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Maira Baltina
Riga Stradins university (Republic of Latvia) Faculty of Public health and Social welfare A program of professional Master studies "Social work", 2ndyear
SOCIAL REHABILITATION FOR DISADVANTAGED FAMILIES
Annotation:
In family support and preservation services, the worker assists the family in identifying strengths, needs, and current resources in order to create a plan to address their concerns and help them achieve their goals.
Dysfunctional and disadvantaged family systems can be improved with appropriate support structures. The goal of family preservation services is to maintain children within their families, or to reunite them, whenever it can be done safely.
A set of activities aimed at rehabilitation and improving the functional capability of people and their inclusion in the society. Social rehabilitation measures are very extensive. The aim is to reintegrate clients back into the work environment.
Disadvantaged families marked by a deprived home environment especially of the necessities of life or healthy environmental influences; examples: a childhood that was unhappy and deprived, family unable to provide for its members financially, family that is unsupportive or abusive to each other.
We believe the future of SF is in creating a "new normal" for child and family serving organizations and systems, so that they see their work as building protective and promoting factors to reduce the potential for child maltreatment, to bolster resilience and mitigate the impact of traumatic events when they occur, AND to create the best possible environment for development of children and youth.
Keywords:
social rehabilitation, disadvantaged families.
"At first, I want to instruct in the explanation of terms, may should have informed you more easily about social rehabilitation for disadvantaged families, by Latvian practice. This theme is very burning question, when everybody to think about life, evolution, the future and survival, have some financial difficulties - a rough time for the culture and household needs.
Families problems are like a 'decuman wave', when only together we can to help them: to understand, to provide, to protect and to implement their rights, special needs and wishes. Because between the all families problems are also
'underwater stones of a peristalith' - a different dependence; violence; unemployment; low or medium welfare; criminality; demography; emigration & immigration crisis; social policy; environmental change; values change; intelligentsia; the couple & parentis divorce; unparented children; business objectives of parents; meaning of the life & ideology; educational level; preliminary experience; different relationships; social mobility; upbringing & family models; protection of children "s rights; human rights; roles, rights and responsibility of parents; complex and combined problems in the social, political, legal and cultural spheres; interindividual conflicts; communication management; under mass media influence; terrorism menace; etc."
■ Social rehabilitation - A set of activities aimed at rehabilitation and improving the functional capability of people and their inclusion in the society. Social rehabilitation measures are very extensive. The aim is to reintegrate clients back into the work environment.
■ Disadvantaged/ dysfunctional family - marked by a deprived home environment especially of the necessities of life or healthy environmental influences; examples: a childhood that was unhappy and deprived, family unable to provide for its members financially, family that is unsupportive or abusive to each other.
■ Social Work with dysfunctional Families - Social work practice is guided by an established set of ethical standards. Social workers might find themselves in a dilemma, when a client accuses them of a breach of those standards.
» In many cases: Dysfunctional family systems can be improved with appropriate support structures. The goal of family preservation services is to maintain children within their families, or to reunite them, whenever it can be done safely.
» Family support and preservation services may be provided to different types of families involved with the child welfare system - birth or biological families, kinship families, foster families, and adoptive families - to enhance family functioning and to ensure child safety.
» In family support and preservation services, the worker assists the family in identifying strengths, needs, and current resources in order to create a plan to address their concerns and help them achieve their goals.
» Assessment is incorporated throughout the process and may take a number of different forms, but always with the family as partners in the process.
■ Disadvantaged families - they put free-living - their plans (the margin of survival) into harsh practice, which are against a dark background of society. From society - their attitude to disadvantaged families is disdainful, incomprehensible and also charitable. To these families - necessity of help, give them feeling a survival of the fittest by Darwinism- the battle of life and population menace. It's a 'crying injustice'!
We know them how a socio-cultural, socio-economical and socio-political periphery, the consumer society, marginalization and families at social risk group, when these families can feel ignorance of people, the class society continuation period and disequilibrium between each people relationships. But also these families - each and all - are the part of society and life, which are not
under a mask of friendship and charity. These families are like a person, who is rejected (from society, law, job or home).
A cat has nine lives, but for these families is only one possibility and life for: humanity, humanization, social protection and social care! Disadvantaged - it's a quality of life, it^s an indicator, that we need to help them, because only together we are one, we are the power of public voice!'"It's like a: scream in the calm, emptiness of phoenix, the blind dark, speechless calm, free emptiness. It^s then, when to somebody can to feel the loss keenly... It's a rift in the public health and social health, furthermore any government and legislation making -authority, autonomy, nation, mentality of Fatherland - secure foundation for the better future!"
Social work and social rehabilitation:
Social rehabilitation: The accident insurance providers also sponsor the activities of charitable organizations whose purposes are to promote the financial, social and cultural interests of the disabled. One aspect that is supported by the accident insurance providers is sport for the disabled.
■ Social rehabilitation means the renewal or improvement of person's social skills in order to bring him/her back to the social and work life by renewing the skills or training those which were lost due to various reasons.
■ The State funds such social rehabilitation services for persons with
disability.
■
provides:
Day Care Centre for people with intellectual disabilities
» Social care services » Social skills development » Leisure time activities
Integration in the labor market - job simulation or help finding jobs.
■ Social rehabilitation for persons with visual impairment -
within the framework of services, provider of social rehabilitation implements measures which change the impact of the loss of vision to person's ability to function in society. Social service is provided at the place of residence of the client or at provider the place of the social services.
■ Provider of social services explains the social rehabilitation programs and carries out the activities according to client's individual social rehabilitation plan.
■ Social rehabilitation for disabled with hearing impairment
- within the framework of services, provider of social rehabilitation implements measures which change the impact of hearing impairment to person's ability to function in the society.
■ For persons with functional impairment- state ensures social rehabilitation course. It is a body of measures that helps to learn to live with functional impairment, to get involved in social life etc. It includes elaboration of the individual social rehabilitation plan, training into adapting the environment
and using the aids in order to improve mobility and self-relience. In order to receive the service, one must apply to the Municipal social service.
Orphan's Courts and district court activity statistical information on disadvantaged families in Latvia:
The transition to new economic relations has affected the living standards of citizens. Social consequences, for the family caused by the inability to adapt to changing social and economic conditions are already being felt in the community. Is it just an individual family problem or can we identify some common trends in society? To answer this question, the changes should be looked at in the broader context.
Globalization now takes place all over the world, including Latvia. Globalization can be evaluated and described as the process by which people, organizations, markets, technology, finance and information are linked in one overall network across national borders. This process can result in creating products and ideas.
To be able to understand the impact of globalization on the development of social problems for high social-risk families and the problems of interaction, it is important to identify both positive and negative social and family changes taking place in the context of globalization.
Disadvantaged Families:
Various institutions and specialists have different interpretations of social risk or disadvantaged familiesas a definition.
Child protection professionals and social workers provide child protection support in assessing the child's care and upbringing conditions, according to the regulatory norms and professional expertise.
Social risk family may be defined as: families with difficult problems to be solved and limited ability to provide favorable living conditions for full development of all family members.
Social problems may relate to:
■ Family formation, development or breakdown (single-parent, large, with children or elderly people with disabilities, etc.)
■ Conditions affecting the state and society (low-income families, families with poor living conditions of refugee families, unemployed families, etc.)
■ Conditions affected by internal factors, family members' asocial behavior: alcoholism, drug addiction, delinquency, etc.
■ Typical factors that affect the "problem families" and the emergence of family problems:
■ Unemployment: Family breadwinners - unemployed parents -are unable to ensure the livelihood of the family, the children.
■ Low level of education: 1) prevents the possibility for parents to adapt and compete in the job market, 2) parents with low-level education affect children's learning and the number of children who do not attend school. 75% of children do not attend school because of social reasons.
■ Health problems: Lack of health care, lack of material resources result in neglected personal health and insufficient health protection. Difficulties with transport to rural families to receive medical care. Delayed diagnosis and treatment of disease, which complicates further treatment.
■ Low state family benefits: Social Security Code, in the chapter "Family Allowance" recommended that the state allowance for families with children must be 15% of the minimum wage, due to lack of funds Latvia is currently unable to fulfill this. Amount of allowance does not cover the necessary funds for children's education and upbringing. Often, for families with children State benefits is the only financial income.
■ Housing policy and rent: Socially vulnerable families with children due to poor income are unable to pay rent and utilities. Families with children are evicted from their apartments, if are not taken into account the child's right established by the Children's Rights Protection Law, and the Law on Orphan's Courts and Parish and are forced to live in unsuitable living conditions.
■ Transport facilities in rural areas: socially disadvantaged families have difficulty in entering the institutions and bodies, which are located only in regional centers, such as a psychologist, medical services, family support and counseling centers, etc. Public transport services are increasingly expensive. Transport problem also limits the opportunities for the rural population to seek employment and work in urban areas.
Family Preservation Services (FPS) are comprehensive, short term, intensive services for families delivered primarily in the home.
The services are designed to prevent the unnecessary out-of-home placement of children or to promote family reunion. (National Resource Center for Family Centered Practice, 1994)
They are "services for children and families designed to help families (including adoptive and extended families) at risk or in crisis."
Family support services are community-based services that assist and support parents in their role as caregivers. Family support services promote parental competency and healthy child development by helping parents enhance their strengths and resolve problems that can lead to child maltreatment, developmental delays, and family disruption.
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Focus Areas of Support:
■ Services are targeted to individual child and family needs
■ Family counseling
■ Parenting and other skills training
■ Housing assistance
■ Family budgeting
■ Stress management
■ Health/nutrition
■ Child development
■ Behavior management
■ Respite care for caregivers
■ Financial assistance
Strengthening Families is an integral part of the work of the Center for the Study of Social Policy.
Thriving children and families is our mission. We believe that this is achieved by building protective factors, reducing risk and creating opportunities for families.
Our particular everyday role is building capacity to do these things through community change, systems change and policy change. Four lenses frame all of our social work: results based analysis, ecological perspective, race equity and social justice and co-invested constituents.
Families, however, see services as a very small part of the many opportunities that exist in their communities, where much of the work of building protective factors is underway every day. With Strengthening Families, it's easier for service systems to align with the community opportunities that are critical to success for any family.
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Strengthening Families; Creating a New Normal
The role of the social worker as an advocate, negotiator or mediator:
■ The Social Worker needs to fully embrace her role and believe in the program model of a second chance.
■ Accepting that in many cases, parents can change with the right type of support systems around them.
■ The belief that children within dysfunctional family structures need to be protected, kept safe, not necessarily always removed from the family setting.
Advocacy = Education, support, accountability:
■ To prevent child maltreatment among risk-families through the provision of supportive family services.
■ To assure children's safety within the home and preserve intact families in which children have been maltreated, when the family's problems can be addressed effectively.
■ To address the problems of families whose children have been placed in foster care so that reunification may occur in a safe and stable manner in accordance with the Adoption and Safe Families Law.
■ To support adoptive families by providing support services as necessary so that they can make a lifetime commitment to their children.
References:
1. Blended family advantages-disadvantages. [tiessaiste]. Pieejams: http://www.ehow.com/info 8492.572 blended-family-advantages-disadvantages.html (atsauce 18.11.2015).
2. Blended family problems. (By Rachel Hanson). [tiessaiste]. Pieejams: http://family.lovetoknow.com/about-family-values/blended-family-problems (atsauce 19.11.2015).
3. Definition of family. (By Melissa Mayntz). [tiessaiste]. Pieejams: http://family.lovetoknow.com/definition-family (atsauce 17.11.2015).
4. Definition of family. (By Melissa Mayntz). Nuclear family. [tiessaiste]. Pieejams: http://family.lovetoknow.com/definition-nuclear-family (atsauce 17.11.2015).
5. Ekonomiska situacija problemu gimenes. Sociala atbalsta pakalpojumu pieejamiba un iespejas. (LR Labklajibas ministrijas Nodarbinatibas Valsts agenturas petijums). - Latvija, 2004-2006. [tiessaiste]. Pieejams:
http://www.nva.gov.lv/esf/docs/16 46aQb6Qbb32Qfo.33553553.doc (atsauce 01.11.2015).
6. Hopkins medicine: Health library. Physical medicine and rehabilitation effects of rehabilitation on the family. [tiessaiste]. Pieejams: http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/healthlibrary/conditions/physical medicine and rehabilitation/effects of rehabilitation on the family 85,P01157/ (atsauce 12.11.2015).
7. Latvijas Republikas Labklajibas ministrija (Ministry of Welfare of Republic of Latvia). Social rehabilitation. [tiessaiste]. Pieejams: http://www.lm.gov.lv/text/2096 (atsauce 14.11.2015).
8. Österreichische Sozialversicherung. Internetdienst der Sozialversicherung. Wartungsmeldung. [tiessaiste]. Pieejams: https://www.sozialversicherung.at/portal27/sec/portal/esv enportal/content/co ntenfWindow?contentid=10007.687481&actiQn=2 (atsauce 15.11.2015).
q. Rehabilitation and Protection Group. Social development and support. (Ministry of Social and Family Development). [tiessaiste]. Pieejams: http://app.msf.gov.sg/About-MSF/Our-People/Divisions-at-MSF/Social-Development-and-Support/Rehabilitation-and-Protection-Group/JuvenileHomesBranch Tatsauce 01.11.2015.].
10. Riska faktoru novertesanas kriteriji nelabveligajas gimenes. (Bernu un gimenu lietu ministrijas un Latvijas pasvaldibu konsultaciju centra Metodologiska seminara Barintiesu / Pagasttiesu un socialajiem darbiniekiem. Metodiskais materials). - Riga, 2005. [tiessaiste]. Pieejams: http://www.lm.gov.lv/upload/berns gimene/bernu tiesibas/riska fakt nelabv
gim.pdf (atsauce 29.10.2015).
11. Social rehabilitation. [tiessaiste]. Pieejams: http://www.siva.gov.lv/social-rehabilitation.html (atsauce 16.11.2015).
12. Sociala riska gimene. Socialais darbs skola 2016. (Uz jautajumiem atbildeja Daugavpils i7.vidusskolas socialais pedagogs Aina Vilcane). [tiessaiste]. Pieejams:
http://socialaisdarbs.lv/index.php?option=com content&task=view&id=311&Ite mid=60 (atsauce 03.11.2015).
13. Viviane Ngwa. "Social Work with Dysfunctional Families: The Social Worker's Perspective." (Licensed Clinical Social Worker. Academy of Certified Social Worker. - Riga, Latvia; November, 2013.). [tiessaiste]. Pieejams: http://www.psy.lv/templates/UserFiles/Documents/Social%20Work%20with%2 0Pysi'unctional%2QFamilies.ppt (atsauce 26.11.2015).
Thankfulness & reflection:
I want to say my personal 'Thank you so much!' for my possibility could be there in this wonderful scholastic-business trip in Germany, Mainz (8 days & 7 nights) -from the 6th to the13th December 2015, - promoting health in strain families and visited to "The National Agency for the Promotion of Health", accompanied by Prof. Dr. med. Ursula Rieke in Mainz! Thank you so much -she said it so practical and workable things, that I could understand, for exchange
advanced ideas, that I would like to adapt and to follow hers experience in social work practice!
My first impression about city Mainz - this city is like Bologna, because these both cities are similar to the Students World - allurements of large cities!
In my turn, 'Thank you so much!' to Nunnery, Pension, Conference center & Hotel "Haus Maria Frieden", in Mainz! I should like to go there, on later with motivated visit!
As well as, 'Thank you so much!' to: Mag. Art. M.A. Patricia Missler, Prof. Ruth Remmel Faflbender, Prof. Dr. Thomas Hermsen and Dr. Elke Bruck - for planning, organizing and managing "The 1th International Study Week 2015 "Integrated Intervention Concepts for Families with Complex Problem Areas"" and for possibility could be in the trip to Mainz, Wiesbaden, Frankfurt am Main - with visit to the "Christmas Market"!
Of course, my unfeigned 'Thank you!' to my colleagues -from Riga Stradins university - lecturer Marika Smirnova and course-mate Veronica Lawrence, who was with me as support base!
The following topics were covered during study week: 1) Theoretical building blocks: Families in precarious living circumstances; 2) Interdisciplinary intervention concepts, aiming towards support of families; 3) Socio-political developments; 4) Case studies on goals and possible courses of action in an International comparison; 5) Promotion of health in burdened families. The International Study week took place - as a cooperation between the falling partner universities and the Mainz Catholic University of Applied Sciences! For their part, each participant got 6 Credit Points according to the 4 ECTS, were given for motivated attendance and active participation in this International Study week in Mainz!
Therefore, 'Thank you so much' - for professional learning process (materials, work in groups, performance & presentations), exchange of experience, international cooperation between a lecturer's, students and partner universities: Riga Stradins university (Latvia); St. Petersburg State Institute of Psychology and Social work (The Russian Federation); Tula State Lev Tolstoy Pedagogical university (Russian Federation); Warsaw Cardinal Stefan Wyszynski university (Poland); Mainz Catholic University of Applied Sciences (Germany). It's a true worth of friendship and cooperation!
I got the invitation to do this during the study carrying time and I was so happy,that it was me to do this honorable student job - responsibility and honour. I will be open- I was so proud, now too!
Благодарность & рефлексия:
«Хотелось бы выразить огромную благодарность за уникальную возможность участия, плодотворную работу, сотрудничество и обмен опытом на неделе международного образования, которая проводилась с 6 по 13 декабря 2015 года в Майнце. Эти перемежающиеся дни научно-исследовательского процесса с отдыхом и экскурсией, были ценным приключением и международным опытом (масштабный строи знаний), особенно этот первый, неописуемый полёт в жизни - в Германию!
Свою личную и «несмолкаемую» благодарность, я хочу посвятить всем активно участвующим, в том числе: Рижскому университету имени Страдиньша (Латвийская Республика); Тульскому Государственному Педагогическому университету имени Л. Н. Толстого (Российская Федерация); Санкт-Петербургскому Государственному институту психологии и социальной работы (Российская Федерация); Варшавскому университету имени Кардинала Стефана Вышинского (Польская Республика), и, конечно, Майнцкому Католическому университету Прикладных наук (Германская Республика)!»
In photo: authoressof article, RSU student Maira Baltina in Germany (in the city Frankfurt am Main), on 12th December 2015./ Photoswastakenofauthoresspersonalphotoarchive/
На фото: автор статьи, студентка РУ им. Страдиньша Майра Я. Балтиня в Германии (в городе Майнц), 06.12.2015.-13.12.2015./ Фото взяты из персонального фото архива автора /
