The Impact of Racism on Social Work Practice with Older People - Coursework Example

The Impact of Racism on Social Work Practice with Older People The proportion of older people as a part of the total population has seen an increase in the United Kingdom due to demographic changes brought about by better planned, smaller families and the provision of better healthcare. Racism in the community has been a problem in the past, arising out of ignorance, interracial communication failures and a failure to understand perspectives associated with other cultural and religious traditions. However, the government of the United Kingdom has been able to vastly improve the situation and considerable efforts have been made to eliminate racism through community awareness, education, legislation, training of community service workers as well as planned attempts to try to cater for all segments of the society. Racism at all levels of a society including institutional, personal and structural, can be particularly difficult for the older people because of the psychological damage that it can cause. Social workers and those who are managing social services have to be aware of and be prepared to counter any racism that the encounter. This brief essay takes a look at the impact of racism on social work practice with older people in the United Kingdom. Contents Introduction 4 Racism, Social Work Practice and the Elderly 6 Conclusion 8 Bibliography / References 10 Introduction Older adults have been increasing in number in the industrialised countries as a result of the demographic changes which have taken place in these countries due to low birth rates and a high quality of health care that is provided to the citizens (Roberts, 2002, Pp. 1 -3). Many of these older adults are not from the mainstream racial or cultural background which is to be found in such countries and their presence has been the result of the immigration which has taken place into these countries which include the United States of America, Canada, United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand. The immigration policies of these countries have been in line with their requirements for economic development, but these policies have also meant that the immigrant accepting societies have also a responsibility towards providing care of the elderly migrants who have contributed to their new countries in their younger years. The United Kingdom is now moving towards becoming a cohesive and well integrated society which includes citizens who were formerly from many Commonwealth countries such as Pakistan, India, Hong Kong, West Indies, South Africa and Nigeria etc, to name a few. The government in the United Kingdom has been conscious of its responsibilities to the society and a considerable effort has been made by the government to ensure that racial equality is ensured for all (Scharf, 2002, Pp. 5). Anti – racist legislation, including action against racial harassment, has produced a more tolerant society in the United Kingdom, but the elderly remain a particularly vulnerable group because of their frailty (Bhavani, 2005, Pp. 1) and (Joseph Rowntree Foundation, 2004, Pp. 1-4). Unfortunately, “elderly abuse” has been recognised as a distinct problem which exists for older people not only in the United Kingdom, but also in many other countries. However, decency, fairness and ethical principles require that older people from all communities be treated with a certain decency, courtesy, care, respect and also with equality without regard to their racial origins. Older people may be exposed to institutional abuse in institutions which may be required to provide care for them. They may be subjected to abuse by their doctors, social workers or other health care workers. The nature of their abuse may include physical abuse involving the use of force, psychological or verbal abuse through verbal or non – verbal acts, material or financial abuse through the exploitation of the older person’s financial resources or funds and neglect by those who are expected to care for them (Manthrope, 2004, Pp. 5 – 38). Such abuse which may be directed against the elderly can become far more serious if there are the added motivators associated with racial discrimination. The elderly may also be subjecting themselves to “self – neglect” and although this is not directly related to racial discrimination, such neglect may at least be partly motivated by the mental anguish which an older individual may feel as a result of the psychological abuse that they may be facing. Social exclusion of the elderly may be the result of the economic deprivation or poverty, bad health, having little or no family as well as having to live in a poor housing or high crime environment and racism can be even more acute in such situations (Burholt, 2002, Pp. 1 – 5). Older individuals may feel that their religious and cultural traditions which may have become more significant to them with their aging are not being respected by the community institutions and even social workers who are supposed to care for them may be abusing the elderly due to their inability to understand their cultural or religious traditions (Social Exclusion Unit, 2004. Pp. 29 – 49). Broadly speaking, elderly abuse can result in the psychological problems, illness, deterioration in the quality of life and an early death. It is, therefore, important that social workers and the practice of social work take into consideration the needs of the elderly in the community and especially any racially motivated abuse to which they may be subjected to. Many community and government institutions in the United Kingdom which are responsible for community services and the maintenance of community standards have, therefore, tried to adopt measures to keep racism in check and to ensure that the elderly in the community are adequately cared for (Glasgow City Council, 2004, Pp. 2 – 10). In this brief essay, an attempt has been made to consider the impact of racism on social work practice for the older people in the United Kingdom. Racism, Social Work Practice and the Elderly It is unfortunately true that people belonging to the minority communities in the United Kingdom can be underrepresented as community service personnel, although the government in the United Kingdom has made an excellent effort to correct this under representation. Such a situation can result in communications failures, individuals being unaware of the existence of services which may have been put into place to assist them and also poorly designed services for the elderly. Institutional racism can occur as a result of failure of an organisation to provide an appropriate and professional service to people regardless of their colour, culture or ethnic origin. It can be seen or detected in processes, attitudes and behaviour which amount to discrimination, through unwitting prejudice, ignorance, thoughtlessness and racist stereotyping which disadvantages people of the ethnic minorities (CCNAP, 2005, Pp. 1 – 2). It is therefore essential that Social Service Departments and agencies be able to provide well thought out services for all, treating individuals of all races and the elderly equally. There is a requirement for having an equal opportunity policy, the training of staff in multi – cultural awareness, having knowledge of and the development of formal as well as informal links with minority groups in the areas where services are being provided. Change also result from any new knowledge and information about racism in the provision of social services. It has been found that in many minority communities when elder abuse does take place in a family setting, it is more unlikely to be reported and the abused individual will try not to seek any available assistance. Hence, the social workers working within the minority communities have to be conscious of the cultural uniqueness of such communities and try to provide additional caring or support as required. Communicating and understanding the older individuals of another cultural tradition can also be difficult in spite of having a fluent ability to communicate in English, because the religious or cultural traditions as well as the body language associated with a different culture may be poorly understood. Death of a spouse or even the loss of a close family, neighbour or friend can cause depression in older people and it is then important to rebuild the right support network for them. Elder people are often abused by someone who is in close contact with them such as their family, friends or the neighbours. It can be falsely assumed that members of the minority ethnic community families are better at looking after their elderly then the mainstream and community services have to be brought to the notice of the minority communities so that these services can be utilised. Provision of social services may be required to be culturally sensitive, particularly in regard to the provision of food, bathing and the rituals associated with dying and it may be impossible to cater for all the minority groups, resulting in what has been called institutional racism. Health services in the United Kingdom have been stated to be suffering from institutional racism and the situation can only improve if more resources are allocated to try and develop better community service programs. Such services have been slow to develop because of a lack of resources. However, it is appropriate for the existing social services providers and the social workers to try and provide the extra effort which can make a difference (Burholt, 2002, Pp. 28 – 33). It is important for the social services provider to try and ascertain where discrimination may be taking place, how discrimination takes place, what may be causing discrimination and the likely effects of such discrimination. Obviously, the more serious sources of discrimination in social services will have to be attempted to be removed as early as possible. Most of the discrimination in social services can arise as a result of the interaction between the care givers and those who are being cared. Referring a female Muslim woman to male workers or failing to take into consideration the mediating role of relatives or friends in the interaction with those who are providing care can also result in discrimination. The attitude of the care givers towards those who are being cared, or the attitude of those who are being cared for towards the care givers may be in need of being corrected. The causes of discrimination may be related to general societal issues or certain groups may be targeted. Gathering empirical evidence to fight against the elimination of discrimination from social services can result in improvements and such improvements are more likely to be required at a microsocial level (National Health Services, 2005, Pp. 17 – 21). Successful interventions against racism need to be educational and are strongly led with an aim of improving knowledge and communications (Bhavanani, 2005, Pp. 1 – 4). Racism in the care of the elderly can only be countered by educating the carers and the community at large. Written and visual images associated with social work should attempt to portray the diversity of the community and reference literature for staff should be developed. Attempts should be made to embed diversity awareness into the planning of social services for the elderly. Social work staff should be trained to recognise elderly abuse such as a non – accidental injury and to be familiar with the moral, legal and ethical issues associated with the care of the elderly. They should also be trained in the management of the elderly who are being cared, including having an ability to recognise their competence and decision making capacity. Social workers who have to deal with the elderly should also be trained to communicate with the older persons with a cognitive deficiency (Lum, 2004, “Chapter 10”). Despite the difficulties, coordinated efforts by the Social Services Departments have resulted in a vast improvement in the situation for the older people of all communities in the United Kingdom and societal attitudes as a whole have changed significantly. However, it is important to ensure that diligence be maintained so that there are no relapses and only improvements in the care of the older people of the United Kingdom. Hence, the major impact of racism in social work practice with the elderly in the United Kingdom has been to try and find better strategies and practices to deal with the issue. Conclusion It can be concluded that the existence and the potentially destructive effects of racism have led to considerable efforts on the part of the Department of Social Services, which is an agency of the government of United Kingdom, to tackle the issue seriously. It is unfortunate that abuse of the elderly exists in many societies. However, this abuse coupled with racism can be even more destructive for the psychological well being of those who have to endure it. An awareness of the issues and training as well as constant monitoring coupled with efforts to design better services have indeed resulted in vast improvements which are very likely to be both sustainable and enduring. References / Bibliography 1. Bhavanani, Reena and Veetoo, Meena and Mirza, Heidi. 2005. Tackling the Roots of Racism: Lessons for Success. Joseph Rowntree Foundation. Retrieved: November 26, 2005. From: http://www.jrf.org.uk/knowledge/findings/socialpolicy/pdf/0535.pdf 2. Bhui, Kamaldeep et al. 2005. 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