The Profession
What is Human Services?
- Helping clients meet their basic needs, become more self-sufficient and achieve a higher quality of life
- Provide assistance in major domains of living--- health-related, emotional, financial
- Provide resources to overcome problems tailored to individual needs
- Offering emotional support, counseling, education
- Strengthening self-esteem, coping skills, healthy decision making, prevention
- Caring for clients who cannot care for themselves
The Essential Activities of Human Services:
- Assessment
- Planning
- Implementation (linking, coordinating, monitoring)
Human Services Workers:
- Provide direct services or coordination of services
- Evaluate eligibility, assist with critical paperwork
- Ensure accessibility and accountability amongst professionals and agencies
- Use the strength-based approach to empower clients
Human Services workers find jobs in these spheres of employment:
Public Sector (City/County, State/Federal)
Generally requires A.A. or B.A.
Good benefits, retirement, grades salary system, extensive training and resources
Non-profit Sector
Programs have focused purpose, meet specific needs
Strong connection to community/clients
Private Sector
Positions often involve counseling, research, data gathering
What are some of the populations who receive services?
- Individuals, families, communities
- Children and families
- Elders
- People who are homeless
- Immigrants
- Veterans
- People with addictions (alcoholism, drugs,)
- People coping with family violence
- People connected to the criminal justice system (ex-offenders, juvenile justice )
- People with disabilities
Types of Human Services organizations, agencies and programs
- Social services/mental health services:
- Employment
- Adult and Family Services
- Food and nutrition
- Housing and shelter
- Legal and victims assistance
- Public safety, disaster relief, crisis intervention
- Rehabilitation
- Youth development, Child Welfare
- Aging and Disability
Where are these service providers located?
Group homes and half-way houses
Clinics, hospitals and schools
Agencies
Some Occupational Titles
Workers may be professionals or paraprofessionals and may be generalists or specialists.
- Case Manager
- Residential Counselor
- Probation Officer
- Community Organizer
- Child Advocate
- Mental Health Aide
- Juvenile Court Liaison
- Adult Day Care Worker
- Life Skills Instructor
People choose this work for many reasons: choose to do this work?
- To change the world and change their communities
- To give back after having overcome personal challenges and share their success and wisdom gained
- To engage in social justice and stand up for people who have been neglected, forgotten, abused and exploited
Necessary Skills and Personality Traits
- Possess patience, understanding and caring
- Compassionate, objective, accepting
- Analytical, insightful creative, self-disciplined
- Strong verbal and written communication skills
- Excellent listening skills
- Strong sense of responsibility, self-discipline
- Work well on teams
- Manage time effectively