Discussion 1 Colleagues Post
Respond by Day 11/12 to two colleagues by explaining the various costs you think will be associated with their suggested policy changes. Then, explain whether a consideration of cost when adopting a policy or program contradicts the social workers’ code of ethics.
Support your response with specific references to the resources. Be sure to provide full APA citations for your references.
Return to this Discussion to read the responses to your initial post. Note what you have learned and/or any insights you have gained as a result of the comments your colleagues made.
Discussion 1 Colleagues Post 1
Tre Paige
RE: Discussion 1
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Sexual assault usually presents complex and difficult to document consequences, especially to the victims. People who have been sexually assaulted often experience psychological, emotional, and physical concerns which are not easy to deal with (Popple & Leighninger, 2019). Social workers’ role is to offer help to these individuals and ensure the implementation of policies that support their well-being. Rita, a 22-year-old Latina, was sexually abused by a friend to a fellow male co-worker a year ago. Even though Rita took the bold step to go to the hospital to have a sexual assault kit done and to take medications for the treatment of any possible STIs as well as emergency contraceptives, she did not feel comfortable filing a report to the forensic or press charges at the time as she was traumatized, did not want to upset her family, and blamed herself for the incident (Plummer, Makris, & Brocksen, 2014).
However, regarding policy laws on reporting a sexual assault case, Rita has only 90 days to decide charge or not (Plummer et al., 2014). Considering the trauma and stress faced by Rita following the assault, this time is inadequate for her to come to terms with what happened to her, to explain details of what happened at the time of the assault, and to make a rational decision on whether to report and press charges against the perpetrator or not. A policy change that would be effective would be to eliminate the 90-day filing limit to allow adequate time for sexual assault victims to make rational decisions.
To measure and evaluate the effectiveness of the policy change, I would employ evidence-based outcomes. I would measure the impact of time-unlimited counseling on making breakthroughs and conquering trauma and depression prior to reporting sexual assault cases. This would measure clients’ satisfaction with submitting reports and pressing charges with clearer and calmer mindsets. In addition, I would measure the changes experienced by clients as impacted by the time taken to report and press charges.
References
Plummer, S.-B., Makris, S., &Brocksen, S. M. (Eds.). (2014). Social work case studies: Foundation year. Baltimore: MD: Laureate International Universities Publishing. [Vital Source e-reader]. “Working With Survivors of Sexual Abuse and Trauma: The Case of Rita” (pp. 81–83)
Popple, P. R., &Leighninger, L. (2019). The policy-based profession: An introduction to social welfare policy analysis for social workers (7th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education.
Discussion 1 Colleagues Post 2
Chelsea Soifua
RE: Discussion 1
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The case study I chose is the case of Talia. Talia is a 19-year-old college student who was sexually assaulted by a classmate while attending a fraternity party (Plummer et al., 2014). She did not seek counseling until 3 weeks after the incident due to experiencing a extreme emotions around the incident (Plummer et al., 2014). She was coping anxiety which was negatively impacting her process in schoolwork. During the sessions she worked on skills to address triggers regarding the rape. Talia eventually decided to report the rape to the school (Plummer et al., 2014). She was worried the perpetrator would attack someone else (Plummer et al., 2014).
The policy that I would change regarding Talia’s case would be the University’s procedure on when confronting rape/sexual assault cases. The Dean of Students like many other schools handled this situation in house not including the authorities (Laureate Education, 2013). This is a concern because the Dean does not have the proper training and understanding to speak with victims and he has the desire to protect the schools reputation this makes him bias and not a good judge for the crime. He also placed both students in the same room. This could have been a trigger for Talia, setting her back in her recovery.
“Proven methods to reduce rapes and sexual assaults on college campuses include education, prevention, accountability, common sense, and the use of the local criminal justice system, which promotes fairness for both the accuser and accused” (Spakvosky, 2017). Talia wanted justice served for a crime committed against herself while in care of her school. it is the school’s responsibility to ensure a safe environment for the students. Unfortunately, many students do not report assaults because nothing happens since it is considered hearsay. If schools allow for professionals to evaluate the situation and speak with the victims and the accused they will have an unbiased and educated assessment of the situation.
References:
Plummer, S.-B., Makris, S., & Brocksen, S. M. (Eds.). (2014). Social work case studies: Foundation year. Baltimore: MD: Laureate International Universities Publishing. [Vital Source e-reader].
Laureate Education (Producer). (2013). Sessions: Johnson family (Episode 4 of 42) [Video file]. ate International Universities Publishing. [Vital Source e-reader].
Spakovsky, H. von. (2017, July 25). Campus Sexual Assault: Understanding the Problem and How to Fix It.
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Discussion 2 Colleagues Post
Respond by Day 11/13 to two colleagues by offering a suggestion for how your colleague might gain political and/or lobbying experience for the political issue your colleagues described. Also, explain the steps you might take to incorporate policy advocacy in your practice based on insights, experiences, and/or opinions your colleagues described. Be sure your explanation takes the perspective of a social work professional with a responsibility to uphold professional ethics.
Support your response with specific references to the resources. Be sure to provide full APA citations for your references.
Return to this Discussion to read the responses to your initial post. Note what you have learned and/or any insights you have gained as a result of the comments your colleagues made.
Discussion 2 Colleagues Post 1
DeAnna Oliver
RE: Discussion 2
Top of Form
Lobbying is used to influence the ideas and decisions of elected official’s (Popple & Leighninger, 2019). Social workers can use lobbying and campaigning to advocate for the wellbeing of our clients by influencing policymakers (Popple & Leighninger, 2019). Policymakers, or elected officials, depend on lobbyists such as social workers to inform them of gaps in policies and their effectiveness (Popple & Leighninger, 2019). If a social worker was to be elected as an official, they would have the necessary first-hand knowledge on the needs of the community. This would allow for effective implementation of new or reformed policies. In addition, social workers would have the necessary means to evaluate the success of new or reformed policies.
My colleague’s experiences and opinions have allowed me to grow immensely in my knowledge and understanding. I value the ability to learn from my colleague’s unique experiences and viewpoints. By viewing through their lenses, I have grown as a person and realized that even if an obstacle is the same it can be viewed in a different perspective, as well as overcome in a different way. By knowing that, I can continually grow and learn from others life experiences as well as mine.
Reference
Popple, P. R., & Leighninger, L. (2019). The policy-based profession: An introduction to social welfare policy analysis for social workers (7th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education.
Discussion 2 Colleagues Post 2
Leann Kaufman
RE: Discussion 2
Top of Form
Social work advocates in politics are significant since they facilitate the development of policies that meet public needs. Therefore, the campaign about equitable distribution of resources among minority populations requires lobbying to facilitate its implementation. Social workers might have a powerful and positive impact as elected officials since they are committed to social values by sponsoring and voting for legislation that becomes a public policy (Ostrander et al., 2017). Moreover, social workers meet people’s needs through relevant policies that promote social justice, such as the equitable distribution of resources among minorities. Lobbying and campaigning in social work practice enable combining political contacts and public relations skills to represents an organization’s interests. Lobbying presents different views by providing significant information about the public to lawmakers.
Therefore, social workers might have a powerful and positive effect as elected officials since they understand various issues concerning the public. Usually, politicians are elected based on their policies in a democratic society, thus indicating a majority view by eliminating unjust policies (McClendon et al., 2020). My colleagues’ experiences have had a significant impact on social work by coordinating their efforts and those of others in advocating for better policies, such as equitable resources distribution among minority populations. Moreover, the steps required in incorporating policy advocacy involve the definition of objectives by engaging the opinion of colleagues to ensure they are realistic and achievable (Lane & Pritzker, 2018). Communicating with other individuals will ensure the accuracy and credibility of the policies. Considering the way in which I will engage various stakeholders through lobbying will be significant in incorporating policy advocacy. Furthermore, identifying other partners and reviewing advocacy guides will be relevant in policy incorporation and advocacy.
References
Lane, S. R., & Pritzker, S. (2018). Political social work: Using power to create social change. Springer.
McClendon, J., Lane, S. R., Ostrander, J., & Smith, T. R. (2020). Training social workers for political engagement: Exploring regional differences in the United States. Journal of Teaching in Social Work, 40(2), 147-168.
Ostrander, J. A., Lane, S., McClendon, J., Hayes, C., & Smith, T. R. (2017). Collective power to create political change: Increasing the political efficacy and engagement of social workers. Journal of Policy Practice, 16(3), 261-275.
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Required Readings
My initial post
Discussion 1
Change in policies
When an individual is sexually assaulted, the social worker helping them has a responsibility to tell them the procedure they should follow to report the case. There are policies that the victims should be advised to help them make decisions about the situation. In the case of Rita, there is a policy of 90 days window after the evidence is collected. When 90 days have elapsed after gathering evidence, it is destroyed even if the victim has not reported the case to the police. This policy may negatively impact since there are conflicting feelings that make a rape victim unable to make decisions. Therefore I would change this policy to a more extended period to allow victims to heal and get into a state where they can make decisions. For instance, a six-month period would enable the victim to seek therapy to have an approach to the situation (Scannell et al., 2018)I would also make it a policy for the court to provide the victim with security alongside professionals who help them emotionally. For instance, in the case of Rita, Bob threatens her to ensure she does not report the issue; probably this was a reason which contributed to her not being able to report the incident.
To evaluate the success of change in the policy, I would research how many victims have been able to report after six months compared to the 90 days. By ensuring security for the victims, I would also reach the numbers of the people coming out about being assaulted before the changes were made. If people are boldly coming out in large numbers, the policy is successful because it encourages people to speak up and report at a time appropriate to them.
References Scannell, M., Kim, T., & Guthrie, B. J. (2018). A meta-analysis of HIV postexposure prophylaxis among sexually assaulted patients in the United States. Journal of the Association of Nurses in AIDS Care, 29(1), 60-69.
Discussion 2
Role of lobbying and campaigning in social work practice
Through lobbying in social work, practice information is provided to the lawmakers. Also, alliances can be created to oppose laws or propose better ones. In addition, the non-profit can create awareness of the effects of public policy on communities and individuals, whether positive or negative. Through lobbyists, complex procedures are broken down so that the lawmakers and legislative staff who do not have time to research these matters can have a clear picture of the impact of the policy for change. Social workers can be effective if elected officials are aware of the problems that affect their societies (Ostrander et al., 2017). They are familiar with the policies, and they understand the effect of the approaches on the people. Therefore if given office, they can change the harmful policies and are also open to new ideas about policies they strive to implement. A social worker’s career focuses mainly on enhancing the well-being of people when elected to offices; they make good leaders because they are people-focused.
My colleagues have shaped my opinions and experiences powerfully. By interacting with them, I get to understand different things and also see things. The colleagues who are older in the job have impacted my career because they have more experience, and when I have a case, I can always ask for their help; therefore, they impact my understanding of cases, and I also get to understand human behavior and why clients behave in specific ways. My colleagues have also taught me to be more compassionate and patient with the clients and to put myself in their shows to understand them better.
References Ostrander, J. A., Lane, S., McClendon, J., Hayes, C., & Smith, T. R. (2017). Collective power to create political change: Increasing the political efficacy and engagement of social workers. Journal of Policy Practice, 16(3), 261-275.
Follow Rubric
Responsiveness to Directions
27 (27%) – 30 (30%) posting fully addresses all instruction prompts, including responding to the required number of peer posts.
Discussion Posting Content
27 (27%) – 30 (30%) Discussion posting demonstrates an excellent understanding of all of the concepts and key points presented in the text(s) and Learning Resources. Posting provides significant detail including multiple relevant examples, evidence from the readings and other scholarly sources, and discerning ideas.
Peer Feedback and Interaction
22.5 (22.5%) – 25 (25%) The feedback postings and responses to questions are excellent and fully contribute to the quality of interaction by offering constructive critique, suggestions, in-depth questions, additional resources, and stimulating thoughts and/or probes.
Writing
13.5 (13.5%) – 15 (15%)
Postings are well organized, use scholarly tone, contain original writing and proper paraphrasing, follow APA style, contain very few or no writing and/or spelling errors, and are fully consistent with graduate level writing style.
