This workshop will lay the foundation for understanding spirituality in practice, providing tangible examples and ethical considerations. It will also provide opportunities to collaboratively brainstorm ways to work with clients, teach students, and demonstrate to supervisees what this looks like. Lastly, it will give examples and tools that social workers can use with clients and for themselves to work towards fully ethically integrating spirituality.
About this course
At the core of spirituality is the idea of making meaning or sense out of our suffering and experiences in life. This is something that all social workers will have to wrestle with as individuals, as well as guide their clients in during the helping process. With the perspective of the whole person, social workers cannot ignore the deep spiritual significance of suffering and needing help. It is, however, of utmost importance that in integrating spirituality into practice, social workers understand the ethical guidelines in this often-ignored area of practice. It is also imperative that field instructors and supervisors understand practical examples of how this can be done and how to help teach it to students and those under supervision.
