Senior Social Workers and Their Roles in Society

Due to advances in technology and an ever-evolving medical industry, people are living a lot longer than they used to. More and more people are making it well into their golden years, and as a result, the world has a massive ageing population.

The growing number of elderly folk in society has increased the need for social care recruitment for senior citizens. When we think of social workers, we often think of child welfare, abused women or addiction problems.

However, there is a growing need for social workers that deal with the elderly and the everyday environmental problems that they experience. These are called geriatric social workers, and their importance is increasing along with our ageing population.

What are geriatric social workers?

According to Griswold Homecare, geriatric social workers “are concerned with the welfare of communities, families, and individuals. Specialising in adults 65 and over, geriatric social workers are trained to find solutions to help address the numerous environmental challenges that come with ageing.

In short, it is their priority to improve the quality of lives of their clients, and ultimately to help protect the elderly from those who might try to take advantage of their vulnerabilities.”

What education do they have?

The educational requirements for geriatric social workers usually requires a minimum of a bachelor’s degree in either social work or gerontology, though some geriatric social workers may also have nursing degrees. In addition, many states require geriatric social workers to become licenced. To take the social work licensure examination, aspiring social workers will likely have to complete about 3,000 hours of supervised fieldwork.

What do they do?

There are a number of different roles that geriatric social workers are responsible for. One of the most common issues that they deal with in their line of work is to create awareness around the various government programs that are available to help the elderly.

They deal with people over the age of 65 and ensure that they are aware of the different schemes that they can take advantage of to ensure they have a better quality of life in their golden years.

After making their clients aware of the grants and programs that are available to them, the social worker can then help them go through all the technical mumbo-jumbo to ensure they understand exactly how they can benefit.

The paperwork when applying for these programs, and could be beyond the capabilities of many of the elderly. Social workers are there to help them get through the documentation and ensure that they apply correctly.

They are also experts in the field and can, therefore, help their clients should they run into any issues with delivery, and they can also assist in identifying and obtaining funding for these schemes.

Another important service that geriatric social workers provide is counselling and therapy. The elderly can struggle with everyday tasks that we take for granted, and many may have trouble coping with old-age issues. Social workers help to facilitate smooth transitions from home-care to old-age facilities, and also with the loss of loved ones.

Senior social workers are there to provide protection for the elderly, but also to assist their families in handling the problems that come with having an aged family member. Any family that is struggling with the issues of having an aged loved one are free to enlist the services of a senior social worker to help ease the burden.