Now is the time to synthesize the sections of your course project into one cohesive paper. Make sure to include subtitles for each section of the project. Also, in this final submission you will need to offer a conclusion and discuss in which of the two human service professions you would prefer to work and why. Finally, include your findings from your interview with a human service professional. Discuss what you learned from this interview and you can apply that information to your entry into the profession.

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Two Careers in Human Service

I am interested in a career in the human service field since I will be able to interact with different people and be in a position to make changes in the lives of people in need. The field of human services is broad and it has a variety of interdisciplinary services and a wide range of meaningful jobs. In this paper, I will select two career jobs within the human service profession.

One of the career in human services that I would choose is to be a social worker. The job duties of this position differs according to the situation which includes intervening in circumstances such as mistreatment of children and abandonment and also supporting the homeless. I choose this career since my motivation and passion in life is to be involved in interventions in the aim of helping those in need. I also have the qualifications needed to be able to effectively assist in building a good foundation for the people in need so that they are able to make the right decisions regarding their future.

The other career in human services that I would choose is to be a substance abuse counselor. I was born in a community where alcohol addiction was a challenging issue to many families which had a lot of negative impacts to the children and the community in general. Since that time, I vowed to myself that one day I will dedicate my time in assisting people recovering from addictions through various interventions such as group counselling, education, referral and also advocacy. Having this job, I will be in a position to help many people who are facing substance abuse addictions and enable them overcome their addictions which in the process will help them be able to successfully connect with community and make good choices. Working in human services will enable me interact with many people in need and be able to find comfort in changing their lives for the better.

Being a social worker would require getting involved in providing social services or offering help as well as support for those people who need it in the society. The other selected career is of a substance abuse counselor that deals with guiding and helping individuals to overcome their addictions to drugs and to cope up with the stress of life (Attlee, 1920). The minimum educational requirement for one to become a social worker is a bachelor’s degree while the minimum educational requirement in the field of substance abuse counseling is a high school diploma. However, the minimum education requirement for a substance abuse counselor varies from one State to another. Working as a social worker can turn out to be a success when one has just the bachelor’s degree depending on how experienced the person is or is learning in the field of work. However, it is highly encouraged for someone to have advanced degrees as they are required for many positions.All States needs certification for a social worker which is of great significance to consider when getting into this career (Kadushin, & Harkness, 2014). Advance degrees are highly required for a substance abuse counselor, and this career usually has on-the-job training which is considered very vital for anyone in the profession. In normal conditions, the training has some hours that an individual has to attend just like a college degree for a certain given period before he or she is certified. A bachelor’s degree in social work usually takes four years to complete where it takes between four to five years in the case of a substance abuse counselor.

It is typically required for a student pursuing a social work career to go for an internship during his educational process. Even though some States require students taking substance abuse counseling to go through an internship during an educational process, most of the internships do take place after the education process to ensure that there is proper supervision to give certification where needed (Madson, et al., 2008).

References

Attlee, C. R. (1920). The social worker (Vol. 1). G. Bell.

Kadushin, A., & Harkness, D. (2014). Supervision in social work. Columbia University Press.

Madson, M. B., Bethea, A. R., Daniel, S., & Necaise, H. (2008). The state of substance abuse treatment training in counseling and counseling psychology programs: What is and is not happening. Journal of Teaching in the Addictions, 7(2), 164-178.

1. The job demand for a social worker and subsequent substance abuse counselor is relatively high in Miami Florida. Currently, the opioid crisis and the increase in the intermittent ease of obtaining narcotics within Miami has surged (Swalve and DeFoster, 2016). As such these unfortunate complexities have made the need for social workers with counseling abilities profoundly necessary. According to statistics one in every four people in Miami is either a drug addict or knows someone who is suffering from drug abuse related issues. Furthermore, the recent affirmation by the DEA (Drug Enforcement Administration) about a lethal form of cocaine found in Miami has made the sufficiently perilous. This is because this form of drug has made addiction a poignant but feasible threat for both adults and teens (Tookes, Diaz, Li, Khalidand Doblecki-Lewis, 2015).

2. The job demand is expected to see a dramatic surge over the next few decades. According to research conducted by the DEA relating to Miami, the supply of cocaine has been on a spiral increase for over a decade. More and more cocaine is purported to be shipped into the state via the Miami coastline from cartels supposedly emanating from South America (Tookes et al. 2015). Furthermore, Heroine, though not as common has also been noted to be on the increase as far as availability is concerned. According to statistics deaths due to heroin has seen a dramatic 30% increase in one year alone, mainly 2015 and 2016 surged (Swalve and DeFoster, 2016). This fact points to the need and for more social workers within the next years before the issue will have been mitigated by relevant authorities.

3. The average wage of a social worker in Miami, Florida was $ 44,000 annually without the inclusion of bonus. However, the salary has been set to change with the new wage policies now making it $ 59, 963 every year (Tookes et al. 2015). This figure is not inclusive of any bonuses of benefits that may accompany the occupation. Thus far, it is important to realize that the salary is subject to a number of factors such as education level and work experience.

4. The potential for salary increases for a social worker is very minimal. Due to the relatively subtle and unchanging nature of the occupation, salary increases are a rare phenomenon within this field (Tookes et al. 2015).

4. The information with regards to salary ranges and job demands does little to dissuade potential aspirants from applying for the role. The reason is that the occupation of a social worker has been regarded, over the year as less competitive surged (Swalve and DeFoster, 2016). Thus the potential for termination is very minimal. Additionally, with such a salary, persons, regardless of age, gender and or condition can afford a humble and dignified life.

References

Swalve, N. and DeFoster, R., 2016. Framing the Danger of Designer Drugs: Mass Media, Bath Salts, and the “Miami Zombie Attack”. Contemporary Drug Problems, 43(2), pp.103-121.

Tookes, H., Diaz, C., Li, H., Khalid, R. and Doblecki-Lewis, S., 2015. A cost analysis of hospitalizations for infections related to injection drug use at a county safety-net hospital in Miami, Florida. PloS one, 10(6), p.e0129360.

Duties and tasks required when working as a social worker and substance abuse counsellor

Professions

The duties of a social worker comprise of counselling and offering advice to clients, carrying out arrangements of effective care operations, communicating with relatives or family members of the client to obtain necessary information and conducting managerial as well as administration activities. The duties of a substance counselor include evaluating the health and their addiction on the substance use, coming up with treatment plan for the client, teaching and guiding client on how to cope without the use of the substance, referring the client to the group that can offer him or her support and coming up with aftercare schedule and plan (Rock, 2016).

Social worker and substance counsellor need to respond to certain incidences and situation. From the job duties and task, I will be required to report to work in the daytimes, but work also during the evening when there is an urgent need. Therefore, I will be required to work during evenings and during the days (Rock, 2016). I believe this will be a flexible schedule for me. Flexible schedules are always comfortable. It is because I can based on how I have planned my day.

There will be an on-call rotation in that certain group will be on duty during the day for a certain period of time and then shift to evening duties with the other group. This is a fair working schedule for such individuals (Grant, 2016). Travelling is necessary for gathering and collecting data that is relevant to the duties of the counsellor and the social worker. I might work in a hospital setting because the set comprises of a diversified group of people who require guidance and counselling including those with problems of substance abuse (Grant, 2016).

Reference

Grant, R. M. (2016). Contemporary strategy analysis: Text and cases edition. John Wiley &

Sons.

Rock, N. (2016). Exploring the working lives of professionals in the field of childhood abuse: an

examination of stress, burnout, psychological distress and coping (Doctoral dissertation, Dublin Business School).

Challenges and Benefits of a Social Work

Social workers have several benefits as well as the challenges that they face in their career. Some of the benefits are that they have better working environments compared to some careers. They have a variety of specialization and variety of duties in helping the public. Also, another benefit of the career is that there is the flexibility of work since they have variety working settings (Bettio, 2012). The fact that social worker has different and many working environments give more opportunity and experiences of the career.

On the other side, it is still challenging since some of the environments are dangerous. In case an employee focus on dealing with violent inmates it puts their lives in danger. In addition, if they are meant to work in the prison where they can also be endangered during their duties. Also, they are emotionally draining (Carey, 2016). One is supposed to help the public the way they want, but others will not agree to be helped the way you view a professional way. So they end up disturbing and disappointing social workers.

The most challenging part of being a social worker is when one is supposed to offer professional help to the client, but the client wants things done another way. This is most challenging since one has to give reasons and persuade the client to take their side. Also, it is illegal and unethical to impose things on the client. Though such challenges will give me work pressure, I will be able to manage them. This will be managed due to the benefits of job which will help to outweigh the challenges. The flexibility makes it easier to find another job (Carey, 2016).Additionally, there are outlined laws on how to handle different problems and using informed consent will help reduce the violence and resistance behavior.

References

Bettio, F. (2012). The pros and cons of occupational gender segregation in Europe. Canadian

Public Policy/Analyse de Politiques, S65-S84.

Carey, M. (2016). Selling social work by the pound? The pros and cons of agency care

management. Practice, 18(1), 3-15.

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