subject: A Guide To Social Work Continuing Education [print this page] If you are considering a career in the healthcare or mental health field as a social worker, you may want to learn more about what your role would be. Being informed of what the average social worker does can help you determine what kind of career goals you have in the industry. There are many opportunities for social workers all over the world. The job outlook is very positive and as the population ages, the demand for more social work professionals is going to continue to increase. In addition to completing several years of school to ultimately receive your bachelor's and master's degree, you will also need to complete some social work continuing education courses as well.
When people get ill, sometimes the disease can cause so much havoc on the body that it can cause a person to experience physical and emotional strain. When a person experiences these strains, it can cause major problems for the patients and how they relate to their families, and other people in their lives. As a social worker, it is your job to try to connect with your patients and help them and their families learn how to cope and adapt. In addition to providing assistance by offering them resources such as health care, meals and additional resources for finances, work and legal matters. If you are an experienced social worker, as the nature and sources of problems change, it is important for you to stay current with your social work continuing education classes; so that you will be able to identify new indicators that can foreshadow that some sort of assistance is needed.
As the demand for social workers continue to outpace the amount of professionals currently working in the field, it is expected that there will be a major shortage of qualified workers to keep up with the aging baby boomer population. Social workers work in many different capacities and settings, including the hospital, home health care facilities and homes. This causes the amount of workload that the average social worker has to handle on a regular basis. Social work continuing education classes can also teach professionals how to manage their work accordingly.
The average social work professional average income is approximately $48,000 per year. This is just for those who are starting out. Workers who are employed by hospitals tend to make more than those who are not. The top income is expected to be around $70,000 and up for those with their master's degree and have kept their social work continuing education coursework current.
Many professionals seek to gain more experience and start their own practices. They even have the option of becoming self-employed and working fewer hours for more pay. Some social workers will enjoy the option to teach the upcoming professionals and continuing education courses.
As a social worker, most of your time is spent dealing with patients and on the phone. You will be the liaison between the patient and whatever services they need. You will be the person that sets up the resources that are available to them so that they can live life and be healthy.
