The Mental Health Social Worker

For Immediate Release
January 14, 2009

Contact:
Gail Woods Waller
202-336-8236 gwaller@naswdc.org

James Finley
202-336-8315 
jfinley@naswdc.org

Nation’s Social Workers Urge Congress to Act in Economic Recovery Plan

Washington –The National Association of Social Workers (NASW) urges Congress to include provisions in the economic recovery bill that encourage the development of a national interoperable health information infrastructure (HIT), provided it includes comprehensive statutory protections for the privacy and security of consumer health records.  NASW supports privacy and security for personal health records as an essential element of HIT legislation, now being prepared for passage.

The National Association of Social Workers (NASW) is the largest professional social work organization in the world with nearly 150,000 members. NASW promotes, develops, and protects the provision of effective social work services to diverse client populations, most of whom expect confidentiality to be an important component of clinical services.   

NASW supports the development of a national interoperable HIT network because it offers the possibility of improved care for clients and patients.  However, such a network also entails a major risk to consumers, where personal records in a standardized system will be vulnerable to intentional or negligent disclosure on a massive scale.  The possible loss of privacy and related problems is of grave concern.

NASW asks Congress to take a truly patient-centered approach to health IT by addressing use of a national electronic health information system in the core concept of a health professional’s ethics. Informed consent must be obtained for the disclosure of every individual’s identifiable health information. Continue reading ‘NASW Seeks Privacy Protections for Personal Health Records’

Commendation honors NASW Foundation’s sound fiscal management

Washington –The National Association of Social Workers Foundation (NASW Foundation) has achieved its third consecutive 4-star rating from Charity Navigator, America’s premier charity evaluator.  This honor notes the ability of the NASW Foundation to efficiently manage and grow its finances.  The NASW Foundation is among only 10% of the charities that Charity Navigator evaluates receiving their highest rating for three consecutive years.

“The National Association of Social Workers Foundation is honored to have received the 4-star rating from Charity Navigator year in and year out,” says Robert Arnold, director of the NASW Foundation.  “This commendation assures our donors and other partners that we are furthering the mission of the NASW Foundation in a fiscally responsible way.”

While always acting as society’s safety net, social workers and their services will be in increasing demand in the coming years, particularly in these troubled economic times.  The NASW Foundation supports social workers in their work on behalf of individuals, families and communities.  (more…)

Ever since the 1970’s, divorce has become commonplace. In fact, the definition of family has changed dramatically. Less than fifty percent of families are intact families with the original mother and father. Families now include single heads of households—with women as the head of household, couples living together and step-families that become “blended” through divorce and re-marriage. (more…)

Dr. Dorothy I. Height Joined U.S. Congressmen Ed Towns and Chris Shays Today to Seek Support for H.R. 5447, The Dorothy I. Height and Whitney M. Young, Jr. Social Work Reinvestment Act

Rep. Christopher Shays (R-CT), Rep. Edolphus Towns (D-NY), Dorothy I. Height, Dr. Elizabeth J Clark, PhD, ACSW

WASHINGTON—Congress is being asked to help the nation’s 600,000 professional social workers better serve families and communities in need.  U.S. Representative Edolphus Towns (D-NY) has introduced a bill that will establish a Social Work Reinvestment Commission to study policy issues associated with recruitment, retention, research and reinvestment in the profession of social work, and will support replicable programs of excellence throughout the country. 

Original cosponsors include Rep. Christopher Shays (R-CT), Rep. Susan Davis (D-CA), Rep. Ciro Rodriguez (D-TX), Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA), Rep. Luis Gutierrez (D-IL), and Rep. Stephanie Tubbs Jones (D-OH).

The United States is experiencing unprecedented levels of human, social service and health care needs.  These needs now transcend social and economic strata, affect the old and the young, and place tremendous burdens on those in the middle.  As a result, millions of Americans, from all walks of life, are served daily by social workers.  (more…)

ADHD brain maturation delay
(Video, MP4 File)

In youth with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), the brain matures in a normal pattern but is delayed three years in some regions, on average, compared to youth without the disorder, an imaging study by researchers at the National Institutes of Health’s (NIH) National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) has revealed. The delay in ADHD was most prominent in regions at the front of the brain’s outer mantle (cortex), important for the ability to control thinking, attention and planning.  Otherwise, both groups showed a similar back-to-front wave of brain maturation with different areas peaking in thickness at different times (see movie below). (more…)

By Elizabeth J. Clark, Ph.D., ACSW, MPH

My column for the News always needs to be written about six weeks before publication. Therefore, I am writing this early while vacationing at Glacier National Park in western Montana. My husband and I have been coming to this same location for almost 20 years.

In many ways Glacier seems unchanged – the scenery magnificent, the wildlife plentiful, the hiking trails familiar. Yet, global warming is taking its toll. The glaciers have shrunk markedly; some no longer exist at all. In fact, there is now a program here called “Good-bye to the Glaciers” that gives an update on what the disappearance of the glaciers will mean to the park. It is so dry that forest fires have been a particular challenge this year, and several of the streams and waterfalls we usually visit have completely dried up. There is as much brown on the mountainside as there is green. (more…)

NASW and NASW-NJ submitted amici curiae brief to support same sex couples

Edison, NJ – In a landmark decision, the New Jersey Supreme Judicial Court ruled that the state must amend its marriage statutes or create an equivalent legal structure for same-sex couples.  The National Association of Social Workers (NASW) and its New Jersey Chapter (NASW-NJ) laud the court’s holding that there is no legitimate governmental purpose to denying the financial and social benefits and privileges of marriage to same-sex couples while acknowledging that this falls short of recognizing a right to marry.

The New Jersey justices unanimously agreed in Lewis v. Harris, that “denying the rights and benefits to committed same-sex couples that are statutorily given to the heterosexual counterparts violates the equal protection guarantee” of the New Jersey State Constitution.   However, in a 4 – 3 ruling the court failed to recognize that these rights must be afforded the title of marriage and left that decision to the “political process.”  The court also recognized that same-sex couples may refer to their relationships by any term they choose and to have religious ceremonies honoring such commitments.  NASW and NASW-NJ filed an amici curiae brief in support of the plaintiffs. (more…)

NASW signs on to Amicus Brief with other human rights organizations

Washington – Upholding the profession of social work’s commitment to human rights and social justice, the National Association of Social Workers (NASW) supports the ability of Guantanamo detainees to challenge their detention through our Constitutional system of  government checks and balances.

The cases, Boumediene v. Bush and Al Odah v. U.S., represent a clear violation of the rights of these detainees to gain access to the courts and to question the legality of their detention.  The cases do not directly address the innocence or guilt of the detainees, but rather the circumstances in which they are being held and their access to independent judicial review.

”Social workers uphold the key tenents of the profession – social justice and human rights — by taking a stand  against the unchecked use of power by the executive branch,” said Dr. Elvira Craig de Silva, NASW president.  “We serve as advocates so that everyone may have access to justice and basic legal rights under our Constitutional system of government.”

The NASW Code of Ethics notes that one of the core values of the profession is social justice.  To achieve social justice, governments must be able to guarantee  access to due process of law.

Habeas corpus is one of the fundamental elements of the U.S. legal system.  To strip courts of jurisdiction to review the legality of the detention overrides the detainees’ human rights.  Social workers’ abiding concern for social justice and human rights underlies our vision of equal access to justice for all people, regardless of where they are detained and for what reason.

The Amicus Brief was filed by The Constitution Project, Human Rights First, Human Rights Watch and The Rutherford Institute through the efforts of a pro bono legal team from Fulbright & Jaworski in Washington, DC.  NASW, along with a coalition of other non-governmental organizations, signed on to the brief, which was filed August 24, 2007.

For more information about this and other briefs that NASW files on behalf of the social work profession, please visit the NASW Legal Defense Fund.

About the National Association of Social Workers
The National Association of Social Workers (NASW), in Washington, D.C., is the largest membership organization of professional social workers with 150,000 members.  It promotes, develops, and protects the practice of social work and social workers.  NASW also seeks to enhance the well-being of individuals, families, and communities through its advocacy.

The Kansas City Star, Mo. – September 18, 2007Sep. 18–Just saying no may be easier said than done when it comes to drinking, smoking, drug use and overeating.

But can a regimen of brain training, stretching and martial arts strengthen resolve and lead to healthier decision-making?

Two Avila University psychology professors want to find out whether mindfulness training, used for decades to help people deal with stress, can be tailored to the decision-making process.

The professors, Maria Hunt and Delany Dean, say that much like a weightlifter repeatedly pressing a dumbbell to strengthen a bicep, repeating certain mind-control exercises along with meditation and goal setting might help students, faculty and staff resist cravings and impulsive behavior. And help students focus better on academics. (more…)

Experts suggest link between warnings, startling new trend

By Judith Graham | Tribune staff reporter

September 7, 2007

Suicide rates for preteens and teenagers increased sharply when the Food and Drug Administration slapped a “black box” warning on anti-depressants and doctors started writing fewer prescriptions for young people, according to federal data released Thursday.The FDA’s warning, publicly debated in 2003 and enacted in 2004, highlighted a link between anti-depressant use by young people and suicidal thoughts and behavior. But now some experts are asking whether the message backfired.

(more…)

Same Research Finds No Direct Effect on ‘Bad’ Cholesterol

SAN FRANCISCO—Older white men who are better able to cope with stress experience higher levels of so-called “good cholesterol” than men who are more hostile or socially isolated, according to a study released at the 115th Annual Convention of the American Psychological Association.

But that same coping ability had no effect on the subjects’ “bad cholesterol” levels, the research found.

(more…)

By Elizabeth J. Clark, Ph.D., ACSW, MPH

Over the past two years, the concept of social work advocacy for social justice has been under attack. In 2005, the Chronicle of Higher Education published an article regarding a request from the National Association of Scholars asking the U.S. Department of Education to investigate the Council on Social Work Education for “politicized standards” — encouraging universities to evaluate students based on “their commitment to social justice.” Several social work groups responded to this challenge.

NASW responded by emphasizing that “professional education is the vehicle through which members of a discipline become acquainted with the theoretical foundation and the knowledge base of a profession. It is also the method for socializing new entrants about a profession’s values and ethical standards. Consequently, the social work profession has not only the right, but the responsibility of assuring that new professionals understand the profession’s ethical and philosophical underpinnings.”

Our response concluded by stating, “NASW proudly embraces and supports the guiding value of social work justice in social work education and practice.”

Also in 2005, social work advocacy came under public scrutiny. Emily Brooker, a social work student at Missouri State University, with the help of the conservative Alliance Defense Fund, sued the university in federal court for religious persecution. The suit was based on an assignment related to advocacy that Ms. Brooker claimed violated her Christian beliefs. She alleged that she was given a poor grade because of her refusal to sign a letter supporting adoptions by gay couples.

Ms. Brooker was enrolled in a course being taught by social work professor Frank Kauffman. The syllabus for the course indicated that the course included the advocacy element of social work.

The university settled the lawsuit out of court, so Ms. Brooker’s allegations were never proven or discounted. According to a recent article (March 2007) by Alan Cooperman in The Washington Post, both Kauffman and Brooker “insist they were misunderstood.” Kauffman, a former assistant pastor in the Assemblies of God church, maintains that in the classroom, he has always given equal time to everyone’s views.

Why is this issue still getting media attention in 2007? Partly this is due to the fact that in April 2007, the Missouri House of Representatives passed the Emily Brooker Intellectual Diversity Act with the goal of protecting students from “viewpoint discrimination.”

Also related to this issue, in March, Stanley Fish wrote an editorial titled “Advocacy and Teaching” for The New York Times in which he stated that “advocacy is just not what should be going on in a university.” NASW President Elvira Craig de Silva sent a letter to the editor of the Times in which she clarified that “social work requires its members to advocate for individual clients and for systemic reform that improves communities.”

As social workers, we all must stand to differ with individuals and groups such as Stanley Fish, the Alliance Defense Fund, the National Association of Scholars and the Missouri House of Representatives. We cannot allow other groups or individuals to define or limit our profession.

Advocacy is the cornerstone on which social work is built. It is so important that it is framed in three sections of our Code of Ethics. Advocacy for individuals, communities and systems is not just a suggested activity for social workers. It’s not a “do it if you have some extra time” or a “do it if the inequity and disparity are very great” activity. It is a requisite.

Most of us came to the profession of social work to make a difference, to bring about positive social change, to better society. We could have chosen other professions that focus mainly on the individual, on intrapsychic issues rather than on the person-in-the-environment. We could have chosen psychiatry, psychology, mental health counseling or psychiatric nursing. We didn’t.

We became social workers and committed our careers to working not just with, but on behalf of, others. We work towards ensuring healthy individuals, functioning communities and a better society. That’s where advocacy comes into the picture. The Social Work Dictionary defines “advocacy” as “the act of directly representing or defending others — of championing the rights of individuals or communities through direct interventions or through empowerment.”

If being a social worker means standing up for others — all others — and trying to better society, then our critics are correct. We are guilty as charged — and we are unapologetic. Without advocacy, there would be no social work profession. And without social workers, this country would be a much less hospitable and caring place.

To comment to Elizabeth J. Clark: newscolumn@naswdc.org