Social work profession and the Mahinda Chintanaya

Priscilla WELIKALA

WORKING WITH PEOPLE: The Head of State Mahinda Rajapaksa made a very important statement when handing over appointments to new secretaries of Cabinet Ministers "All of us are paid by the people who you should serve with the utmost responsibility and efficiency.

He also mentioned that from his experience he knew of Ministry Secretaries who even failed to recognize their own staff members and maintain a good rapport with them." (Daily News Saturday 3rd Feb)

The above very clearly explains what should be done and what should not be done when serving people. The fact that those who are expected to serve the people are there because of the people and that they are paid by the people is a fact that is ignored by many.

It must not be forgotten that the people whom we serve are always in the majority and they have contributed very much to bring "greatness" to people.

People are an important resource and human resource development should be the main objective of any programme implemented to serve people.

As it is what happens is that those who serve the people exert power over them as they control the resources and they decide what is important for the people. They do not believe that people have strengths and that these inner strengths could be maximised for their own self-development.

This is the reason for the failure of many programmes and the people remain where they are perpetuating a sense of dependency. Though we speak much about social development very often this is limited to the word itself as it does not touch the lives of the people in many instances.

At this point in time when much is spoken about the Mahinda Chintanaya and the development of a new Sri Lanka, it is very relevant to look at the contributions the Profession of Social Work could make to realise what is mentioned in this important document.

However it must be stated that social work is not considered a profession in this country.

Yet a well-known word is social services as serving the people in need as a charitable service, a meritorious or a philanthropic act is very popular.

Professional training of Social Workers started in this country in the 1950s and at this point in time the National Institute of Social Development is engaged in training professional social workers and is awarding a two-year Diploma after theoretical and practical training in the field.

They have already launched a Bachelor in Social Work Programme and steps are being taken to commence a Master in Social Work Programme.

It is very creditable that progress is being made in this field. As it is even those without any training in this field could engage in this work and that can be the main cause for the failure of some of the welfare programmes in the country.

In spite of the lack of acceptance or publicity for this professional Social Work programme it must be said that this is a very successful programme and every diploma holder passing out is assured of a job in a relevant field.

This is very different to what is happening in Universities after graduation when they have to adopt revolutionary strategies to get a job and sometimes when they are forced into a job with no job specific training they can continue to be a burden on the Organisation as well as the society.

The profession of social work is guided by professional values and practice principles. In working with people to build a new Sri Lanka what is important is not only Economic Development but Social Development as well.

Higher economic incomes must always lead to a better quality of life. Only then can we say that there is real development in the country. A Professional Social worker is trained to look at the totality of a person.

The person-in-environment perspective helps to understand the person and it is a fundamental theory of social work practice.

Some of the Social Work practice principles that help to work with people are given below. These if accepted and adhered to will help to change the out dated paradigms of many who are 'caged' in bureaucratic arrogance.

Acceptance

This means treating clients with respect and dignity, and believing in the unique strengths they possess and facilitating them to utilize their capacities for their growth and development.

It must always be remembered that we all belong to the human race and they must always be respected for what they can be. This acceptance of the person can be shown both verbally and non verbally.

This respect and genuine concern will help to develop trust and confidence and it is only then that you can help to maximize the potentials of people and help to become contributing citizens of society.

Individualisation

This affirms the uniqueness and distinctive characteristics of each individual. All human beings have a right "to be individuals and to be treated not just as a human being but as this human being with personal differences" (Biestek, 1957, p.25) No two individuals are alike Accepting the uniqueness of an individual enables those who serve the people to look at them with respect and dignity rather than mere "objects" or "cases"

Non-judgmentalism

This is to maintain non blaming attitudes towards those whom you serve. Judgmental attitudes and behaviours tend to shut down communication processes and create barriers to building good relationships.

In some instances judgmental attitudes prevent a person to look at a situation in an objective manner. These will adversely affect the maximizing of potentials of people thus affecting their own development.

Self determination

This is something very much ignored in serving people. There is no room for the client to decide as they have to fit into ready made programmers. The code of ethics of the social work profession upholds the client's rights to make their own decisions.

For growth from within to occur there must be freedom. When decisions are made by those who deliver the services what actually happens is to perpetuate the existing system and the people always remain at the receiving end.

We must always believe in the strengths of the people and assist them to actively participate in activities concerning their own development.

The above are some of the professional values and practice principles. It is very important to keep in mind that all people and all families have strengths. As a matter of fact every human being has both strengths and weaknesses.

The deficit model of individual and family assistance is where the inadequacies are over emphasised ignoring any strength they possess.

When this happens the recipients are not treated with any respect or dignity and they are not motivated to move out of dependency enhancing their own potentials for their self development.

This is the pattern existent in our country to day. Yet in professional social work training the strength based model of social work where people are encouraged to look at their own potentials are emphasised.

The Mahinda Chintanaya too explicitly mentions about working with individuals, families and communities paying due respects to the people.

This is very important for if we are to build a new Sri Lanka a change has to come not only to move people out of dependency but to make them contributing citizens of our country.

A paradigm shift for all from "top to bottom" is a need at this point in time as we work towards building a New Sri Lanka.

People are people

Who ever they be

Your Duty is to serve

With Love and Dignity

* * *

You earn a living

By serving them you see

They have a Right

To get served by thee.

* * *

Change your paradigm

Outdated and Arrogant

Remember you are there

Because of the PEOPLE.

(The writer is a professional social worker)