Case study #1
Forlorn, homeless people are starving in the streets. Public funding for a community mental health program has been drastically cut back. That program had provided a halfway house where people could stay, receive counseling, and have their medication monitored. Years ago, the long-term, inpatient mental institution had been shut down. It was much too expensive. Now with the cutbacks, the community program can barely exist. People with serious mental and emotional problems have been turned away and are roaming the streets with nowhere to go.
What would you do as the social worker:
1. What services do you feel these people need at the micro, mezzo, and macro levels? 2. How might you as a generalist social work practitioner go about advocating for these people? What types of social service agencies and organizations could you target for such advocacy? 3. What programs could be developed? 4. What are some ideas for possible funding sources?
