Discussion Post: Evolving to Support Communities: Working on an Individual and Organizational Level
Through your news search and your interview, you likely gained some insight into the needs of your community and to what extent existing services and resources address them. But what more can be done-in a human services context-to mitigate those problems or support those needs?
You pivot to examining solutions. You also consider the HSPP's role. How does an HSPP enact and advance those solutions on an individual and organizational level? How can an HSPP avoid compassion fatigue so that they remain a vital change agent in their communities?
Learning Objectives
i. Examine human services programs' ability to address community needs
ii. Describe funding and sustainability of human services programs
iii. Describe growth and insights regarding communities and community assessment
iv. Describe the role of a human services professional practitioner in advancing change in communities
v. Identify strategies to combat compassion fatigue.
Part I: Innovative Programs to Address Needs
Building "tiny home" neighborhoods for those who are homeless. Setting up hygiene centers in old schools and YMCA buildings to provide locker rooms, showers, and hygiene items. Offering training and support in a trade. Offering employment as city tour guides.
These examples describe programs that human services organizations and community leaders around the world have tried to both improve conditions and address the needs of people experiencing homelessness. Innovative programs are not limited to homelessness, however; various community issues have been addressed through these methods.
In this Discussion, you identify one need and explore a program that another community has used to combat that need. You then evaluate to what extent the same program would be successful in your community.
To Prepare
i. Review your course announcements for possible information related to this Discussion and Assignment.
ii. Identify one need of your community that you would like to address. This need could come from the interviews you conducted or from your research throughout the course into the cultural, economic, and demographic status of your community.
iii. Research what other communities have instituted for human services programs to successfully address that need. Select one program to evaluate for your Discussion.
Task
Post a description of the human services program you found. Then evaluate its suitability for your community in addressing the need you have identified. Specifically: Would it work in your community-why or why not? How is the program funded? To what extent can the program be sustained long-term or adapt to changing conditions?
Part II: Reflection
As you come to the end of the course, take a moment to consider all that you have learned. Have your views on your community evolved due to the information you have gathered? How has your understanding deepened?
Also, consider your role as an HSPP working toward change in a community. In this role, is important to be both poised for improvement but also ready to adapt and try again if an effort is unsuccessful. You must also demonstrate compassion for the populations with whom you work, even when it becomes difficult. The capacity for resilience and compassion can be built and sustained through regular self-care.
In this final Discussion, you reflect on your learning throughout the course, both about your own community and about the HSPP's role. You also identify strategies for practicing self-care and avoiding compassion fatigue.
To Prepare
i. Reflect on what you have learned throughout the course, as well as how your views of your community and the human services professional practitioner role may have changed.
ii. Review the Learning Resource on compassion fatigue and consider how you will avoid it while working to effect change in your community.
Task
Post a reflection on how this course has changed your view of your community, its strengths, and its needs. Identify one specific resource from the course that was particularly impactful for you. Additionally, describe how this course has influenced your view of the human services professional practitioner's role in advancing change in communities, on an individual and organization level. Finally, identify one strategy for avoiding compassion fatigue that you will use in your role.
The response should include a reference list. One-inch margins, Using Times New Roman 12 pnt font, double-space and APA style of writing and citations.
Reference
• Human Services Programs
o Bond, M. (2018, November 2). Cities across the country pay the homeless to pick up litter. Philadelphia may follow suit. The Philadelphia Inquirer.
o Tsega, M., Kristin Giantris, K., & Shah, T. (2020, June 1). Essential social services are struggling to survive the COVID-19 crisis. The Commonwealth Fund.
• Compassion Fatigue
o Cole, R. F., Craigen, L., & Cowan, R. G. (2014). Compassion fatigue in human service practitioners. Journal of Human Services, 34(1), 117-120.