That is the profession of Social Work (CSW) is a profession with great demand for human resources due to the fact that people in modern society increasingly face great pressure and risks, and need the attention and support of the community and society.
In our country, since 2010, when the Government issued the Project on Developing Social Work Profession for the 2010-2020 Period (Decision 32/2010/QD-TTg), officially considering social work as a science and a professional profession, this profession has begun to develop strongly.
Up to now, the whole country has only about 70,000 social workers.
Lack of skilled workers
In many countries around the world, social work has developed into a professional profession. In Vietnam, the social work profession has just begun to take shape and has not yet developed comprehensively in all aspects of this field.
In reality, the team of social workers develops spontaneously, mainly from mass organizations such as: Youth Union, Women's Union, Association, Elderly, Veterans Association, ward and commune cadres and even volunteers. They work mostly based on experience, without being trained in methods and necessary professional skills in social work. Therefore, the effectiveness of solving social problems, problems of individuals, families, groups and communities is not high, lacking sustainability.
According to a report by the Department of Social Protection (Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs) in 2018, the number of people needing social assistance nationwide is currently very large, about 22.5 million people, accounting for 25% of the population.
Of these, there are over 10 million elderly people without pensions; 7.6 million disabled people; 1.5 million children in special circumstances; 2.9 million poor and near-poor households, more than 1.8 million households needing monthly subsidies; about 254,000 people infected with HIV/AIDS, more than 234,000 drug addicts, more than 48,000 prostitutes; 30,000 victims of domestic violence and many women and children who are abused, trafficked, violated or wandering on the streets.
However, up to now, the whole country only has about 70,000 social workers, most of whom have not received formal training but only participated in short-term training and refresher courses.
According to Associate Professor, Dr. Nguyen Hoi Loan - Head of the Department of Social Work, Faculty of Sociology, University of Social Sciences and Humanities (VNU), the Vietnamese people have a valuable tradition of loving and caring for each other, and this value is very suitable for the social work industry.
"In the past, when a person was in trouble, the whole village would come together to help, but that was just charity work. Social work is completely different. It is a professional activity and requires social workers to have a philosophy and scientific methods to help disadvantaged groups in society face and overcome their own difficult problems.
That is why social workers, in addition to loving people, also need to master the knowledge and skills of the profession. And to do so, they must be properly trained," Associate Professor, Dr. Nguyen Hoi Loan said.
A charity event to help poor children
Reducing barriers and social inequality
Social work is a profession with the mission of helping, supporting, and caring for the unfortunate, those in special and difficult circumstances in the community, to help them integrate and have a better life. These can be the disabled, the poor, those who are unable to care for themselves, those with incurable diseases, or victims of political, social, or natural disasters.
Social work therefore plays a role in reducing barriers, injustice and inequality in society. And the social work profession is also known as the profession of compassion, sympathy and love.
Associate Professor, Dr. Nguyen Hoi Loan said that the Faculty's social work training program is almost no different from the training programs of developed countries such as the US, UK, France, Japan, and Korea. The Faculty trains students in 3 knowledge blocks:
The first is basic knowledge about Philosophy, History, Culture...
Second is the basic knowledge of the social work industry including: Human behavior, Social environment, Consulting...
Third is the specialized knowledge block, focusing on measures and fields of work such as: Social work with the poor, social work with the disabled, mentally ill, children, the elderly... In which, the amount of practical knowledge and internship in the classroom and at the facility accounts for 1/3 of the curriculum.
"Students practice in the form of intervention and assistance for specific vulnerable groups such as the elderly, street children, orphans... at social protection centers. They are trained under the guidance of teachers in theory and the careful supervision, guidance and instruction of staff at the facility right from the end of the first year until graduation.
Associate Professor, Dr. Nguyen Hoi Loan shared: "The nature of social work is a combination of social sciences and to ensure the effectiveness of social work, understanding the needs, psychology, culture, lifestyle... of disadvantaged groups is very necessary.
Currently, the Faculty has many relationships with famous universities in the world and together with these universities directly participate in training students. These include: San Jose State University, University of Michigan, University of Washington (USA); Shukuto-ku University, Fukushima University (Japan); Lund University (Sweden), University of Zurich (Switzerland)... In Vietnam, the Faculty has a network of internship facilities including: Social protection centers - Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs and support centers for children in difficult circumstances, disabled people, the elderly... organized by private sector.
Honored Profession
Assessing the demand for social workers, Associate Professor, Dr. Nguyen Hoi Loan said that the current development of society is and will create great pressure on both managers and the people. People have to face many difficulties and risks in life such as poverty, unemployment, economic downturn, natural disasters... People also have to endure great pressure on their mental life, which can easily lead to stress, anxiety, and illness.
On the other hand, the current problem of social stratification and the growing gap between poor and rich countries has led to an increase in the number of disadvantaged people in society.
That reality requires a team of professional human resources to do social work. Currently, nationwide there are 55 universities, colleges and 21 vocational training institutions training in social work with thousands of students graduating each year, but with the advantage of good theory, broad and deep knowledge, students of social work at the University of Social Sciences and Humanities can easily find jobs.
In fact, up to 90% of the Faculty's students have jobs within one year of graduation. "Social work plays a role in ensuring social security for the people and is a very effective means and tool to effectively put social policies and guidelines of the Party and State into practice.
The Government's investment of up to VND 2,347.4 billion to develop Project 32 on social work is clear evidence of this. Therefore, in the present and future, the social work profession will be increasingly respected and honored. This is an opportunity that students should seize at the present time," Associate Professor, Dr. Nguyen Hoi Loan emphasized.
Author:Minh Duc
Source:dantri.com.vn
