EPAS, 2008, p. 1).
Social work is a helping and practice based profession where a professional social worker helps:
Individuals
Families
Groups
Organizations
Communities
Another purpose of professional social work is to restore or enhance the capacity of the people in need for optimal social functioning and to create social conditions that support this goal.

4. Objectives To enhance people’s capacities to resolve problems.
Linking clients with needed resources
Improve the service delivery network
Promote social justice through the development of social policy

5. Methods of Social Work Practice
Social Casework
Social Group Work
Community Organisation
Social Welfare Administration
Social Work Research
Social Action

6. Characteristics of Professional Social worker
Warmth
Honesty
Genuineness
Empathy
Openness
Courage
Hopefulness
Humility
Concern
Sensitivity.

7. Roles and Functions
Social work professionals work in many settings with diverse people who have-
Problems
Issues
Needs
They do the following activities:
Intervene between the state and the citizen
Maximize the capacity of people
Contribute to policies and practice

8. A social worker is expected to have the knowledge and skills that will enable him/her to take appropriate action and play a variety of roles few of them are as listed below:
Enabler-helps a client become capable of coping with situations
Educator- gives information to clients and other systems
Advocate -taking a course of action on behalf of client
Coordinator-brings together various parts to form a unified whole.
Mediator -involves resolving arguments or conflicts at micro, mezzo, or macro systems
Analyst/Evaluator-Social workers with a broad knowledge base of how various systems function can analyze or evaluate how well programs and systems work.

9. Broker /Advocate- Acts as intermediary between individuals and resources
Planner - Coordinates program and policy development
Activist - Stimulates and energizes social change
Trainer- Instructs or educates through staff development (skills development)
Colleague- Acts as mentor and guide for support and professional acculturation
Outreach Worker- Conveys public information about social issues and social services
Research/ Scholar- Engages in discovery for knowledge development

10. Core Values in Social Work
Service
Social Justice
Dignity & Worth of the Person
Importance of Human Relationships
Integrity
Competence

11. Basic Concepts
Social Welfare- It is an organized system of social services and institutions, designed to aid individuals and groups, to attain satisfying standards of life and health.
Social Justice- It refers to the creation of social institutions that support the welfare of individuals and groups.
Social Development- It is a comprehensive concept which implies major structural changes- political, economic, cultural which are deliberate action to transform the society.
Social Capital- It is the network of relationships among the people who live and work in a particular society, enabling that the society to function effectively.

12. Basic Concepts
Social Policy- It is a comprehensive set of policies designed to improve the quality of life in the society., nature of relationship etc.
Advocacy- It involves "the act of directly representing a course of action on behalf of one or more individuals, groups, or communities, with the goal of securing or retaining social justice (Mickelson, 1995, p.95)
Empowerment- It is the “process of increasing personal, interpersonal, or political power so that individual can take action to improve their situations” (Gutierrez, 1994)

13. Fields of social work practice
Family welfare
Information & referral
Youth welfare
Child welfare
Health and rehabilitation
Women welfare
Occupational social work
Aging services
Housing
Mental health
Community development
School social work
Income maintenance

14. Thank You!!!