Updated January 26, 2021 Many social workers have begun receiving COVID-19 vaccines. Vaccine distribution is being managed in phases and groups on a state level. The National Association of Social Workers (NASW) anticipates social workers fall in every phase depending on population served, level of direct client interaction, work setting, age and health status. How quickly social workers are inoculated and ... Read More »
Professional Education and Training
NASW seeking public comments on Clinical Social Workers in Private Practice: A Reference Manual
NASW’s Task Force for Private Practice Guidelines is seeking public comments for the document, Clinical Social Workers in Private Practice: A Reference Manual. This manual provides a useful set of guidelines for clinical social workers starting a private practice and for seasoned clinical social workers seeking specific information related to the practice and business side of a private practice. Your ... Read More »
Medicare Open Enrollment Ends December 7
By Chris Herman, MSW, LICSW Senior Practice Associate–Aging, NASW The annual Medicare Open Enrollment Period (OEP) ends on December 7. Seeking tips on enrollment for your clients, family members, or yourself? This blog provides a brief overview and links to multiple resources. During the OEP, Medicare beneficiaries can review, compare, and switch their prescription drug (Part D) and ... Read More »
Five Things Social Workers Need to Know About Alcohol and Pregnancy
By Diana Ling, MA, Outreach Program Coordinator, Health Behavior Research and Training Institute, Steve Hicks School of Social Work, University of Texas at Austin, and Takia Richardson, LICSW, LCSW, NASW Senior Practice Associate, Behavioral Health According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), about one in nine pregnant women say they have had at least one drink in ... Read More »
A Poem: The Foster Adolescent
By Cynthia Henderson, PhD, LICSW, LCSW-C I am caught between leaving childhood, some of the benefits that it brought or benefits taken away In route to adulthood, am I ready, my brain is still processing the shift and feeling it has gone astray So many things I may never see again, so many places I dreamed of, will they ever ... Read More »
Integrating Adolescent Brain Development Into Child Welfare Practice with Older Youth Curriculum, Other Materials
Integrating Adolescent Brain Development Curriculum The curriculum includes links to several on-line videos that are embedded in the curriculum. Four audio files and one video file can be downloaded from this page when using the curriculum. Integrating Adolescent Brain Development Handouts The curriculum indicates how and where these handouts are used. Integrating Adolescent Brain Development PowerPoint slides. PPT Slides Day ... Read More »
National Social Work Survey Shows Impacts of COVID-19 School Disruptions
As millions of preK-12 students return to school that will be largely virtual this fall due to the COVID-19 pandemic, a national study of school social workers (SSWs) highlights the need to address hunger, housing instability, health, mental health and other challenges that a high proportion of students are experiencing, especially low-income students.. The study, “Opening Schools Safely in the ... Read More »
NASW offers new training to help social workers, others, understand teen brain development
Why are adolescents sometimes more impulsive or make poor decisions, such as drinking, hanging with wrong crowd or dropping out of school? The reason could be because of brain development. Many people do not know the brains of youth do not fully develop until they are in their mid twenties, which is why they may behave in ways that bewilder ... Read More »
Protecting Women’s Health During the Coronavirus Pandemic
By Diana Ling, MA, Outreach Program Coordinator, Health Behavior Research and Training Institute, Steve Hicks School of Social Work, University of Texas at Austin, and Takia Richardson, LICSW, LCSW, NASW Senior Practice Associate, Behavioral Health National Women’s Health Week, May 10 through May 16, is an opportunity for all women to take five steps to better health: Eat healthy; exercise; ... Read More »
Social Work Ethics During the Time of Pandemic
By Andrea Murray, MSW, LICSW Senior Ethics Associate National Association of Social Workers The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has transformed every aspect of our lives over just a few weeks. The ethical dilemmas that have emerged would have been considered fodder for a disaster movie plot not too long ago, yet today these dilemmas are reality. “How do you avoid abandoning ... Read More »