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Background: Literature shows that in South Africa there are insufficient resources to meet mental healthcare needs. At general or district hospital level, the non-specialist doctor is often responsible for the holistic assessment and management of mental health service users. Such situations inevitably increase doctors' care load as they are required to treat across disciplines. We highlight the particular challenges faced by a community service (CS) doctor in this context. Methods: The presented case study formed part of a larger project that investigated public mental healthcare provision in the Eastern Cape province. Data were collected through a once-off semi-structured interview with the participant. The interview was transcribed and data analysed by utilising thematic analysis to yield results. Results: The study suggests that the CS doctor experiences being overloaded with duties, and feels overwhelmed in a healthcare context that lacks resources needed for service provision, which may lead to inadequate mental healthcare provision to public health service users. Conclusion: Healthcare facilities in rural parts of the Eastern Cape province are in need of assistance. This in-depth account highlighted the consequences of working on the front line of a disadvantaged and under-resourced health system. The presented account can be interpreted as a cry for help by CS doctors for relevant authorities to improve access and provision of mental healthcare in the area. Contribution: The paper provides an exploration of the circumstances wherein mental healthcare is provided in rural parts of South Africa. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the progress of the social service professions delivering developmental social welfare in South Africa, a subject we have followed closely over the last 20 years. Being policy‐driven, developmental social welfare stemmed from expert social analyses that resulted in technically oriented solutions, including the broadening of social service professions. Twenty years on, it is hard to see developmental social welfare, as envisaged in government policy, in action, since the practice reality does not differ drastically from the prior apartheid system with the government's heavy reliance on social security as a poverty‐alleviation measure. The expanded social security budget has led to underfunded services and a crisis for social service professionals. This paper focuses on the regulated professions of social workers, and child and youth care workers. Our examination of critical issues for these occupational groups revealed that South Africa still has a long way to go in building a strong social service workforce. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa (1996) provides a normative framework for upholding the fundamental human rights of its citizens, day labourers represent one of the most disenfranchised and marginalised sectors of the South African economy and remain entirely at the mercy of prevailing market forces. This paper is based on a qualitative study that was conducted in the city of East London in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa to develop a comprehensive understanding of the precarious circumstances in which day labourers are obliged to eke out a meagre subsistence through short-term employment. A person-in-environment framework was used to evaluate the findings from a thematic analysis of the data that was obtained from individual interviews with eighteen day labourers who had no other forms of income. The findings were used to formulate recommendations for social work practice, specifically with respect to the role of social workers in the formulation and implementation of policies to include day labourers among the vulnerable segments of the population whose well-being the profession is dedicated to improving. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

South Africa is a particularly traumatised country that has been characterised and experienced excessive amounts of violence, discrimination and social division. Against this backdrop, South African social workers have a fundamental role to fulfil through their contributions to the healing of the country as they advocate for social justice, reconciliation and equality. Yet these contributions often come at a cost, working with traumatised clients and communities frequently results in social workers being exposed to emotionally intensive and disturbing experiences of their clients and communities. While there are numerous strategies to employ in order to ameliorate the effects of vicarious trauma, reflective social work practice is essential. This paper explores how reflective practice is a crucial approach to practice for social workers who are working with traumatised populations utilising a case vignette to illustrate this process. The role of social work educators and supervisors in this regard is also highlighted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The social work profession has become critical in assisting victims of violent crime at social service agencies in South Africa. Social workers have been spearheading efforts to help trauma victims at the expense of their mental health. For Black South African social workers, the mental burden of working with victim collides with historical trauma to create new ways of experiencing mental health challenges. The study aimed to explore the experiences of social workers working with victims of violent crime at select social service agencies in Johannesburg. The study was qualitative in nature and a case study design was used. Data was collected using in-depth interviews. The researchers used purposive sampling and data was analyzed using thematic analysis. Results from the study showed that Black South African social workers working in the field of violent crime face challenges such as prolonged sadness, emotional exhaustion and vicarious trauma. All these psychological problems are amplified by the fact that social workers in South Africa work under strenuous conditions. This increases the impact of psychological problems on social workers. Therefore, this paper argues that when the psychological effects of working with victims of violent crime, intersect with historical trauma, it produces unique ways of experiencing trauma for Black South African social workers. This study has strong implications for research about the health and wellbeing of social work practitioners working with trauma victims. The study exposes the need to prioritize the wellbeing of social workers especially those working in contexts with a traumatic past. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mothering in the context of a South African high-risk community has undue complexities. Apart from the compounding risks for families and the reality of many "poverty traps," when mothers' personal and parenting competencies within this context are compromised, then the entire family suffers. There is a need for the development and evaluation of a wellness program for mothers living in high-risk communities in the South African context. Moreover, scholars argue for a contextual understanding of structural conditions and, particularly, for the inclusion of a participatory and social justice approach to such program development. The aim of the program described in this paper was to strengthen the personal and parenting abilities of mothers living in a South African high-risk low-income community. We describe our modus operandi in combining research-generated academic information with contextual data obtained via participatory processes to inform the content and focus of the program. Additionally, thematic analysis of data obtained via a focus group discussion with social worker participants was used to identify prerequisite skills and competencies for this program to enhance mothers' well-being as well as appropriate parenting skills. We describe the content of the wellness program comprising concept mapping of four modules called Mattering; Mothering; Managing; and, Mentoring located within the theoretical framework of Community Psychology. Guidelines from various parenting programs were incorporated as best practices toward effective implementation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The global agenda of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) provides social workers an opportunity to redefine their contributions pertaining to socioeconomic development, human rights and the environment. This is specifically so for social workers in South Africa, whose contributions have been narrowed. Therefore, this paper identifies potential contributions by social workers in relation to the SDGs using cultural complexity thinking in a diverse country. The paper also points out difficulties faced by social workers on their contribution in the SDGs in a culturally diverse South Africa. The paper concludes that social workers must stand alongside their service users as partners in contributing to justice and equality by achieving the SDGs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this paper is to explore Congolese refugees and asylum seekers' survival strategies in South Africa, the focus of this paper will be on the role of the social worker. The paper is part of the study that was conducted on Congolese refugees and asylum seekers in South Africa post-war or conflicts. The study employed a qualitative research method and a descriptive case study of 10 female Congolese refugees living in Yeoville, Johannesburg South Africa. The participants have lived in South African for less than five years and there were 30–40 years of age. Data were collected by means of one-on-one in-depth interviews in the form of semi-structured interviews. Purposive sampling and snowball sampling techniques were used in the selection of participants. Thematic content analysis was used in analyzing the data collected. The paper provides recommendations on what role can social workers play can in mental wellbeing interventions. This study also contributes to a better understanding of mental wellbeing issues of Congolese refugees and asylum seekers. Ethical approval for this research study was obtained from the Department of Social Work Human Research Ethics Committee (Non-medical) of the University of Witwatersrand. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Child protection social workers (CPSWs) do critical work protecting vulnerable children. Given the demanding nature of this work, CPSWs are reportedly at great risk for negative outcomes, such as burnout and depression. Another outcome is often unsatisfactory service delivery by CPSWs, leaving vulnerable children exposed to continued maltreatment. Understanding how some CPSWs do well, despite the demanding nature of their work, is important to inform future interventions that could potentially promote CPSW resilience and improve CPSW service delivery. While some research on the resilience of CPSWs exists, very little is known about resilience in South African CPSWs. The aim of this qualitative study was to contribute to the ongoing conversation of CPSW resilience, by exploring resilience among CPSWs in Gauteng, South Africa. Participants shared their lived experiences of workplace adversity and resilience. In this paper, we report only on the findings related to their resilience, which was analysed using thematic analysis. Findings reveal that participants' resilience was informed by a safe and appealing space away from work; drawing strength from religion; relaxation and self‐care as healing modalities; a passion for CPSW; the positive influence of personal background; supportive care systems; self‐efficacy and personal agency; and a positive outlook. The resilience of these CPSWs, although dependent on supportive and responsive ecologies, was mostly self‐directed since they appeared fundamentally accountable to procure support. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Children have the right to be brought up in safe environments. However, this right is often infringed by people who are supposed to provide love, care, and protection to children. These people can include biological fathers, step-fathers, brothers, cousins, aunts, mothers, and uncles. Violation of children takes place in a variety of ways, however, for the purpose of this paper, the focus is on child sexual abuse within the family system. A literature review is adopted as the methodology for the discussions in this paper. The purpose of this paper is firstly to demonstrate that child sexual abuse happens within the family system in South Africa, and secondly, to argue that the prevention of child sexual abuse should start within the family system and this can be achieved by conducting educational social group work sessions on child sexual abuse with the family members. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: This paper adopts a qualitative case study on the generalist service delivery model of I‐Care, a Durban‐based non‐governmental organization that works with male street children. Fifteen face‐to‐face interviews were conducted with 10 I‐Care employees and 5 former street children. A focus group was set up with I‐Care employees. Although existing literature is forthright about a generalist approach for children at risk, it remains unclear how to implement this approach in practice. This paper reviews a continuity of 5 fundamental social work practices for working with street children: (a) outreach work, (b) child–family and child–community mediation, (c) transitory care centres and programmes, (d) brokerage, and (e) mentorship and follow‐ups. The study analyses how these practices contribute to the capability and agency expansion of the street children and outlines challenges that service providers and former street children experience. The main challenges acknowledged are balancing between the agency and protection of street children and the adaptation of children to street life. The study proposes intervention strategies to overcome these challenges. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effects of HIV and AIDS have devastated families and communities in South Africa. The scourge has also left many children orphaned in the country. Given the vulnerability of orphaned children, social workers are in the forefront of ensuring that these children are cared for and protected from any harm. Hence, the purpose of this paper was to explore the role of a social worker in issues related to children orphaned by AIDS in their middle childhood. This study was situated within a qualitative research paradigm utilizing purposive, non-probability sampling of 10 participants recruited from Potchefstroom in the Northwest Province of South Africa. A semi-structured interview schedule was employed as a research tool, and in-depth one-on-one interviews were adopted as the method of data collection. A thematic content analysis was used to analyze the data collected during the interviews. The main findings point towards the need to educate children about HIV and AIDS and to empower their caregivers. The primary conclusion drawn from this study is that social workers play various key roles which contribute towards the well-being of orphaned children. Recommendations are posed in relation to social work service providers, government interventions, and future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Social workers often work with the most marginalised and deprived segments of society. This paper addresses such a segment in South Africa — a group of 10 orphaned or vulnerable young people, living in group foster care in a township. In such contexts, hope for the future becomes frayed as these children have few opportunities of escaping the trap of poverty. The author introduces and mobilises the theory of possible selves developed by Markus and Nurius. This theory argues that our visual pictures of who we could become in the future significantly motivate current behaviour. Based on this theory, the author developed a group work programme with these young people, called the 'Futures Group', which aimed to stimulate their possible selves and to help them determine what they needed to be doing in the present to achieve their future possible selves. The paper outlines the theory of possible selves, the Futures Group intervention and reflections for practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Collaboration amongst stakeholders remains a central tenet to achieving goals in planning, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of HIV and AIDS prevention and care strategies. This paper describes the experiences of members of a health care team who joined efforts to collaborate and form a community of practice (CoP) in HIV and AIDS. Qualitative, exploratory case study methods were used. Twenty-six participants were interviewed. Transcripts from the interviews were subjected to the thematic framework of data analysis. Based on the analysis, three themes emerged as impacting on collaboration and these were: the understanding and expectations of being a CoP member; professionalism and ethics within the CoP and collaboration in HIV and AIDS care. The key findings were that the understanding and expectations from the CoP varied. Ethical principles including respect, trust and confidentiality were identified as key tenets of collaboration and were expressed in various ways. The expectations of being a CoP member, the ethical principles within the CoP all impacted in differing ways on how they collaborated. The implication of this study suggests that consultation during inception and throughout the process, clarification of roles, transparency and respect are cardinal points in professional relationships. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this paper is to present a preliminary, qualitative review of a therapeutic programme for preschool children and their parents in severely under-resourced contexts to aid the development of the underlying skills required to be ready for formal school. A team of two pairs, each comprising an occupational therapist and a community worker, responded to teachers' requests to assist struggling children in their classes. This led to the development of a programme focusing on Grade R classes, by firstly helping teachers to develop their capability and confidence in assessing and assisting children to develop the abilities underlying vital school-readiness skills during whole-class, therapeutic group sessions. Secondly, parent group sessions were added to empower parents to understand and support their children's development needs at home and so to complement the work done by teachers in the classroom. This second aspect, of working with the parents, developed owing to observations of the children's irregular school attendance, scant parent-school contact, and teachers' reports indicating that parents were not aware of, nor equipped to deal with, the challenges faced by their children. Implications for practice, for planning and for further research are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Globalized labour mobility has led to questions regarding the degree to which social work education in one country can be applicable to practice in another. This paper examines social work education programmes and practice contexts in South Africa, England and Canada as examples through which to examine this question. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Responses to the HIV epidemic leading to an increase in the number of residential care facilities for children across sub-Saharan Africa have prompted concerns that large numbers of orphaned children are being placed in institutional care. There is little empirical research into the role that institutions are playing in the provision of care to children affected by HIV in the region. This paper draws on an exploratory study of the provision of residential care for children in the context of the HIV epidemic in South Africa. The analysis characterises the population of children in a small sample of residential care facilities in four provinces, and, after identifying a disproportionate number of HIV-positive children in care, examines the circumstances that led to their admission and the nature of HIV-related interventions in the facilities. The analysis reveals missed opportunities for non-institutional placements for HIV-positive children and identifies important gaps in the HIV prevention, treatment, care, and support interventions within the facilities. The article argues that a global and local preoccupation with orphans as being the children most severely affected by HIV, and as the primary category of children requiring alternative care as a result of the HIV epidemic, may have diverted attention away from the extent to which HIV-positive children populate institutions in South Africa. Furthermore, we suggest that adjustments are required to both decisionmaking regarding placement of HIV-positive children requiring alternative care and the provision of HIV-related interventions in residential facilities in order to ensure an adequate response to children's health and wellbeing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the transition of social welfare in South Africa. The draft White Paper has now made its way through the legislative process and has been accepted as a policy document for social welfare in South Africa. Developmental social welfare services will be guided by the following principles: securing basic welfare rights for all through a combination of private and public financing methods, equity, non-discrimination, democracy, respect for human rights, sustainability, ensuring quality services, transparency and accountability, accessibility, appropriateness and humanity in the delivery of services. The vision, mission and principles reflect the ideals articulated in the transitional constitution of the country. However, the challenge remains one of understanding the implications of this policy for specific achievable outcomes and priorities and translating the principles into practice, within the current financial and human resources constraints. To this end, a five-year strategic plan to implement the policy document will be worked out.

The article invites, paper for the submissions for a special issue of the journal focused on intervention research conducted on social work and social care services in Egypt and the Arab World.

This paper reports part of the findings of the study which investigated sexual violence at two schools catering specifically for learners with mild intellectual disability in Gauteng Province. It looks particularly on participants’ suggestions for addressing sexual violence in such school. A multiple case study within the qualitative research paradigm was followed to investigate the problem posed. Data were collected using focus groups and individual interviews with 16 learners (11 females and 5 males) with mild intellectual disability. Individual interviews were also conducted with the two school support members, namely the school nurse and social worker. An analysis of school documents (the book of incidents) was also carried out as a strategy to augment data collected by means of interviews. Data was analysed for content and the findings are presented under the following headings: a) education on sexual violence campaigns; b) single-sex discussion groups addressing relevant topics; c) provision of appropriate sexuality education; and (d) intensification of supervision at particular areas considered as ‘hot spots’ for sexual violence at schools. Intervention strategies are proposed, which could be effective if they occur alongside clear and functional rules and policies addressing sexual violence in schools, and teacher training programmes to empower them in handling reported incidents. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]