ABSTRACT
Unfortunately, as a result of rapid change and increasing role complexity, as well as a chronic lack of resources in some agencies, social workers may still find themselves with high case loads, pressure to take on the most complex work early in their careers, little support from managers and inadequate supervision. Nonetheless, for well intentioned reasons, they continue trying to do their best for their service users. Often this is at personal cost and they can inadvertently find themselves out of their professional depth. Therefore, a social worker’s sense of personal well-being about occupying their role, together with necessary support, is critical for their service users and for their own mental health. It is important that, given the challenging nature of the work, social workers can make conscious and accountable professional judgements and decisions, and still retain enough capacity to care for themselves, their families and friends and enjoy their leave, weekends and free time. These sources of renewal outside of work are essential for personal well-being. One sign of stress and overload is an ability to find time for family, friends and the activities that give you a sense of well-being. It is also important that the stresses associated with the job are supported by employers and not consistently taken home for families to resolve.
