The purpose of this weeks blog is to vent about crunch time and issues regarding social justice. I had some catch up work to do and finally finished my learning agreement. I spoke to my supervisor about internship two weeks ago and still have heard nothing back- such a slow process that is out of my control and I dont really want to feel like a pest. With the book report due next week and only having one chapter read is pushing me into overload. I still have two competency journals due for 555, the case study for 540, and the book report in this class.
On a celebratory note we almost made it through another semester!! I am so proud to be on this journey with you all. You all are so great and to think I almost had to drop this semester. I was saddened by the news of Karin not being able to continue her teaching, I enjoyed her class, the flow of it and the work load was just right. We were able to witness how they are also not immune to bureaucratic rules within organizations. I am glad she shared that with us because it helped me to understand things are not always within our limits of control.
Which leads to my next problem I faced this week on the job. Without going into great detail, my job as a social worker lead me to assist two clients in finding housing. Recently both clients were off conservator-ship and wanted to find independent housing. Both clients have stable history of two years at a room and board. One client was denied due to not being able to provide proof of the year she was homeless. They asked her for documentation of where she stayed or if she could find someone to write a note stating they saw her living homeless. The other client was not denied but needed to call each hospital she stayed to verify her residence. She stayed at four different psychiatric care facilities. She learned that some hospitals will not release information to apartment complexes. These are just a few of the issues our clients face with regard to social justice in finding adequate housing. Landlords have the right to say no to whoever they want and when they know our clients have mental illness they do not want to work with them. They create barriers and make up lies to not rent to them. I plan this week to visit the rights advocate about this matter to see if there are laws in regards to confidentiality.
I can relate to concerns about how all the work will get done! It seems like the end of the semester is so close, and yet so far. I was also disappointed that Karin can't be part of the program. I really liked the practical experience she brought. That sounds really difficult trying to help clients with housing. That is always such an important and difficult issue. I'm glad you are making some extra efforts to see what options are available to assist them.
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