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- Title
Increasing Christian Social Workers' Basic Knowledge of HIV and AIDS: The Beginning of Competent Practice.
- Authors
Tan, Allison M.
- Abstract
Rarely will a social worker practice in any setting without encountering clients infected with or affected by HIV and AIDS several times throughout the course of his or her career. As one whose entire social work career has been dedicated to working with and on behalf of those living with HIV and AIDS, the author has had many opportunities to engage in conversations and trainings with a variety of social work practitioners and students. Almost without exception, these encounters begin with well-meaning, eager, and engaged social workers—men and women who are interested in (and often already practicing with) HIV-positive clientele. However, the author is struck time and time again by the lack of knowledge the average social work practitioner and student has regarding both the history and current state of the HIV epidemic. This article aims to increase the social work practitioner's basic knowledge of HIV and AIDS, based on the underlying belief that a better educated practitioner can then become a more competent and confident provider of compassionate social work services—especially focused on the practice of the Christian social work practitioner. The author presents three steps toward competent practice with clients living with and affected by HIV and AIDS: understanding the history of HIV in America, knowing the facts of the current state of the HIV epidemic, and acknowledging the ways Christian social workers and the Church have detrimentally treated those with HIV and AIDS. Then, the author offers some implications for Christians in social work practice aimed to challenge and empower them to more competent practice with the individuals living with and affected by HIV they will inevitably encounter in their varied fields of practice.
- Subjects
SOCIAL workers; HIV-positive persons; AIDS patients; HIV infections; SOCIAL services; SOCIAL worker &; client; CHRISTIANS
- Publication
Social Work & Christianity, 2013, Vol 40, Issue 2, p144
- ISSN
0737-5778
- Publication type
Article