On September 27, we celebrate Lithuanian Social Workers’ Day. This day is important to our team because we have a large number of social workers and social worker assistants, and we always commemorate it.
I believe that it is important not only on this day, but also from time to time, to reflect on our professional activities, what our community and society expect from us, whether we are happy to have chosen this profession, and how we ourselves evaluate our work.
I invited the social workers at our institution to reflect and share their thoughts about their decision to work in social services, the meaning they see in their work in today’s society, what expectations they feel from society, what inspires them to “recharge their batteries,” what they learn, and how they improve their professional practice.
Social Worker Aušra Žukauskienė: “Social work has many definitions that have very similar meanings. To me, social work is a daily challenge to myself, finding constructive solutions in certain situations involving a client or a group of clients.
One of the greatest advantages of social work is a strong relationship based on trust with the client and their guardian or family member. If you find the right approach to your client, you can achieve rewarding results. However, if there is no strong relationship of mutual trust between the social worker and the client, the results will not be satisfactory. Today, my client group consists of adults with intellectual and complex disabilities. Most people believe that adults with intellectual and complex disabilities cannot achieve anything new or learn anything. However, I have seen the opposite. There are some clients who learn to sort waste perfectly and even teach others how to do it. There are also those who learn to put dirty dishes into the dishwasher. No matter what new skill a person with a disability acquires in life, it is extremely valuable because learning something new makes them less dependent on staff. In most cases, this gives clients greater confidence in themselves and their abilities. When they see positive results, the clients themselves eventually become motivated and goal-oriented individuals.
The most difficult aspect of social work is burnout, perhaps not even physical burnout, but emotional burnout. When you become emotionally exhausted and apathetic towards your work and your clients, they notice it very quickly. Naturally, such a state of mind in an employee also affects the clients. Therefore, it is very important to assess your own well-being in time and, if necessary, ask for help. I often have to ask for help from colleagues, because they are accustomed to helping others, especially people with disabilities.”
Social Worker Šarūnas Vainius Suchovas: “Society places high expectations on social workers and expects quick results. At the same time, it unjustifiably and undeservedly undervalues the profession itself, its need, and its specialists. I see a paradox here. A social worker strengthens people’s social functioning, provides consultations in a methodical manner, gives information, acts as an intermediary, and represents them. By working in this field and feeling that I am fulfilling my abilities and can continuously learn and improve, my life becomes meaningful.
I am inspired by the support of my colleagues, a creative approach to work, new challenges, and an understanding of how important and necessary the mission we carry out is.
To avoid burnout syndrome, self-awareness, deepening my knowledge and continuous learning help me, as does not allowing failures to discourage me. I try to maintain a healthy daily routine, take care of myself, stay physically active, and avoid ‘bringing’ work-related problems home.”
Social Worker Aurika Lazdauskienė: “I have worked in various fields, but I have always felt that I am very sensitive to other people’s misfortunes and failures. I have always tried to help as much as I could, encouraged and motivated others. I never tried to do for another person what they could and should do themselves; instead, I looked for ways to involve them in activities and other tasks. Of course, after living abroad and returning home, I experienced quite a shock. Since I am a person who likes challenges, I decided that social work would suit me best. I began studying and working in my chosen profession. I am very happy that I found ‘my place’ and that I do the work I love. Fourteen men with intellectual, physical, and complex disabilities live in my unit. I never doubt my abilities because I have university-level knowledge (a Master’s degree in Social Work), continuously improve my skills through various training courses and seminars, read various academic articles, and, most importantly, I have an innate way of communicating that is essential in social work. I am very happy to see that even a short interaction can positively affect a resident who has been in a very poor mood for a long time. I see how they change, feel no tension, communicate warmly and openly, enjoy various new experiences, confidently make suggestions, and willingly participate in different activities. Of course, I try to improve not only the psychological environment as much as possible, but also the physical one. I am constantly looking for new ideas, and together with the residents we improve and nurture our surroundings so that the home feels cosy and is a pleasant place to return to. I always listen to the residents and try to meet their needs. Seeing their shining eyes is the greatest recognition of my work.”
“Sometimes I feel very tired and exhausted. At such times, I try to meditate, read books, and search online for psychological and philosophical articles. This helps me better understand myself and my current state, identify the causes of problems, and change my way of thinking and my attitude towards the world around me and myself.”
Head of Department Neringa Žalėnė: “I chose the social work profession because of my strong interest in the social problems faced by various individuals, groups, and communities. Out of curiosity, I searched for information about the causes and consequences of various social phenomena, although such information was still difficult to access and rather limited at the time. Today, I continue to be most interested in social work challenges, new movements representing the interests of various groups, and volunteering initiatives in which I want to become involved. It is important for me to continuously broaden my professional horizons.
Head of Department Neringa Žalėnė: “I chose the social work profession because of my strong interest in the social problems faced by various individuals, groups, and communities. Out of curiosity, I searched for information about the causes and consequences of various social phenomena, although such information was still difficult to access and rather limited at the time. Today, I continue to be most interested in social work challenges, new movements representing the interests of various groups, and volunteering initiatives in which I want to become involved. It is important for me to continuously broaden my professional horizons.
During my social work studies, street youth work and Roma inclusion projects were being developed. At the time, these were new and impressive areas of social work associated with social innovation. As society becomes increasingly globalised and its needs constantly change, I see how significantly social work has evolved: working with victims of human trafficking, working with refugees and people who have been granted asylum, and working with people experiencing specific crises. Today, social workers have far more opportunities and choices, which genuinely makes me happy. I draw on my colleagues’ professional experience and seek to understand the essence and methods of their support, the added value their work brings to groups of service recipients, and how it affects society.
I have worked with people with intellectual disabilities for many years. It may seem that I know this target group very well and trust my knowledge and experience. I have faced many challenges and difficulties throughout my professional career. I believe in lifelong learning, so I know that I still have much to learn. At present, I am particularly interested in expanding the range of services and opportunities available to people with intellectual disabilities living in the community and in assistance provided by a personal assistant.”
“Today, social workers themselves are also actively involved in promoting their profession, and therefore society is already becoming familiar with the areas of activity assigned to them. Naturally, society’s expectations of social workers have also increased. I believe this is related to the growing range of competencies required of social workers. On the one hand, this is fair and justified. On the other hand, society expects social workers to quickly solve the complex, long-term, systemic problems faced by service recipients, while the social worker’s own expectations may be limited, and motivation and responsibility for one’s own life may gradually be transferred to the service recipient. Whenever I have the opportunity to represent my profession in discussions, I always emphasize this point, because I believe that in this way I contribute to educating society about social work.”
Social Worker Alina Šukevič: “I started working in social work seven years ago, just a few months after graduating from university. I asked myself: will I be able to handle everything? I think this was a reasonable question, because any activity in which you have no experience always causes some inner anxiety. After all, I moved from theoretical learning to practical work. Can you imagine? The unknown was frightening and unsettling, and at times even terrifying. But it – that uncertainty – did not defeat me.
Now the uncertainty of the past no longer frightens me. What was unknown to me seven years ago has become my experience. It taught me not to fear the uncertainty of the future; it taught me to act and not give up. It is what opens up opportunities, motivates me to look for solutions and embrace new ideas. Thanks to it – to that uncertainty of mine – I want to keep improving. This has been my long, although perhaps to some it may seem short, journey towards developing a complete professional identity.
I am a person who values Freedom. Freedom Everywhere, for Everything, for Everyone, Always, in Everything, and so on endlessly. I strive to help the people I provide services to learn to experience freedom. Yes, specifically to ‘learn’, because many of them come from environments that taught them to be powerless, dependent on others, and passive observers of their own lives.
Social work is a profession of change, an activity that requires not only knowledge and competencies, but also initiative, creativity, and the generation of new ideas. Working in social work means continuously improving, applying the latest knowledge and methods relevant to the rapidly changing context of society. It requires constantly updating one’s knowledge in the legal, social, medical, and economic fields.
Society’s main expectation of the social work profession is to ‘cure’ people’s social problems. However, when society sets expectations, it must also contribute to fulfilling them rather than ‘hindering’ the process of change.
For example, in society, social workers are often described as ‘caregivers and cleaners’ or ‘food preparers’. Such statements imply that social work can be performed by people without education or professional competencies. Two separate roles must be distinguished: social work assistants, who may have only secondary education, and social workers, who must have higher education in social work and continuously improve their qualifications through various training courses, seminars and conferences, follow and become familiar with various legal acts and amendments, and have knowledge of social policy. They must also be able to identify problems and provide services based on the latest knowledge, carry out preventive activities, and perform advocacy social work in order to ensure clients’ rights or respond to violations of their rights and barriers to accessing services.”
“Furthermore, stigmatizing and discriminatory language is widely used in society to describe various groups of social work clients. For example, socially vulnerable people are referred to using terms with negative connotations such as ‘people in care’, ‘social dependants’, and ‘benefit recipients’, while social workers are described as ‘controllers’, ‘child removers’, or ‘benefit distributors’. The negative terms used when referring to socially vulnerable people and social workers reflect society’s negative attitudes and create a hierarchical relationship between the client and the professional, in which the latter holds greater power and status. A social worker should not be a figure of authority but rather a partner who builds a relationship based on mutual trust.
It is essential to strengthen clients’ trust in social workers by emphasizing that a social worker is a partner to the client/family in achieving change, a professional guided by scientific knowledge and legislation – and this is a shared responsibility of social workers and their clients towards society.
“I invite everyone to listen to one another, learn from one another, and hear each other’s expectations. After all, we experience a sense of purpose in taking action and pursuing change when we are heard, understood, and valued.”
These reflections by my colleagues on the meaning, importance, and values of social work inspire and strengthen me.
I sincerely thank the social workers at our institution for their dedication to their work, sensitivity, desire to improve, and contribution to the well-being of society. It is a pleasure to work with such people.
Deputy Director for Social Affairs
Virginija Paulauskytė
Last updated: