MSW 580: Sexual Abuse Midterm

The competencies that aligned with this assignment were the 2022 EPAS Competency 2: Advance Human Rights and Social, Racial, Economic, and Environmental Justice, Competency 4: Engage in Practice-Informed Research and Research-Informed Practice, Competency 5: Engage in Policy Practice, and 9: Evaluate Practice with Individuals, Families, Groups, Organizations, and Communities. 

I confidently emphasize inclusive practice, advocate for people's rights through policy, and evaluate interventions using practice-informed research. My MSW 580 Child Welfare Issues course focused on analyzing and identifying multiple welfare issues through race, poverty, racism, and other relevant markers. This assignment demonstrated how treatment methods and interventions could be more diverse when applied to each population affected. In the child welfare systems specifically, families and children of color are more likely to have past or current involvement with the system as opposed to a non-colored family. I am now able to critically analyze child sexual abuse risk factors, long-term consequences, and the importance of appropriate child welfare practices and policies. With this project, I analyzed the current interventions and critically evaluated barriers in place by the child welfare system policies. I researched how it has an impact on children and families, which included risk factors contributing to their vulnerability in the child welfare system. 

The main goal of good social work practice should be to advance human rights and social justice within the child welfare system and beyond (Competency 2). I assessed and analyzed current child welfare policies in place, such as CAPTA and policy manuals provided by the Department of Children Services that are color-evasive, which results in there being a significant disproportionality of targeting families of color. With that understanding, through a CRT/I lens, I acknowledge that such injustice of disproportionality in the welfare system causes ongoing oppression and inadequate services. I understand and am self-aware of the ongoing injustices families of color face through policies/interventions that violate their human rights. Recognizing the ongoing injustices faced by families of color, it is imperative to prioritize their voices and counter-narratives in enacting fundamental services within the child welfare system.

 I researched interventions and policies utilized by child welfare agencies and assessed that not all are universally applicable. I assessed how employing anti-oppressive strategies informed by evidence-based research can be further effective when social workers engage with youth and families of color (Competency 4). When researching sexual abuse as a social issue, I reviewed and utilized multiple methods of research (qualitative and quantitative) that encompassed its growing nature. Therefore, with a CRT lens, I discovered how interventions such as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Dialectal Behavior Therapy, and others are not readily applicable or practical when coming across different cultures, races, ethnicities, and other interactional dynamics. Through a CRT/I lens, I identified the interventions' limitations and the importance of implementing evidence-based practice that accommodates diverse clients.

Policy engagement involves recognizing policies at the state, local, and federal levels and evaluating or recommending ways to advance the inclusivity of services for children and their families (Competency 5). Through policy engagement, I practiced giving recommendations for the CAPTA policy that can increase free child after-school care funding as a preventative measure to decrease or cause some relief for the social issue of sexual abuse. After utilizing data from various research methods, I found that policies in the welfare system (Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act, policy manual within the child welfare system) are not meeting adequate needs when it comes to assessing and providing services to diverse populations. I recommended this because, through a CRT/I lens, the lack of school funding significantly impacts low-income families in their communities, leading to job losses and affecting their ability to care for their children during after-school hours, leaving them with unknown or known family members. We need to advocate for policy change to advance inclusivity in services for children and families. I aimed to do so by addressing system inequalities that impact families. 

Recognition of policy evaluation processes and outcomes is essential to advance service delivery effectiveness for children, youth, and their families (Competency 9). I assessed and evaluated current policies within the child welfare system, such as 'Policy 0070-532.10: Assessing Child Sexual Abuse Allegations'. I identified limitations in these policies regarding their consideration of cultural factors. Specifically, I examined how these cultural limitations hinder social workers' ability to integrate best practices and how they significantly impact families of color. Furthermore, with theoretical knowledge of CRT/I and through Person-in-Environment perspectives, it is apparent that minority groups and communities are more likely to get negatively impacted by child welfare system policies. Through such policies, the outcomes will carry a solid weighted impact on families, such as unnecessary removal of children, inadequate reunification services, and failure to work around family strengths to keep children in the home. By evaluating policies and their limitations with cultural factors, I strive to promote policy change that will positively impact the effectiveness of service delivery. 

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