Program Information The primary goal of Adult Services is to assist elders (persons 60 years or older) and dependent adults ages 18 to 59, when they have been or are currently being victims of abuse or neglect. Adult Services may assist in keeping elders and dependent adults in their homes and communities if determined to be a safe situation by making the proper referrals.
Some of the things an Adult Services social worker does are to:
- Review and investigate calls/reports of abuse/neglect within 24 hours of the report
- Link elders and dependent adults to other agencies where they can get help with their emergency needs
- Locate a friend or a relative of the elder or dependent adult to provide support
- Provide help in completing application packets for conservatorship and assisting with referrals to the Public Guardian’s Office
A social work intern will be involved with risk assessment in LEAPS (case management database), case management, safety planning with client, multidisciplinary team meetings (MDT), client engagement and rapport building, assessing client using a strengths based approach, and linkages to services and resources.
Skills include: critical thinking, assessment, report writing, documentation of services, investigative skills, and building rapport. The student intern should be flexible and do well with unpredictability (can pivot). They should understand that on any given day they are an offering to a client for services, but the client has choice in accepting (or not). The student intern should be someone who can understand that the results of any case/referral are not indicative of the intern's abilities, have appreciation for client's self autonomy or self determination and be a creative thinker in problem solving. The student should also be someone who can assess a situation and reframe it in a way that highlights the positive and also be a self-starter.