The Effects of Caring in Social Work Practice: The Importance of Addressing the Strains that Inevitably Accompany this Work for Social Worker's Health and in Maintaining High Level Practice

Please note viability for this workshop to go ahead will need to be made 2 weeks prior to the event date. So get in quick and register to secure your spot!

General Information

Social workers work with the most marginalised within our community, often in under resourced and overtaxed services. This work of providing engaged empathic care and intervention has its effects on workers. Worker’s health and well being is mirrored in the quality of the work we do and in addressing it therefore we also ensure high standards in our practice.

This workshop draws on the work of key thinkers in this area, Charles Figley, Babette Rothschild, Saakvitnae and Pearlman to offer the insights, skills and practices that they have researched to be effective in managing and addressing this ”cost of caring”.

The workshop will cover:

• What does caring cost us?
• A word about trauma.
• What is workplace stress? Defining Some Terms
• Risk Factors
• How we can observe in ourselves and others the affects of workplace stress
• Addressing the Affects
• Prevention, Self care and Transforming Effects: What You Can Do
• Self Care Plans

Who should attend?

All social workers

Learning Outcomes?

• An understanding of the terms of burnout, vicarious trauma, compassion fatigue, empathic strain

• How to identify these signs in yourself and work colleagues

• Risk factors

• Ways to address these effects

• Transforming the effects of vicarious trauma and empathic strain

• Developing your own self care plans

Meet the Presenter

Lois Whiteman has been practising social work for over thirty years, specialising in trauma therapy within a systemic framework of recovery in the last seventeen years. She has worked in private practice for the last fifteen years part time where she works with adult clients many of who present with complex trauma, depression, anxiety, and early life difficulties or other relational trauma. She also provides training and supervision to professionals from this base.

Lois’ private practice has occurred alongside her work with The Queensland Program of Assistance to Survivors of Torture and Trauma (QPASTT) where she has provided trauma therapy to people with refugee histories and clinical supervision and training to staff. Her current position at QPASTT is as part time Clinical Services Manager.

Lois has also practiced yoga for over twenty five years and became a registered yoga teacher in 2003. Her motivation to teach came out of engagement with clients as a social worker. She has provided yoga classes in the broader community; to clients who have experienced trauma, and, to counsellors and support workers.

Lois' professional interests include clinical supervision, depth psychology, the modalities of sand tray, dream work and somatic approaches, particularly yoga.

Venue

C&K Kedron, Training Room 1, 257 Gympie Road, Kedron Qld 4031
Please note there is no parking onsite, however plenty of street parking in Sadlier & Emerald Streets and Leckie Road.

7 November 2019 - 9.00am - 4.15pm

Registration from 8.45am

Fruit will be provided for morning and afternoon tea, with a fully catered lunch.

CPD: 6 Hours

Members - Please log on to the website prior to registering to take advantage of the member rates.

Please note viability for this workshop to go ahead will need to be made 2 weeks prior to the event date. So get in quick and register to secure your spot!