Video:Day in the life: Social worker

Transcript:Day in the life: Social worker

Hi, I am Nazly Jordan for About.com and today I am going to take you along in my job as a social worker.

Social Workers Can Be Independent Providers

I decided to be a fee-for-service social worker which means I get hired by different agencies so I am an independent provider. I work for myself. I usually get my cases from different agencies by email or over the phone. My day starts very early in the morning. I get up around eight o'clock and check to see if I have any cases. I try to get prepared the night before but sometimes there are extra cases that just appear in the morning. I get all my paper work ready and get mentally ready to start my day.

A Social Worker's Schedule Depends on the Case

My days can be long. I have to arrange my schedule depending on the families' schedule. Many parents work so I will have to do my visits after five o'clock. I work everywhere in the city. So I could go to Queens, Brooklyn or Manhattan. It all depends where they need me.Once I get to the family's home I enter the home and usually have my interview with the mom, dad or primary care giver of the family. I ask them several questions, I assess their environment and try to figure out what they need. I also test the child. I am able to see what the child is supposed to be doing depending on his/ her age.

Being a social worker has its high points and low points. Just this morning I visited a family when its children were removed due to allegations of abuse. That was very heart breaking. But in the afternoon when I visited another family I was able to help them. This family needed only resources and I was able to point them into the right direction to get that extra plate of food they needed. And that was great. My day usually ends with a lot of paperwork. Not only do I have to write reports for all the visits I have made that day, but I also have to follow up. If a family needs a specific service, I have to look for it and need to put them into the right direction.

The Social Work Job Involves Paperwork

There's a lot of work involved in being a social worker. Social worker can be a very stressful job. We get a lot of cases and we have a lot of paperwork to do. A social worker needs time to move away from the day-to-day stress of the job. I like to do sports. I like to run and to work out and spend some time with friends. Just to get me away from the day-to-day stress.

If you want more information about social worker or other careers, check out About.com.