Social workers from around the world observe social welfare in the United States / U.S. Dept. of Health, Education, and Welfare, Social Security Administration].

  • United States. Social Security Administration.
Date:
[1952]
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Social workers from around the world observe social welfare in the United States / U.S. Dept. of Health, Education, and Welfare, Social Security Administration]. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    STAFF DEVELOPMENT Among the many new States which came into being after World War II, one of the newest is Israel. It has been faced not only with the problems of establishing its government and legal structure and setting up the manifold services necessary in a modern State, but it has had to make provisions for a constant stream of new immigrants from many lands and cultures. In spite of the many social and economic burdens involved in these situations, Israel has empha- sized the necessity of providing organized health and welfare services through competent adminis- tration and leadership. Presented here is a report of one of the thoughtful Israeli visitors, a United Nations Fellow, who presents her conclusions as to the needs in the social work programs of her country and how American practice may be adapted to meet those needs. Sa Game cae ep Sage Sas! Meas ea I think that, on the whole, my own fellowship and observation pro- gram has met my needs as far as this was possible in such a limited time. It took some time, till I got enough insight into social work in America, to make our own specific needs understood: I wanted to start with my study here in a setting which offered problems similar to those we meet in our daily work. American conditions in the field of social welfare are by no means comparable to those of Israel. In any country, social welfare service is the expression of public opinion, growing out of the feeling and thinking of the citizens and their concept of social responsibility. Yet, I have learned a great deal about the development of social work in America, private and public, especially in the main field which I had chosen. My observations have broadened and deepened my knowledge and given me a stimulus for further study. Yet, I do not believe that a mere 6 months of observation enables the fellow to apply American case work methods in practice. I do not believe that I have an exaggerated feeling of responsibility in stating that these methods ought to be applied only after a thorough theoretical study, com- bined with field work. Such field work ought to be guided and last for a half year at least in one agency, where competent supervision is available. I. While giving a detailed statement of the specific aspects of the field of my interest, in which I was working during the entire period of my fellowship, and the use of it for my country, I want to make it clear that my suggestions are not final, but given in a tentative form. This is be- cause social work in our country is in a stage of steady development, due to