Reinvestment Issue Areas



Social Work Reinvestment Initiative

Maryland State Plan

Introduction

NASW-MD engaged a number of partners to develop the Social Work Reinvestment Initiative (SWRI) State Plan for Maryland. To facilitate planning and future implementation of the SWRI in Maryland, the Chapter’s Board of Directors established an informal partnership coalition under the direction of NASW-MD’s SWRI Task Force comprised of representatives of NASW-MD, leading employers of social workers, schools of social work, regulatory bodies, and other social work associations. By working together on the SWRI plan, this coalition will benefit from the skills and resources of its individual members.

The Task Force convened a summit of this coalition in November 2007 to gather input into the state plan. In addition to NASW-MD, representatives of two schools of social work, two state agencies, the state’s largest public school system, the state social work licensing board, a statewide health and mental health provider, and the military mental health system. The chart below depicts the individual resources of coalition members available to the SWRI in Maryland.

| |Education and |Advocacy and |Research and |Outreach and |Human |Technology |Policy |

| |Professional |Government |Data |Public |Resource | |Analysis |

| |Development |Relations |Gathering |Education | | | |

|Salisbury State University School of Social Work |• |• |• | | | | |

|Morgan State University School of Social Work |• |• |• | | | | |

|Maryland Department of Aging |• |• | |• | | | |

|NASW-MD |• |• |• |• |• | | |

|Social Work Students | | | | |• | | |

|Baltimore City Public Schools | |• | |• | | | |

|U.S. Army |• | |• | | |• | |

|Maryland Board of Social Work Examiners |• | |• | | | | |

|Maryland Department of Public Safety | |• |• |• | | | |

|Sheppard Pratt Health System |• | | |• | | | |

|Ciekot & Elliot (NASW-MD Lobbyist) | |• | | | | |• |

Based upon available data and the experience of coalition partners, summit participants established the following priorities for the Maryland SWRI plan:

1. Recruitment, retention, and education,

2. Licensing and title protection,

3. Research and professional development, and

4. Public perception of the profession.

Next, summit participants defined each of these priority issues and identified initial goals, available data and additional data needed to create a compelling case for each issue, favorable and unfavorable conditions to addressing the issue, strategies, partnerships, and resources necessary to carry out strategies.

The SWRI Task Force completed the Maryland SWRI plan and presented it to the Chapter’s Executive Committee for approval on December 13, 2007.

State Data Profile of Social Work Labor Force

Social Work Regulation

Maryland law provides for four categories of social work licensure. The chart below provides basic information about each of the categories of social work licensure in Maryland.

|Licensure Designation |# of Licensed |Education Requirement |Testing Requirement |Supervision Requirement |Continuing Education Required for |

| |Social Workers | | | |License Renewal |

|Associate Level – LSWA | |Bachelor’s in Social Work |Basic |N/A |40 hours every two years, including|

| | | | | |3 hours in Ethics |

|Graduate Level – LGSW | |Master’s in Social Work |Intermediate |N/A | |

|Certified Level – LCSW | |Master’s in Social Work |Advanced |Two Years post-LGSW | |

| | | | |144 Hours Face to Face | |

|Certified-Clinical Level – LCSW-C | |Master’s in Social Work |Clinical |Two Years post-LGSW | |

| | | | |144 Hours Face to Face | |

Social Work Education Programs

There are ten independent schools, or departments, of Social Work in Maryland at seven public and three private institutions. The University of Maryland at Baltimore and Morgan State University offer social work education through the doctoral level and one other school, Salisbury State, offers Master-level study in social work.

|Name of School |Location(s) |# of Students, current |# of Graduates, 2006 |

| | |BSW |MSW |PhD |BSW |MSW |PhD |

|University of Maryland at Baltimore | |• |• |• | | | |

|University of Maryland – Baltimore County | |• | | | | | |

|Salisbury State University | |• |• | | | | |

|Morgan State University | |• |• |• | | | |

|Coppin State College | |• | | | | | |

|Frostburg State University | |• | | | | | |

|Bowie State University | |• | | | | | |

|Hood College | |• | | | | | |

|McDaniel College | |• | | | | | |

|Sojourner-Douglas College | |• | | | | | |

Social Work Employers

I’ll complete an overview when the chart is complete.

|Employer |Location(s) |# of Social Workers Employed |

|MD Department of Human Resources |Statewide | |

|MD Department of Health and Mental Hygiene |Statewide | |

|MD Department of Aging |Statewide | |

|MD Department of Juvenile Services |Statewide | |

|MD Department of Developmental Disabilities |Statewide | |

|MD Department of Public Safety |Statewide | |

|Sheppard Pratt Health System | | |

|Baltimore City Public Schools | | |

| | | |

| | | |

| | | |

| | | |

| | | |

Social Work Reinvestment Initiative Issue Areas

Recruitment, Retention, and Education

Priority Ranking: 1

Goal:

To ensure that Maryland has a stable, well-trained, diverse, and highly-experienced professional social work workforce.

Definition of the Issue:

According to the NASW Center for Workforce Studies, more than half (58%) of Maryland respondents in a 2004 survey on licensed social workers were 45 years of age or older and more than a quarter were over the age of 55. It is possible that Maryland will need to replace one-quarter of its social work workforce within the next 10-12 years. Currently only 18% of the workforce is under the age of 34, a figure that will need to nearly triple to replace those social workers who will be retiring. The high cost of a social work education and low average salaries for a career social worker relative to similar trained professionals discourages many students from entering the profession. Furthermore, high student debt and frequently stressful and even dangerous working conditions can force social workers to leave the profession, further exacerbating social work shortages.

Data/Outcome Measurement for this Goal:

1. Number and rate of social workers remaining in the child welfare workforce more than five years.

2. Number and rate of licensed social workers who are other than white.

3. Number and rate of students under age 26 enrolled in MSW programs.

4. Number of social work students planning to work in the area of aging.

5. Number of social work students who receive scholarships annually.

6. Number of paid internships and graduate assistantships for social work students.

7. Average income to student debt ratio for MSW-level social workers four years after graduation.

Favorable conditions supporting this Goal:

• A strong, well-established social work education system.

• Many professional development opportunities for social workers.

• Maryland is a wealthy state.

• Large network of social workers in the state.

Unfavorable conditions/impediments to achieving this Goal:

• State budget concerns remain. Limited ability to increase salaries, provide loan forgiveness, etc.

• Generalized negative perception about social work.

• Competition for positions from other professions (e.g., nursing, counseling, psychology).

Estimated Time Frame for accomplishment (1-3 years or longer):

3 years

People/partnership/consultant resources required to achieve this Goal:

• NASW Members

• Schools of Social Work

• State Legislators

• Social Work employers

• Government Agencies ( DHR, BSWE, DBED, DLLR, etc.)

• Lobbyist/Government Relations

Financial resources required to achieve this Goal:

• In-Kind Support

• Donations and Sponsorships

• NASW-MD funding

Tasks/Timeline

|Define Task |By whom? |By when? |Notes |

|Gather and organize baseline data for all data items. |SWRI Task Force, Legislative Committee, |12/2008 | |

| |NASW-MD staff, Schools of Social Work, MD| | |

| |BSWE | | |

|Identify legislative and regulatory priorities to promote recruitment, |SWRI Task Force, Legislative Committee, |6/2009 | |

|retention, and education of social workers (e.g., loan forgiveness, salary|NASW-MD staff, Schools of Social Work | | |

|increases, recruitment bonuses, etc.) | | | |

|Develop educational information (presentation, fact sheets, etc.) for |SWRI Task Force, Legislative Committee, |9/2009 | |

|legislators, local elected officials, consumer advocates, scholarship |NASW-MD staff, Schools of Social Work | | |

|providers, and others. | | | |

|Carry out campaign to promote programs to recruit, retain, and provide |SWRI Task Force, Coalition Partners, |10/2009 |Legislative campaign to focus on 2010 Legislative |

|educational support to social workers. |Ciekot & Eliot | |Session. |

Social Work Reinvestment Initiative Issue Areas

Licensing and Title Protection

Priority Ranking: 2

Goals:

1. To prevent declassification of social work positions in Maryland.

2. To enhance the professional identify for professional social workers employed in non-clinical practice settings.

Definition of the Issue:

First, a potential shortage of professionally trained, licensed social workers in the workforce may lead to the declassification of positions to allow agencies to fill vacancies. This can result in reduced quality of care and negative outcomes for individuals receiving these services. NASW-MD and its partnership coalition are committed to preventing such declassification to ensure that consumers continue to benefit from high standards of care. Second, the perceived lack of professional distinction for non-clinical social work practice may discourage some social workers in positions where social work licensure is not explicitly required from seeking supervision or advanced licensure at the LCSW level. It is widely believed that many professionally trained social workers in such settings may, in fact, be eschewing licensure entirely, effectively departing the profession.

Data/Outcome Measurement for this Goal:

8. Number of BSW and MSW program graduates from program in Maryland and the surrounding region who have never been licensed to practice social work in Maryland.

9. Number of previously Maryland-licensed social workers at the LSWA, LGSW, and LCSW levels who are currently unlicensed and employed in positions that do not require social work licensure and categorical information about those positions.

10. Qualitative data detailing why previously trained and/or licensed social workers have chosen to leave the profession.

11. Number of positions within the State of Maryland and private providers, previously requiring social work licensure, that have been declassified annually since January 1, 2000.

12. Number of positions within the State of Maryland and private providers, requiring social work licensure, that have been vacant and unfilled for more than six months annually since January 1, 2005.

13. Number of continuing education workshops offered during the 2007 calendar year by members of the coalition partnership targeted toward non-clinical social workers.

Favorable conditions supporting this Goal:

• Maryland has strong licensing regulations and title protection for social workers.

Unfavorable conditions/impediments to achieving this Goal:

• Title protection has seen limited enforcement at the organizational level. While the law clearly prohibits unlicensed individuals from representing themselves as Social Workers many agencies continue to apply, officially and unofficially, the title Social Worker to employees who are neither qualified nor credentialed to use the title.

• Increasingly high licensing standards in Maryland have created challenges for certain licensees from other states and countries seeking licensure at the Advanced and Clinicial levels in the state.

• The financial cost and time commitment, limited availability of relevant continuing education, and reduced status afforded non-clinical social workers discourage social workers in these positions from maintaining licensure and limits the role of the profession.

Estimated Time Frame for accomplishment (1-3 years or longer):

1 year

People/partnership/consultant resources required to achieve this Goal:

• NASW Members

• Schools of Social Work

• State Legislators

• Government Agencies ( DHR, BSWE, etc)

• Survey/Research Institutions

• Lobbyist/Government Relations

Financial resources required to achieve this Goal:

• In-Kind Support

• Donations and Sponsorships

• NASW-MD funding

Tasks/Timeline

|Define Task |By whom? |By when? |Notes |

|Gather and organize data items 4, 5, and 6 |SWRI Task Force, Professional Standards |04/2008 | |

| |Committee, and NASW-MD staff | | |

|Develop and carry out research to gather data items 1, 2, and 3 |SWRI Task Force, NASW-MD staff, and |04/2008 | |

| |Research Institution/Firm tbd | | |

|Establish and carry out legislative education campaign to prevent further |Legislative Committee, NASW-MD PACE, |06/2008 | |

|declassification of social work positions and to extend requirements for |NASW-MD staff, and Ciekot & Eliot | | |

|title protection to agencies | | | |

|Develop and initiate a memorandum of agreement and collaborative strategy |NASW-MD staff, schools of social work, MD|06/2008 | |

|within the partnership coalition to increase the annual number of |BSWE, and other agencies that provide | | |

|continuing education workshops targeted toward non-clinical social |continuing education | | |

|workers. | | | |

|Develop and initiate a campaign spotlighting the history and relevance of |Professional Standards Committee, NASW-MD|12/2008 | |

|professional non-clinical social work to social work students, recent |staff, schools of social work, and MD | | |

|graduates, and those who do not renew social work licensure. |BSWE | | |

Social Work Reinvestment Initiative Issue Areas

Research and Professional Development

Priority Ranking: 3

Goal:

To ensure that social workers in Maryland are leaders in social work research and professional development.

Definition of the Issue:

Evolving technologies, increasing accountability, and social work’s unique perspective demand that professional social workers play an active role in advancing research and professional development. It is critical that we diligently consider the changing needs of those we serve, the impacts of new technologies on the practice of social work, and the related professional development needs of social workers.

Data/Outcome Measurement for this Goal:

Detailed workforce data are required to continually evaluate research and professional development needs.

1. Trends in workforce demographics

2. Licensure level and progress

3. Availability of supervision

4. Employee retention rates and recruitment needs

5. Salary patterns

6. Opportunities for advancement

7. Occupational settings

8. Worker caseload sizes

9. Workplace technology

Favorable conditions supporting this Goal:

• Existing sources can provide some of the necessary data (e.g., MD BSWE, CSWE, NASW Workforce Study, public agencies, and schools of social work)

• SWRI partnership coalition members bring a variety of individual strengths and willingness to collaborate

• Some history of legislative support

Unfavorable conditions/impediments to achieving this Goal:

• No single, coordinated repository for these data currently exists

Estimated Time Frame for accomplishment (1-3 years or longer):

2-3 years

People/partnership/consultant resources required to achieve this Goal:

• Consultants to set up data base and consult with chapter staff on maintaining database

• Staff hours to maintain data base, generate reports and coordinate mechanisms for dialog, planning and action on professional development needs based on data reporting, practice standards, and recruitment & retention needs.

• Funding for consultants and staff ($, hrs?)

Financial resources required to achieve this Goal:

• In-Kind Support

• Donations and Sponsorships

• NASW-MD funding

Tasks/Timeline

|Define Task |By whom? |By when? |Notes |

|Facilitate a statewide professional development group |NASW, BSWE, CE Providers |Dec. 2008 | |

|Faciitate a statewide committee focused on social work research |NASW, Schools of SW, SW Research |Dec. 2008 | |

| |organizations | | |

| | | | |

| | | | |

| | | | |

| | | | |

Sources:

Hutson, C. & Lichtiger, E. 2001 “Mining Clinical Information in the Utilization of Social Services: Practitioners Inform Themselves” in Clinical data mining in practice-based research. Irwin Epstein & Susan Blumenfield, Eds. (New York):The Haworth Social Work Practice Press.

Sainz,A. & Epstein, I. 2001 “Creating Experimental Analogs with Available Clinical Information: Credible Alternatives to Gold Standard Experiments” in in Clinical data mining in practice-based research. Irwin Epstein & Susan Blumenfield, Eds. (New York):The Haworth Social Work Practice Press.

Social Work Reinvestment Initiative Issue Areas

Public Perception of the Profession

Priority Ranking: 4

Goal:

To enhance the public perception of the social work profession that will result in more people seeking and using social work services, more students choosing to enter the profession, and increased funding for social work services and programs.

Definition of the Issue:

Negative perceptions and limited public understanding of the social work profession has resulted in reluctance on the part of some individuals to utilize social work services, an insufficient number of students entering the profession to meet future demand, and inadequate funding for social work services and programs.

Data/Outcome Measurement for this Goal:

1. Number of unduplicated hits on from within Maryland

2. Rate of social work consumers who indicate that a social worker helped improve their well-being

3. Enrollment trends for social work programs in the state

4. Number and rate of social work students employed as professional social workers five years after graduation

5. Number and rate of secondary school students who indicate an interest in professional social work roles (e.g., mental health, child welfare, gerontology, public advocacy, community organizing, etc.)

6. Number of State legislators who provide tangible support for legislative priorities advanced by NASW-MD (i.e., sponsorship/co-sponsorship, dear colleague letters, testimony, etc.)

7. Rate of professionals in collaborating disciplines (e.g., psychology, psychiatry, addictions, nursing, counseling, law, and law enforcement) who indicate a positive perception of social workers.

Favorable conditions supporting this Goal:

• Increasing awareness and support among State legislators for legislative priorities advanced by NASW-MD

• Statewide access to high-quality undergraduate and graduate social work education

• Fairly stable, well-compensated employment opportunities are provided by several large employers of social workers (e.g., school systems, healthcare providers, public social service agencies, etc.)

• High-level of awareness and support for the profession from a variety of consumer advocacy organizations

Unfavorable conditions/impediments to achieving this Goal:

• Difficulty of defining social work and measuring success due to the nature of generalist practice, individualized treatment planning, and client confidentiality.

• Overrepresentation of negative incidents involving social workers in the media has contributed to inaccurate and negative public perceptions of the social work profession.

• Difficulty of measuring the impact of public education on individual perceptions and behaviors within the broader society.

Estimated Time Frame for accomplishment (1-3 years or longer):

2 years

People/partnership/consultant resources required to achieve this Goal:

• NASW Members

• Schools of Social Work

• Social Work Employers

• State Legislators

• Media

• Social Work Consumers and Advocates

• Government Agencies ( DHR, BSWE, etc)

• Survey/Research Institutions

• Lobbyist/Government Relations

Financial resources required to achieve this Goal:

• In-Kind Support

• Donations and Sponsorships

• NASW-MD funding

Tasks/Timeline

|Define Task |By whom? |By when? |Notes |

|Establish a budget and funding plan to gather and evaluate baseline data |SWRI Task Force, Public Relations Task |3/2008 |NASW-MD Board of Directors to approve and authorize |

|for this goal, plan and conduct public relations campaign, and measure |Force, and NASW-MD staff | |budget in March 2008. |

|campaign outcomes. | | | |

|Gather and organize baselines for data items 1, 3, and 6. Identify data |SWRI Task Force in partnership with NASW |10/2008 | |

|items to be targeted by public relations campaign. |Schools of Social Work, NASW-MD PACE | | |

| |Committee, Ciekot & Eliot, and NASW-MD | | |

| |staff. | | |

|Develop and carry out research activities to establish baselines for data |SWRI Task Force, Public Relations Task |10/2008 |NASW-MD to negotiate legal contract and/or memorandum of |

|items 2, 4, 5, and 7. Identify data items to be targeted by public |Force, NASW-MD staff, and Research | |agreement, as necessary, with contractor(s) subject to |

|relations campaign. |Institution/Firm tbd | |its procurement policies. |

|Develop and carry out statewide public relations campaign with measurable |SWRI Task Force, Public Relations Task |6/2009 | |

|outcomes aimed at improving targeted data variables relative to identified|Force, and NASW-MD staff | | |

|baselines. | | | |

|Gather and evaluate outcomes for those data prioritized from items 1, 3, |SWRI Task Force and Public Relations Task|10/2009 | |

|and 6. |Force in partnership with NASW Schools of| | |

| |Social Work, NASW-MD PACE Committee, | | |

| |Ciekot & Eliot, and NASW-MD staff | | |

|Carry out research activities to measure and evaluate outcomes for those |SWRI Task Force, Public Relations |10/2009 | |

|data prioritized from items 2, 4, 5, and 7 |Taskforce, NASW-MD staff, and Research | | |

| |Institution/Firm tbd | | |

................
................

In order to avoid copyright disputes, this page is only a partial summary.

Google Online Preview   Download