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Running Head: Evaluation of Practice

Karlie Muxlow
SW 4442
Evaluation of Practice
3/2/2016

Introduction

Ennis Center for Children is an adoption and foster care agency, located in Port Huron,
Michigan. As an intern, I have been working with the foster care aspect of the agency. I have
been able to shadow foster care workers on their daily interactions with clients, foster families,
birth families, other professionals working with the children, and court personal. This experience
has helped me gain knowledge in Child Welfare and as a social worker in general. The placement
has helped me put the competences I have learned to use in the field while working with clients.
This paper will discuss the evaluation of clients, skills used at the agency, improvements of
social work skills, experiences that were gained, and the values and ethics of social work that
were developed.
Evaluation of Practice
Since September when I first started the internship my evaluation of practice has
improved. I remember not knowing what to expect when I started the internship and being
worried I would have an awful experience. I was nervous to talk one-on-one with clients and had
no idea how to communicate professionally in social work. After a couple of months I felt myself
becoming more comfortable with the agency and was able to better talk with clients. When
evaluating my progress, I am proud of myself for opening up and really learning how to
communicate with clients. I feel more comfortable completely paperwork and asking necessary
questions on home visits. I am able to enter information in online and have more confidence all
around. There is always room for growth, however. I know I could use improvement on being
assertive and tackling tasks head on instead of being timid. This might make me seem like I do
not know what I am doing or that my inexperience hinders my performance.
Community Systems

I know Ennis Center for Children is making an impact on the community and the clients
they serve. Families are working with the foster care workers to reunify with their children.
Upon being assigned a worker, the birth parents will have court ordered services they must
complete successfully before being reunified with their children. The workers are making an
impact on the family by helping them receive the services and resources they need to be able to
have their children back. The children are in care because of abusive or neglect situations. These
children are depending on their worker to make sure they are safe and well taken care of. The
worker has the responsibility of reporting everything that happens so the judge can make an
accurate decision when it comes down to reunifying or terminating parental rights. Parents are
making changes that impact their personal life as well. Usually parents are court ordered to
attend therapy, do random drug screens, attend parenting classes, domestic violence classes if
needed and do psychological assessments. These services, if taken seriously can help make a
positive change that the whole family will benefit from.
Skills at the agency
When working in child welfare, social workers must provide professional service to their
clients. This may be hard at times when working with difficult family members but in order to
keep a professional identity one must act accordingly. Foster care workers must have good
communication and listening skills. It is important to be able to communicate with the parents,
child, court personnel, foster parents, and many others. It is important to not only talk but listen
to what these individuals have to say. When listening, it is important to also document
everything. Documentation is extremely important because if it isnt documented it didnt
happen. This means that someone could accuse you of not doing your job and if you do not
have the appropriate documentation to turns in to a he said she said argument.

The workers also need to look at the background of the individuals they are working
with. When looking at the child it is important to look into their home life, what made them
come in to care, their parents, basically everything about their environment. If a child came from
a home where domestic violence was prevalent, it may explain their anger or aggression. If a
child was born addicted to drugs it could explain their developmental delays.
Lastly, working in foster care means continually educating oneself. It is important to stay
on top of new legislation regarding child welfare. Making sure new laws about foster care are
discussed with workers is important so everyone knows what is acceptable. It is also important to
be educated on resources your client will need. When a client has questions regarding the
services they need it is important to have some knowledge on the subject. That doesnt mean
being an expert but having phone numbers, locations, contact information and a little back
ground knowledge will make the worker look professional and like they are working for the
client.
Population of Field of Practice
Before my internship at Ennis Center for Children, I had mixed emotions about what area
of social work I wanted to be in. I thought working in juvenile justice would be something I
would be interested in. I did feel that children might be a good area; I worked in a daycare for a
while and have always leaned towards a profession with children. I also thought maternal health
would be interesting after becoming a mother. Since interning in foster care I have learned that it
is extremely difficult. Working with birth parents can be very frustrating and overwhelming.
There is a lot involved and time management is very important. I do feel that I could work in
foster care but it may be temporary until I find what fits me best.

Improving Social Work Practice

What I need to improve the most on in my social work practice is separating personal and
professional values. Social workers are to be professional at all times no matter how difficult the
situation. I have done a good job so far at separating my values from my professional ones but it
is very hard. I have been looking at jobs to apply for and there are some jobs I have seen that I
know would be extremely difficult because I do not agree with the values of the agencies. I know
that I cannot force my beliefs on anyone else because they are my individual beliefs.
Communication is something that also needs to be improved. Being able to ask the right
and appropriate questions is something that I am slowly learning. I was timid in the beginning of
my placement and didnt want to step on the toes of the social worker I was shadowing. I felt
because I was an intern I was not allowed to ask questions. I have since learned that asking
questions is how social workers learn what is going on in their clients life. They are able to ask
the right questions to get the information they need. When I am asking questions I feel I am
asking close ended questions and rush through the information just to get it complete. I know
that becoming comfortable with clients will come over time and I am working towards that.
Experiences and knowledge
Ennis Center has provided me with great experiences. Being able to internship here has
opened my eyes to what it takes to be a foster care worker. Every day is different, one day may
be home visits and the next a court hearing. I have been able to see multiple foster care workers
do their job and work with a variety of clients. This has helped me see a range of situations, some
positive and some negative.

There has been one case that really stuck out to me since my internship started. The
children came in to care for sexual abuse and failure to protect. Two of the children have been
adopted but one has not. I learned that the mothers rights were terminated because she allowed
her boyfriend to sexually abuse her children. The boyfriend was two of the childrens father and
his rights were terminated as well. These children have been through things I wouldnt wish on
anyone. The little girl who has not yet been adopted has been through a few foster homes and
schools. Doing home assessments and talking to the worker has educated me on the difficulties
of foster care and the baggage it puts on a child.
I have also learned that you cannot trust everything someone says to you. People will lie
to get what they want. I wanted to believe everyone genuinely wanted their children back and
would do what was necessary to make that happen. I have learned however, that drugs and
relationships ruin families. No matter how much someone wants their children back, being
addicted to drugs means that the drugs come first. A case I have been able to watch progress has
proven these things. A mothers rights were terminated on her son but the father was given a
chance to do services for reunification. He was court ordered not to speak to the mother. The
worker has evidence of a continued relationship. The father was also court ordered to pass all
drug screens which the father has failed multiple screens.
I have gained knowledge on things such as the importance of documentation, what to
look for in home assessments, how to talk to a child to get the information needed, working with
birth parents and much more. What makes me the most nervous is reading court reports in front
of the judge and making sure all documentation is correct. Talking in front of the judge looks
intimidating and I would hate to mess up or not have the correct information. Making sure
documentation is correct is very important because it can determine if a child goes home or not.

This decision is intimidating because nobody would want to report that they feel a child should
go home only for them to come back in to care.
Understanding Values and Ethics
Every profession has a set of ethical guidelines to follow. Social Workers must follow the
NASW Code of Ethics. There are six core values laid out in the Code of Ethics. Service, social
justice, dignity and worth of the person, importance of human relationships, integrity, and
competence are those six values. The Code of Ethics was designed to help social workers when
dealing with situations that are not always clear. The Code of Ethics states that The Code is
designed to help social workers identify relevant considerations when professional obligations
conflict of ethical uncertainties arise (NASW, 2016). This reminds me of the grey areas that
professors usually discuss. There are always grey areas in social work where there is not a clear
cut answer of what is best. The code is meant to guide social workers in making these difficult
decisions.
Working at Ennis Center has given me insight on how these values are portrayed in
practice. Dignity and worth of a person is one that I have seen a lot. No matter what a person has
been through, they still deserve to be treated with worth. Some birth parents have a history that
people would cringe at but as a social worker we are to respect them and treat them
professionally. This also then plays in to the value of service. A social worker cannot just turn
away someone for their own personal values; we are to serve those who are oppressed or
vulnerable.
Conclusion

Ennis Center for Children has given me excellent knowledge and experience to apply in
my future as a social worker. Not only have I improved skills but I have been able to witness
situations that have helped me grow as an individual both professionally and personally. I have
been able to see what goes into child welfare and now see it in a new light. I have learned things
to do and not to do as a social worker. I have learned how important it is to use the values and
ethics learned from the NASW to make sure I stay professional in my practice. I have grown to
see people as people and not base them on their past experiences. This internship has been a
building block for my professional identity. It is a stepping stone to help mold me into who I
want to be as a social worker.

Reference Page
National Association of Social Workers. (2008). Code of Ethics of the National Association of
Social Workers. Washington, DC. NASW.