Things They Didn’t Teach Me in Social Work School: Thoughts in a Pandemic

by Jennifer Hammonds, LCSW

     I always thought I could develop a seminar for social work students at our local university, my alma mater, about the things I didn’t learn in the classroom. Social work practice, especially psychotherapy in a rural area of the country, is full of experiences and outcomes that professors can’t always prepare us for. Boundary crossings are real and commonplace. How do we handle social media with our clients? Clients will cook for you, as a gift of thanks – do you eat it? Or risk hurting their feelings? Your 9:00 appointment is also, you find out later in the week, your new hair stylist. What do you do when your billing department informs you that your client owes a large bill?

     What about malpractice insurance? Do you need your own policy, or will your employer cover all your needs? And LCSW supervision – who is someone reliable and effective, and how much does that cost? How do I make a child abuse hotline report? How do I build rapport with difficult patients? Can I treat people with substance use disorders, despite having little experience, because my patient can’t get to another treatment facility? What about my own wellness – should I continue to practice if I feel burnt out? Who is the psychotherapist for the psychotherapist?

     Or, how about this query – how do I practice social work in a pandemic?

     Ah, COVID-19. None of us could have possibly imagined or prepared for the emergency of a pandemic in this country.  As we all struggle personally with stay-in-place orders, social/physical distancing, anxiety about the unknown, unemployment, and furloughs, how are we, as social work psychotherapists, supposed to manage significant patient issues, avoid additional traumatization, and maintain continuity of care?

     Simply, as with most things, we learn by doing.

     In times of great need, social workers are uniquely trained to be adaptable, creative, and innovative. Those of us who have never engaged in telehealth are doing so now. We are linking patients to resources, some of which originate overnight, with a renewed sense of urgency and competency. We are disseminating appropriate and accurate health information to our patients and easing anxieties and fears. We are, in short, incredible in our depth, persistence, and response to those in need. We are essential workers. And despite whatever we may have missed in "social work school," we are learning each day, each hour, and with each other.

Jennifer Hammonds, LCSW, is a psychotherapist for the Family Medicine Residency Program of Southern Illinois University’s School of Medicine and has been a practicing social worker since 2002. She is a generalist practitioner and specializes in child and adolescent trauma.