What strengths do you see in Emeliaís practice? What are some areas where Emelia needed to improve her knowledge and skills?

Question

Emelia coordinated a Meals on Wheels Program for the elderly, and supervised 10 volunteers who delivered the meals. One day, when Emelia filled in for a volunteer and delivered a meal to the Snyders, she found Mr. Snyder very agitated and worried because Mrs. Snyder was missing. Apparently she had wandered off before. Because it was cold outside and they lived two blocks from a busy street, Emelia was alarmed and struggled with how to respond to this unexpected situation. As she tried to prioritize her responsibilities, she began to wonder if her volunteers were communicating with her and if they were well-trained for their responsibilities.

Answer 1

Emelia demonstrated a genuine respect and caring for the elders at the Center and in the Meals on Wheels Program. She succeeded in developing rapport with the elders in these programs and became accepted as a valuable staff member at the Center. She also valued the established volunteers in the Meals on Wheels Program and built good relationships with them. She mastered reporting for the program and completed it in a timely manner.
Emelia needed to provide more direction to the volunteers and provide active leadership for the Meals on Wheels Program. She should learn more about recruiting and training volunteers so as to keep adding to the volunteers and their abilities. It would also be helpful for Emelia to receive some more training on in-home care to prevent nursing home placement for elders.
Emelia was beginning to develop some insight into her own motivations for choosing the social work profession and how to manage these feelings in stressful work situations. She was very concerned about the clients liking her or not being mad at her. Although these are natural feelings for a beginning worker, Emelia could work to develop more trust in herself and her professional judgment so that she could take action that she knows is best, even when it might cause a client to be temporarily displeased with her.