Social Workers Fight Back
Just to restore the reputation of social workers, which was somewhat tarnished by my earlier post…
The other day I had a call from a social worker. He had received a call from a former client, to whom he’d given his personal mobile number, whilst off duty. The patient muttered something about how he’d taken an overdose and then hung up. The social worker tried to call him back, but he didn’t answer his phone. Because the social worker was off duty and this patient was no longer his client, he didn’t have the patient’s address with him, but he thought he could remember it, so he called 999 and told us what had happened. Off went the ambulance. Now, most people would have left it at that — “I’ve called the ambulance, now they can sort it out” — but this chap hopped in his car and turned up outside the patient’s house shortly after the ambulance did. He realised that he’d got the patient’s door number wrong, so he ran up to the ambulance crew and directed them to the correct house.
There was no answer at the door, so the police, who arrived shortly afterwards, had to break in, and there they found the patient semiconscious, having taken a large overdose of sleeping pills and alcohol. He was rushed off to hospital, and hopefully (I have no idea, so I’ll make up my own ending here…) lived happily ever after.
So there you go. For every useless social worker, there’s a life-saving hero like that one!
on February 19th, 2006 at 9:31 pm
Same in any profession. There are good and bad. Good show to that one!
on February 20th, 2006 at 9:18 am
Don’t feel bad about the earlier post. My wife’s a former social worker and she quit doing it because of how useless she felt. The sytem here in the States stunts most useful social work in favor of the “shoes” type stuff. I guess you should feel thankful your system hasn’t gone completely our way.
on February 20th, 2006 at 5:13 pm
its good to see that people can go beyond the call fo duty, i admire that social worker, good on him.
on February 20th, 2006 at 8:22 pm
Yes - good on him! Obviously a thoughtful, caring man. We need more of that type!
on February 21st, 2006 at 1:57 am
Yep, good on him. A good bloke and a good follow-up to the new shoes drongo.
on February 21st, 2006 at 3:58 pm
Yes, I’m sure society has really been served by his actions.
on February 22nd, 2006 at 3:53 am
Manuel, please don’t judge people because the have a psychiatric condition, they do not chose to live this way and deserve the same respect and consideration as anyone else. This person had reached a point in his life where he obviously felt he needed help and for some reason thought taking an o/d was the best way, all to often I see ignorant people belittle people like this human being and it wont change with out a little understanding from the rest of society.
on February 22nd, 2006 at 12:13 pm
I spent the latter half of my childhood in various foster placements, children’s homes, on streets etc etc and now occasioanlly deal with them through work. Have to say in nineteen years of social workers I can honesty say I have only met ONE who I think I would consider decent. Personally I place them with double glazing cold callers, those no win no fee accident company blokes who knock on doors and ask if you had an accident recently and such people.
Met plenty of children’s home staff (Residental Social Workers) who where awesome they seem to be a much nicer sub species than General Social Workers.
on February 22nd, 2006 at 1:29 pm
Too right, Rob. here is a list of famous people who have suffered from depression or manic depression. If they’d all been allowed to top themselves, society certainly would have been done a disservice. For all we know, that social worker may have saved the life of our next Prime Minister!
on February 23rd, 2006 at 7:10 pm
well said rob! and mark yes there are many folks famour or not with this illness, but whether he is next prime or not, he deserved the help he got.
on February 25th, 2006 at 6:19 pm
Clearly the social worker is someone who takes great pride in his work. I wonder if any of his peers will recognise him for his extra-curricular actions..
on February 28th, 2006 at 12:55 am
Knowing quite a few stroppy teens and being a Johnner for some reason when one of them takes one vitamin pill too many as a plea for help and then tells someone who knows me they’ve ‘overdosed’, I spend the next hour ringing people who I’ve never ment & never will.
When I say one vitamin pill too many I’m not being flippant…
on February 28th, 2006 at 2:50 am
As life would have it, we tend to remember the bad more often than the good, but good to hear about people who go beyond the call of duty.
Most people would have bad memories of social workers.
The Driving Instructor
on February 28th, 2006 at 4:11 pm
The social worker in the hospital my mother was taken to was- though confused by what we were asking her to do- always incredibly friendly, polite and made every effort to be helpful.
I think what sort of memories you’d have of social workers depends on what sort of social worker you ran into, and in what context.