Domestic violence is not limited to same sex couples. It never has been. People have tried to ignore the fact that same sex partners have to deal with domestic violence relationships as heterosexual men and women do. People do not think that women will fight because they are too "caring" and "nurturing" to hurt anyone else. They think that men who are fighting can stand up for themselves because they are men. No one has really thought this issue through until recent years. Same sex domestic violence has not skyrocketed recently, it just so happens that it is the same rate for heterosexual men and women in relationships. According to rainbowdomesticviolence.itgo.com, this number is 30-40% for the GLBT (gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender) population and for heterosexual relationships.
Most of us know that abuse typically stems from some sort of control issue within the realtionship. Whether the abuse be sexual, physical, or emotional. When one person wants to control the other, he or she just assures them that they are worthless in some way or another until they do not feel like they can do it any longer. Typically, we hear of the male abusing the female in this type of relationship. These men feel that they need constant control over their environment, including the people within it. But what occurs concerning gender roles and same sex relationships? Is one partner always more dominating than the other, or do they switch roles based on their own strengths within a given situation? Gender role stereotyping is an issue among heterosexual couples when it comes to domestic violence research and prevention. More research needs to be done to determine how gender roles affect these relationships when each partner is the same sex.
After researching some of the sites on the Internet specific to outreach in same sex partner domestic violence, I see that all of the steps are the same for same sex relationships and for opposite sex relationships. Safety planning, emergency housing, crisis intervention and legal aide are a part of any domestic violence situation that has come to an end. The victim has to want to leave. The difference between heterosexual and homosexual relationships lies here: a man getting beat by a man probably doesn't feel like a man and that works for women being abused by other women as well. They are less likely to report such incidents due to embarrassment and people are less likely to believe that they are in danger when they finally do report. We cannot be sure how many incidents of domestic violence go unreported every year, whether it be same or opposite sex relationships.
The occurence of domestic abuse between same sex partners is slowly becoming recognized as a social and health issue, but since same sex partners are denied the right to marry in almost every state, they are not seen as a couple in the eyes of the law. In North Carolina, partners are defined as being the opposite sex who live or have lived together and/or share a minor child (Barnes, 1998). Same sex partners are not related by blood or by marriage, so it is difficult for their domestic disputes to be settled. "Although gender-neutral language in 37 jurisdictions implies protection of gay and lesbian domestic abuse victims, only four states have made this coverage explicit, either by the language of the statute (Hawaii) or by case law (Illinois, Kentucky, Ohio) (Seelau & Seelau, 2005). This fact might have changed since December of 2005, but with the continued resistance of the recognition of same sex partnerships in the context of a civil union or marriage, I can assume not much concern has been directed to the subject. One might think that this would make it easier for the victim to leave because he or she has no legal ties to the relationship or mutually biological children.
References:
Barnes, P. (1998). 'It's just a quarrel'. ABA Journal (84) 2. February, 1998. Retrieved Feb. 26, 2008 from Academic Search Premier.
Seelau, S.M., and Seelau, E.P. (2005). Gender-role stereotypes and perceptions of heterosexual, gay and lesbian domestic violence. Journal of Family Violence (20) 6. December, 2005. P. 363.
http://www.rainbowdomesticviolence.itgo.com
Monday, February 18, 2008
Professionalism
The definition of "professional" behavior according to Merriam-Webster's online dictionary is "exhibiting a courteous, conscientious, and generally businesslike manner in the workplace". What does this mean for a social worker? According to the NASW Code of Ethics, we have a commitment to the field of social work, our employer, our clients, and ourselves. This leaves a lot of room for conflict when situations arise that cause us to have decide one over importance of another. Our first commitment is to our clients (Code of Ethics, 1.01). In order to maintain a professional attitude as a social worker, we must put the best interest of the client before all other priorities. This means that social workers should maintain only their worker/client relationship with the client. The social worker should never date a client or engage with a relationship with him or her outside of the professional atmosphere (See Code of Ethics 1.09, 1.10, and 1.11). Having a dual relationship with a client is one of the most common reasons that social workers lose their licenses, but having a dual relationship with a colleague can be as damaging to the social worker. The client expects ethical behavior from you when it comes to confidentiality, billing and payment options, competence in his or her career, behaving in a respectful manner towards the client and other colleagues, and the client's consent to his or her treatment.
My practicum setting is a host setting. The ACTION Health Center for the Marion County Health Dept. does not only employ social workers. In fact, most of the social workers who have offices here, do not report here everyday. Health educators, nurses, and other case management type positions comprise this aspect of the Health Dept. Social workers are not the primary employees at the Health Dept. This means that not everyone here knows exactly what it is that I am doing here. For me, this is an all new experience in every way. I have always worked retail full-time and paid my own bills so I never really had time to try to volunteer within the community. I am not accustomed to a work atmosphere that requires a "professional use of self". I have to dress better than normal and really watch what I say. I am not so worried about bad language, but more about how the things that come out of my mouth affect the way people see me. This has taken a significant amount of morphing on my part. I began this practicum without a clue of what to expect from myself or the field instructor. Even though I have been here more than a month, I am still trying to get a feel for everything I should be doing and some sort of routine. I meet new people almost everyday. Some of them are not so willing and others want to kidnap you for their own intern. Every one is different. I am not the only social work intern here. We have four interns altogether under Byron. We can all relate to each other's situations because this is a new experience within a new setting so we are all adjusting, but I also have to be careful about what is said between interns, just as I would in any other setting.
A "professional use of self" in a practicum setting means behaving as if you were already a social worker in the field. While there is a bit of a grace period for acquiring knowledge when one is new to the field, there is no grace period for behavior adjustments. I have to uphold the Code of Ethics whether this is the work environment I am used to or not.
My practicum setting is a host setting. The ACTION Health Center for the Marion County Health Dept. does not only employ social workers. In fact, most of the social workers who have offices here, do not report here everyday. Health educators, nurses, and other case management type positions comprise this aspect of the Health Dept. Social workers are not the primary employees at the Health Dept. This means that not everyone here knows exactly what it is that I am doing here. For me, this is an all new experience in every way. I have always worked retail full-time and paid my own bills so I never really had time to try to volunteer within the community. I am not accustomed to a work atmosphere that requires a "professional use of self". I have to dress better than normal and really watch what I say. I am not so worried about bad language, but more about how the things that come out of my mouth affect the way people see me. This has taken a significant amount of morphing on my part. I began this practicum without a clue of what to expect from myself or the field instructor. Even though I have been here more than a month, I am still trying to get a feel for everything I should be doing and some sort of routine. I meet new people almost everyday. Some of them are not so willing and others want to kidnap you for their own intern. Every one is different. I am not the only social work intern here. We have four interns altogether under Byron. We can all relate to each other's situations because this is a new experience within a new setting so we are all adjusting, but I also have to be careful about what is said between interns, just as I would in any other setting.
A "professional use of self" in a practicum setting means behaving as if you were already a social worker in the field. While there is a bit of a grace period for acquiring knowledge when one is new to the field, there is no grace period for behavior adjustments. I have to uphold the Code of Ethics whether this is the work environment I am used to or not.
Week # 7
Monday, we, some of the other interns and I, met with several workers at the Health and Hospital Corporation Building. First, we met with Dana Reed-Wise who is the Bureau Chief of the environmental services at Marion County Health Department. She met with us briefly in the morning and discussed exactly what her position is with the Health Dept. and what the environmental side of health is in Marion County. She talked about new programs relatd to children and lead poisoning. Since the toys that were recalled for lead poisoning, the Health Dept. has had a need for testing toys and other items for lead. They can also do an assessment on your house to see if you are at risk for lead content and poisoning within the home. I thought that was a pretty quick response to the recent battery of lead toy recalls in the last few months.
Dana also discussed with us her current pressing issues as Bureau Chief. The most pressing at this time is abandoned housing. Many of these houses can be rehabilitated, but that can cost a lot of money that people just don't have right now. The housing market is horrible overall right now, but with the tax crisis in Marion County, it has lead to a lot of foreclosures and people simply abandoning their homes because they know that they will have to move out eventually anyway. The money just isn't there to tear down and rehabilitate houses as quickly as they need to be done.
Later, on Monday, we got to meet with Melissa Crawford and her assistant Debra. Melissa is a social worker with the Marion County Health Dept. and Debra is in school to become a social worker. Melissa's job is to follow-up on referrals she receives about a client's living condition. If someone in your neighborhood keeps trash everywhere or does not clean up after his or her animal(s), this is who will come to see them after the health inspector comes by. They have to go into people's homes and help sort out the mess. Though they do not spend most of their time literally "cleaning", they do have to do most of the referring of client's from that point. They deal with everything from mental health services, to home renovations, to roofers, plumbers, drywallers, electricians, services for the elderly, and even the coroner. Yes, they have been forced before to have police break down the door of a client's home because he or she did not answer their door when they came by previously. Tuesday, I worked in the office doing some research and reading for upcoming course objectives.
Dana also discussed with us her current pressing issues as Bureau Chief. The most pressing at this time is abandoned housing. Many of these houses can be rehabilitated, but that can cost a lot of money that people just don't have right now. The housing market is horrible overall right now, but with the tax crisis in Marion County, it has lead to a lot of foreclosures and people simply abandoning their homes because they know that they will have to move out eventually anyway. The money just isn't there to tear down and rehabilitate houses as quickly as they need to be done.
Later, on Monday, we got to meet with Melissa Crawford and her assistant Debra. Melissa is a social worker with the Marion County Health Dept. and Debra is in school to become a social worker. Melissa's job is to follow-up on referrals she receives about a client's living condition. If someone in your neighborhood keeps trash everywhere or does not clean up after his or her animal(s), this is who will come to see them after the health inspector comes by. They have to go into people's homes and help sort out the mess. Though they do not spend most of their time literally "cleaning", they do have to do most of the referring of client's from that point. They deal with everything from mental health services, to home renovations, to roofers, plumbers, drywallers, electricians, services for the elderly, and even the coroner. Yes, they have been forced before to have police break down the door of a client's home because he or she did not answer their door when they came by previously. Tuesday, I worked in the office doing some research and reading for upcoming course objectives.
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
Week #6
This week was crazy! Monday, another intern and I went on a field trip. First, we went to the Bellflower Clinic to take a tour and learn a little more about what exactly their duties are to the clients that they see. I thought is was interesting because I think that health education is important, especially when it comes to sexual health education. After the Bellflower, we went to Crispus Attucks to see the clinic that is actually a Marion County Health Department Clinic withn the school. Just one school-based clinic among many. We got to talk to a health educator about the services she provides to the students and another counselor who works in the school. Both of these nice women work out of the schools, but are actually Marion County Health Department employees. Interesting stuff. If that wasn't enough fun for one day, we got to meet with a production company to see about making an educational video. The man we met with has a history of working with the Health Dept. and violence prevention to make different videos. The idea for this one would be to follow an ex-gang member through his old neighborhood in Chicago.
Tuesday wasn't nearly as exciting as Monday. We, two other interns and I, went to visit the Indiana Chapter of the NASW. The executive director was very eager to take time out of her schedule and talk with us. She was also very open to questions. Her advice to us was to slow down, have fun, and enjoy our undergraduate years. Easy for her to say! No, really it was very interesting to see that the Indiana Chapter of NASW is really about three offices and a conference room. Not much space, but useful.
Tuesday wasn't nearly as exciting as Monday. We, two other interns and I, went to visit the Indiana Chapter of the NASW. The executive director was very eager to take time out of her schedule and talk with us. She was also very open to questions. Her advice to us was to slow down, have fun, and enjoy our undergraduate years. Easy for her to say! No, really it was very interesting to see that the Indiana Chapter of NASW is really about three offices and a conference room. Not much space, but useful.
Week #5
What a week! I worked again on my learning plan with my field instructor. Monday, we got to go visit the Juvenile Detention Center briefly to survey the space offered to the Violence Prevention Program for use as a resource center. This center is a possible spot for at-risk youth and students to access violence prevention materials and do research. It would also serve teachers in the area as a library for violence prevention curricula to be used within the classroom. This is only one possiblity. Tuesday, I worked a lot from home on my practicum projects that deal with research. I came into the ACTION Center for a couple of hours to work with my field instructor on my learning plan.
Wednesday was LEAD Day! Woo-hoo! LEAD Day was a pretty good learning experience. I appreciated the different discussion forums and lectures at the Sheraton. I attended the Women's Health and HIV/AIDS lecture and learned about several important bills relating to health education and laws pertaining to birth control. Interesting. I would have liked to have seen more instructors there cheering us on while we marched to the State House. A warning to dress casually also would have helped. All in all, it was an informative day, but I felt a little unprepared.
Wednesday was LEAD Day! Woo-hoo! LEAD Day was a pretty good learning experience. I appreciated the different discussion forums and lectures at the Sheraton. I attended the Women's Health and HIV/AIDS lecture and learned about several important bills relating to health education and laws pertaining to birth control. Interesting. I would have liked to have seen more instructors there cheering us on while we marched to the State House. A warning to dress casually also would have helped. All in all, it was an informative day, but I felt a little unprepared.
Sunday, February 3, 2008
Week #4
This week brought with it some new opportunites for working one on one with clients through some new programs (for the interns) at the Health Dept. Monday, I worked with my field instructor to try and finalize my learning plan. I started on some of the research that is involved in my learning plan. On Tuesday afternoon, I got to meet with Tara Parchman, who is part of the team that disperses monies throughout the Health and Hospital Corporation. She had some interesting facts to tell us and also commented on the fact that the tax cap in Marion County might have some effects on the Health and Hospital Corporation in the long run. Wednesday, I attended HIPAA and Bloodborne Pathogens training at the corporate buiding.
After taking the personality test online, I found out that I am a Guardian. (I think I took a similar personality test in high school that said the same thing.) This can be good or bad for me when working with people. Co-workers might think that I am snotty and do not want to become their work friends. This is true, I am not a fan of making friends at work and I do not like to gossip about other people at work. I have also had bad experiences with "work buddies" so I usually shy away from that for awhile, at least until I think that I can have some level of trust with someone at work. The people I work for, (for now, they are customers, but will be considered "clients" one day) always like me because I do what I can to help them and ask them questions about their lives.
I feel that one's personality is derived from his or her experiences. And everyone reacts differently to different situations. Some people are extremely adaptable when it comes to change while others can be resistant and rigid. So many factors combine into the melting pot that comprises our personalities.
After taking the personality test online, I found out that I am a Guardian. (I think I took a similar personality test in high school that said the same thing.) This can be good or bad for me when working with people. Co-workers might think that I am snotty and do not want to become their work friends. This is true, I am not a fan of making friends at work and I do not like to gossip about other people at work. I have also had bad experiences with "work buddies" so I usually shy away from that for awhile, at least until I think that I can have some level of trust with someone at work. The people I work for, (for now, they are customers, but will be considered "clients" one day) always like me because I do what I can to help them and ask them questions about their lives.
I feel that one's personality is derived from his or her experiences. And everyone reacts differently to different situations. Some people are extremely adaptable when it comes to change while others can be resistant and rigid. So many factors combine into the melting pot that comprises our personalities.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
