WANcareerlife: Auxiliary social work is not for the half-hearted

SMANGELE NDABA’S day is filled with only one thing in mind: to help the community of Etwatwa, Benoni. She is an auxiliary social worker at the John Wesley Community Centre. But now her occupation has turned into a horror movie that went wrong. She is traumatised by all the wailing, lamentations and bad things she has to listen to from clients visiting her and what she experiences when doing home visits. And the hours are long.

But, as she tells Thembi Masser, she likes her work immensely, no matter how long the duty list is.

The main service of the social work is to basic counselling, attending to the needs of the community and making sure that the welfare of the community is on a sound footing. For one to achieve this, Smangele, 30, says one has to truly throw their heart into it. Throwing their hearts in their jobs means really adhering to the needs of the occupation. Auxiliary social workers do the job of social workers, only on a smaller scale. “I do basic counselling,” Smangele says, listing her job description. “Apart from counselling, which is done here at the centre or at the home of the client, I do the following, but not in the order of importance-

Referrals

Facilitation-which means creating and sustaining support groups and income creating projects

Fundraising

Attend stakeholder meetings

Home visits

Teach life skills to young girls

Assist orphaned children with reading skills

Coach the netball team

Create awareness on social issues to young girls

Administration

Visits schools

And this is what this long list means: I have to counsel my HIV positive clients as well do counselling in domestic disputes. I also counsel kids who attend our projects here at the JWCC when they are bereaved. Then there are trauma cases. Most of these trauma cases I have to refer to social workers for attention. I refer other clients to the South African Police Services (SAPS) in the case of domestic assaults and abuse, Home Affairs in the case of orphans who have no identification papers and therefore receuive no grants, and so on. I visit, at their homes, HIV patients to check on feedback on advice given.”

Smagele gives advice to young girls on the effects teenage pregnancies and menstruation problems. She is also expected to attend awareness campaigns on social issues, abuse on women and children and drugs. She attends stakeholder meetings like the LACCA (local action campaign for children affected and infected) and Child Care Forums (CCF). At these forums children between the ages of 11 and 18 discusses and share common issues. At the LACCA organisations like the SAPS, the deaprtments of Home Affairs, education, justice and health give in sight into what should be done when it comes to the welfare of children. Church minsters and child care centres re[resentatives also attend.

The requirements into the occupation are not that strict, but she says you have to be prepared to write and speak a lot. Then there is matric and you must also have an intense ability to listen carefully and with empathy.

Smangele matriculated at Davey and Phandimfundo High Schools. She finds it strange that she only came to like and understand maths very late in her schooling. “I only came to like maths in my final year of study, which was a pity; It robbed ne of a chance to make other choices.” Her other subjects were physical science, biology, Zulu, English and Afrikaans.

She wanted to be news reader on either TV or radio when she was still at school because she likes reading all languages. “I am also fascinated by sports, but strangely, I am not a media person.”

After matric she went to the Rearabile Organisation where the department of social development realised her talent and offered her a learnership to study at Khanya College. She then got her diploma in auxiliary social work after two years. At Khanya her courses included social work, community development, group work, research and case work.

But for the future the mother of two girls wants to establish an orphanage for girls and to help them in their quest to influence better change in their communities.