Homeless Individuals in Social Services Setting

Homelessness is the condition of being without daily, customary access to regular shelter in a conventional housing unit, such as an apartment, a room in a hotel, or a house. A literal definition of homelessness hardly suffices if the state of homeless individuals is to be examined. The absence of physical comforts is nothing compared to the absence of human relationships taken for granted in household membership. The tearing away of human relationships will be the most important consideration in a social work setting, rather than the amenities that are typically available in a shelter of any sort. It should be pointed out that shelters do not constitute a home for the homeless, because they are not "regular" shelter in a "conventional" sense, and yet many who seek to serve the homeless believe that channelling vast amounts of money into homeless shelters will resolve the "homeless situation." Again, a look at the disintegrated and dysfunctional life patterns of such individuals shows that the physical discomforts of homelessness say le

. . .
ndency. The professional caseworker must also retain professional composure and retain a professional distance from his or her client. After a trusting relationship is established with the client, this, too, will be difficult, but the client may soon realize the benefit of such a relationship. "Friends" may sometimes let other friends down, but the social worker exists to help the client, whereas friends may have other itineraries. Retention of a formal structure of relating to the client should be reassuring to the client (there is a built-in structure and anticipated termination to the relationship), and the fact that a professional "does not drop the ball" should help to convince the client that the caseworker will be there to help. The professional-client relationship should be seen by the client as successful when termination does occur, because intervention has been successful enough that closure is possible. Conversely, when friends or intimates break off a relationship it can be devastating. There should be as little emotion-laden baggage in the caseworker-client relationship as possible. It is beneficial to list the five traits of a good social worker in outline form, with a brief description of each. Each will
. . .

Some common words found in the essay are:
IV Genuineness, Washington Times, , II Positive, Warmth Clients, A6 Lawmakers, Labor Statistics, social worker, homeless people, class text, homeless person, social service, management approach, social workers, gay teenagers, social services, social network, social service agencies, washington times 1993, Section A6, times 1993 a6, traits social worker, psycho-social assessment homeless,
Approximate Word count = 3342
Approximate Pages = 13 (250 words per page)

More Essays on Homeless Individuals in Social Services Setting