Like other disciplines, social works are an area that requires much knowledge and a certain competence level for one to excel. In social work, someone may not know what they are going to encounter in the field of practice. However, one must be ready for anything with proper qualifications. (Kirst-Ashman & Hull, 2018). They sometimes encounter difficult problems, and they have to try to solve it using their experience and knowledge backgrounds.
A criterion that defines competence in social works is utilizing evidence-based practices appropriately and effectively (National Association of Health Workers, 2009). Social workers are looking for information on evidence-based practices to improve their service delivery. The evidence-based intervention has been applied in various fields of practice to a great result. Consequently, it required that a social worker and other professionals in mental health have skills for doing assessment and diagnosis so that the intervention approach they have selected can match the problem they are trying to solve (Chonody & Teater, 2018). EBP is a complex process involving filtering information on the existing literature, looking for the most relevant, scientific, and evidence-backed approaches of handling clients with various problems.
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Academic qualification is another criterion for gauging the competence of a social worker. According to Reamer (2010), social workers should only offer their services when they possess proper educational background, training, skills, and knowledge. It amounts to an irresponsible act to practice without these requirements. As part of ethical practice, social workers should only prove services and represent themselves with competency only in their academic knowledge and qualification areas. In case one wants to apply knowledge or practice new to him or her, such person must have engaged in a relevant study, training, and consultation with competent professionals in that area (Reamer, 2010). Only then can he or she practice that particular intervention.
References
Chonody, J. M., & Teater, B. (2018). Exploring how practicing social workers define evidence-based practice. Advances in Social Work , 18 (4), 1237-1249.
Kirst-Ashman, K. K., & Hull, G. H. (2018). Understanding generalist practice (8th Ed.). Boston, MA: Cengage Learning.
National Association of Health Workers. (2009, January 2). Evidence-Based Practice: NASW Practice Snapshot . Retrieved September 6, 2020, from National Association of Health Workers: https://www.socialworkers.org/News/Research-Data/Social-Work-Policy-Research/Evidence-Based-Practice
Reamer, F.G. (2010). The limits of professional competence. Social Work Today. Retrieved from: http://www.socialworktoday.com/news/eoe_041410.shtml
