Human Services as Professional Approaches - Assignment Example

 Human Service According to Woodside & McClam (2011), human services are defined as professional approaches to helping individuals, families and communities to address their needs (p.2). The definition of the term is largely extracted from six key concepts. These concepts build the base upon which human services exist. The human service’s disciplined mandate is to focus on the present and future. The professions in this area employ a variety of skills to help their clients appropriately. Such disciplines may include psychology, sociology and anthropology but are not limited to the three (p.12). The professionals further require understanding the individual’s knowledge, the society and relationship to family and culture of the client (p.13). In human services, the client and the helper establish a relationship that enables the client to focus on the problems early in the helping process. Abraham Maslow in the hierarchy of needs emphasized that in order for an individual to rise to the higher levels the lower level needs must be met. Most of the clients are usually overwhelmed by their problems such that they are clueless on where and how to start. Usually it is best to commence from the most basic needs (p. 17). These factors are just, but a few to be considered when dealing with human services and should be highly valued by all stakeholders of the human service to achieve results. Society’s view towards individuals with human service needs in the past In the 1500s, the Catholic Church was tasked with the responsibility of offering human services to individuals. Under the church’s guidance, institutions were founded to meet the needs of the poor, orphans, the elderly and the sick (p.31). The hospital also served as a pivotal point where people not only accessed medical facilities but also were fed, housed and rested. For instance, England under the Crown’s rights held that it was the responsibility of the king to protect people with needs, especially the mentally challenged and provide them with necessities of life. Feudal lords also assumed responsibility of people living with disabilities in their land. With the onset of the industrial revolution, the poor put a strain on the government in England. This prompted a policy that was meant to tackle poverty in large scale. The Elizabethan poor law of 1601 was passed (Woodside & McClam, 2011). This law offered a guideline to England and the United States on specifications on who could provide human services to the poor for the next 350 years. This law is part of the processes that recognized trends of poverty and a dire need for human services. Dorothea Dix in 1841 became involved in a women’s prison facility where she witnessed appalling conditions in which women lived in. She therefore called out for a more enlightened treatment approach towards those with mental illnesses and besieging the government to take up their responsibility on this subject (p. 37). Movements for reforms such as the organized charity movement and the settlement house movement fought for a common cause but had different views, on how human services could be improved (Woodside & McClam, 2011). The organized charity movement’s goal was to eliminate duplication of provision of services. Their approach was centered on laissez-faire, individualism and puritanism, which employed the tactics of personal contact between the rich and the poor. This later metamorphosed to reforms such as promoting sanitation, seeking better conditions in institutions, and developing parks. On the other hand, the settlement house movement thought that the organized charity movement’s tactic did not yield many results. The movement advocated for social engineering. The benefactors of this movement would see changes in housing, schools and child labor and also increased participation of professionals in the system (p. 38, 39). Frankline Roosevelt through the social security act changed the role of government in the need for human services. The social security bill protected Americans from economic instability, expanded welfare activities, and improved their standards by establishing responsibility in public welfare (p. 43) .In a nutshell the bill’s mandate was to provide assistance in social insurance, public assistance and health and welfare services. Other approaches to address human needs were used including Nixon’s Federalism, which called for individuals to assume responsibility for their own needs (p. 49). The emphasis was put development of self-help programs and provision of services by the private sector. He believed that families were able to determine their needs and would be capable of using aid to meet the most pressing need (Woodside & McClam, 2011). A shift from the government’s involvement in human services has been seen from the 1980’s, to present. Voters have been electing presidents who have cut back on budget thus affecting human service resources. This has been characterized by human services professionals being overworked, serving larger caseloads, which has affected the effectiveness of the program altogether. This has been a clear indication that the electorate has no faith in the human services and therefore, resources meant for these services have been re-allocated elsewhere (p. 50).In a nutshell, the place of the needy in the society was recognized by governments, churches and other individuals. Each had a role to meet an individual’s needs. However, in the recent past the mantle has been passed to the private sector with the government having little to do with human services. Views towards human services clients From history, individuals in the society have shared different views on the client. The church viewed clients as important and deserved to be catered for by the state and the church itself. Further, help for the client has been characterized by giving aid in whatever form as a way out of poverty thus fostering a culture of dependence. The state, professionals, and movements have been in the process of defining the client’s needs and best approaches of how to meet them. However, not all view the client as a ‘victim ‘of fate. For instance, the electorate voting for candidates promising reforms against involvement of the government in human services is an indicator of negative attitude towards the client. People questioned the effectiveness of the government and declined to pay huge sums of money for the human service programs. According to professionals in the human service, the clients should be seen as people capable of taking up responsibility that will enable them to change or address their situation. Therefore, giving clients alternatives that will help them progress and reduce dependency would be the best-fit approach towards solving this crisis. This is illustrated on (p. 53) where clients can access meaningful work to provide for their stability. Other systems such as the school view clients as deserving help to maneuver situations in appropriate ways. The case of students dropping out of school due to pregnancies and other issues; embedded in human services has caused governments and other institutions to develop mechanisms to better the situation. Such include welfare systems that encourage students to attend night schools, provision of food through food stamps and follow up services to encourage clients to stay in school. Personal view towards clients with human service needs People with needs have equal rights to health, education, housing, basic needs et cetera. The literature in this book clearly indicates a paradigm shift in approaches to tackle the issue of human needs. Population may have increased due to rural urban migration and immigration from other countries, but this does not devalue the importance of meeting needs of people. Government and other institutions should be fully involved when addressing human service needs to effect change in the client’s lives. Policies by the government should provide frameworks, which will guide the implementation of the policies. Adequate resources should also be identified and evenly distributed to areas that require such assistance. Churches, hospitals, governments and movements were all involved at one point in addressing the client’s issues. In this regard, the client who is the most important stakeholder should be involved when planning for their intervention, as they are the main beneficiaries. The client should be able to identify, determine and strategize on how to solve his/her problems. As is the case of Maslow Hierarchy of needs, for the client to attain self-actualization, he needs to meet the most basic needs. However, if the resources are handed to him and everything done, he may not achieve this instead; becomes dependent and stagnant. In the case of feudal lords, the client benefited from them during the feudal system. Therefore, when the industrialization emerged, the needy were stranded. This clearly shows that the needy were overly dependent on the lords (p. 32).The client should also show initiative, a willingness to get out of the circumstance they are in. This is possible as professionals and communities may have programs to alleviate clients from degrading situations. Following up with the schools and churches and even government can effect change in at least one or two families. The client also has the capability to bring about attitude change in his life and those around them, by proving that their inability to access some services should not stop them from campaigning for their rights. Having leaders among them and involving like-minded people will enable the client to visualize and attain the life they desire and are required to live. They are entitled to help if it does not form as a habit (Woodside & McClam, 2011). The society therefore, ought to integrate clients that have needs and design ways to meet needs; without interfering or infringing on other people’s needs. In the case of the government, its duty is to protect its citizens from economic instability through policies and proper planning to give equal chances to all. The policies should touch on every aspect of human services and be effective in bringing holistic change in the client’s lives and the nation in general. Reference Woodside, M., & McClam, T. (2011). An introduction to human services. Belmont, CA: Brooks/Cole Cengage Learning. Read More