At Global Vision Technologies we work every day with dedicated case workers who inspire us to look beyond fame and fortune to a deeper commitment. Tina Cawley, the AdoptUS Kids caseworker for the month of May, is one of those caseworkers. 

THE SECRET OF SUCCESS

WHO KNEW?

How can it be that most Americans have never heard of the 3rd largest charity in the United States? Everyone has heard of the largest charity, The United Way. Number 2, The Salvation Army, has been in the public eye for more than 150 years and number 5, The American National Red Cross, is well known to little school children. However, no one who we asked to guess what non-profit was number 3, got it right.

The purpose of this weekly blog is to stimulate thought and discussion about the topics that affect the entire social services sector. Even though our blog appears here on the FAMCare site, it is not our intention to inform you about our products in this space. However, every now and then, FAMCare does provide the perfect solution to a problem the social services sector is faced with. 

SWAMPED 

The debate between caseworkers and case managers about the size of caseloads continues to rage. Caseworkers feel overloaded, and they believe the quality of the service they provide suffers accordingly. Case managers pass the buck up to senior agency management complaining that they are severely understaffed. Senior agency management blames budgets and funding, and sends regrets back down to the overburdened case workers as the line for services continues to extend ever further out from the agency’s doors. Everyone is concerned. No one seems to know what to do. 

"If it isn't documented, it didn't happen."

This is the cynical mantra of both private and public social service agencies. The limitations of blog space prevent me from retelling countless case histories where a social worker is accused of neglect or wrongdoing by a client or agency and must produce a documented history of client contacts. It is sufficient to note that social workers sometimes find themselves in situations where they must be able to provide evidence of their conduct and actions during some time in the past. This may occur in the context of litigation or adjudication of an ethics complaint filed with a state licensing board or the National Association of Social Workers. Although most social workers understand the importance of careful and thoughtful documentation, some do not.