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Keeping in contact with social work clients?

sovereignb

sovereignb

Well-Known Member
As I write the title, it does seem a bit iffy :hmm:

A few of my clients want to stay in touch with me after I leave my job. All males in there early twenties... Two are no longer receiving support and the other two will be ending shortly. I guess I've been a mentor to them in some way, working with them for 2-4 years and have been quite overwhelmed so far by some of the reactions.

I have already been invited to an Afghani wedding at the end of this month and two others have talked of wanting me at the weddings in the future :D Am I supposed to just completely detach and move on? I would by no means go to their home, have them in mine or even exchange phone numbers, but is meeting for a very occasional coffee not harmless?
 
sovereignb said:
As I write the title, it does seem a bit iffy :hmm:

A few of my clients want to stay in touch with me after I leave my job. All males in there early twenties... Two are no longer receiving support and the other two will be ending shortly. I guess I've been a mentor to them in some way, working with them for 2-4 years and have been quite overwhelmed so far by some of the reactions.

I have already been invited to an Afghani wedding at the end of this month and two others have talked of wanting me at the weddings in the future :D Am I supposed to just completely detach and move on? I would by no means go to their home, have them in mine or even exchange phone numbers, but is meeting for a very occasional coffee not harmless?
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For counsellors, this kind of thing would be an open-and-shut no-no,for all kinds of good reasons. Those reasons would be just as applicable in social work, I'd have thought.
 
Epona said:
This is it really, it's not professional, it's not ethical - if you keep in touch as 'mates' it could come back to haunt you.

It's just... no.
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I didn't see it as keeping in contacts as "mates", more of a mentor with obvious boundaries and that contact would be infrequent at best. If someone wants to invite to there wedding im still able to engage with them in a professional manner. I appreciate all the honesty though and makes complete sense. Id checked with management prior to this post and was advised I would able to attend the wedding as I would be in my role at the time - believe it or not we are actually allowed to attend things like graduations, weddings, christenings within the remit of our role...im not sure if that is a surprise?
 
Would someone in your old job be willing to act as a contact point between you and your former clients? So if your former clients wanted to tell you about their achievements etc they could contact your old office knowing that information would be passed on to you, and you could send congratulations etc back, without exchanging phone numbers/email addresses etc - that way there would be no implication that you could either offer further support or become friends. Or would your new job be an appropriate contact point?

I would personally go to the wedding at the end of the month if you were invited before your job ended - although I would check with supervisors in both the old and new job first. Its not unusual for youth and community workers (I'm a community gardener, so this is my role) to go to weddings etc of people they engage in their practice - although you have to remain in role - I've been to a wedding, a graduation, and a funeral through my work.
 
Speak to your clinical supervisor pronto!
IF you decide to go, you be very clear that you are there to say "so long and Farewell" and not as a "mate".
Your professional role should be about empowering your clients to move on, NOT remain reliant on you for support or validation.

Good Luck with whatever you decide to do :thumbs:
 
I've have various people I've looked after who stay in touch, but via work. One lad wants me to go see his Xmas play, but it's half way across the country and I'm visiting my mum in hospital :(
 
crossthebreeze said:
Would someone in your old job be willing to act as a contact point between you and your former clients? So if your former clients wanted to tell you about their achievements etc they could contact your old office knowing that information would be passed on to you, and you could send congratulations etc back, without exchanging phone numbers/email addresses etc - that way there would be no implication that you could either offer further support or become friends. Or would your new job be an appropriate contact point?

I would personally go to the wedding at the end of the month if you were invited before your job ended - although I would check with supervisors in both the old and new job first. Its not unusual for youth and community workers (I'm a community gardener, so this is my role) to go to weddings etc of people they engage in their practice - although you have to remain in role - I've been to a wedding, a graduation, and a funeral through my work.
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Yeah I did think about that. Only one of the clients would actually be receiving support from the service so that would be best practice there.
But the others are already closed (including the wedding invitee) or will be shortly -maybe they could still use the office but I doubt they would lol.
I'm not going to another job for now.
 
FiFi said:
Speak to your clinical supervisor pronto!
IF you decide to go, you be very clear that you are there to say "so long and Farewell" and not as a "mate".
Your professional role should be about empowering your clients to move on, NOT remain reliant on you for support or validation.

Good Luck with whatever you decide to do :thumbs:
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Your so right- God knows ive been banging on about it to them for the last 5 years! In saying that, i'm not even supporting the wedding invitee any longer, but he values the time when I did.

You make a good point though...being inviting to watch one of them perform in a play is still a form of validation I guess? even though I like watching plays!
 
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Of course it's still a form of validation. That's partly why they're asking you to come innit.

Also in terms of weddings / other large gatherings, how do you describe your role to strangers? If you are there in a professional context doesn't it rather compromise their confidentiality if you're telling someone who has asked how you know the bride / groom you're so and so's social worker? How do you know what they've told others about the intervention they've had from you?
 
purenarcotic said:
Of course it's still a form of validation. That's partly why they're asking you to come innit.

Also in terms of weddings / other large gatherings, how do you describe your role to strangers? If you are there in a professional context doesn't it rather compromise their confidentiality if you're telling someone who has asked how you know the bride / groom you're so and so's social worker? How do you know what they've told others about the intervention they've had from you?
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Who says ill be talking to any strangers! However, I can easily say "I used to work with them", as I have in the past - we are used to being sensitive with situations and steering these conversations. Ultimately, the former client could also tell me how they would prefer me to acknowledge myself, though I'm sure I wouldn't be invited if they weren't comfortable enough for me to around the families. I've been introduced as a social worker to friends, family, teachers and managers on many occasions. I find it quite surprising how transparent some of them are about the situation.
 
sovereignb said:
Who says ill be talking to any strangers! However, I can easily say "I used to work with them", as I have in the past - we are used to being sensitive with situations and steering these conversations. Ultimately, the former client could also tell me how they would prefer me to acknowledge myself, though I'm sure I wouldn't be invited if they weren't comfortable enough for me to around the families. I've been introduced as a social worker to friends, family, teachers and managers on many occasions. I find it quite surprising how transparent some of them are about the situation.
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I expect its because of the specific area I work in but we are very cagey about it due to risk levels and safety. I forget it isn't always the same in all areas of social work heh.
 
purenarcotic said:
I expect its because of the specific area I work in but we are very cagey about it due to risk levels and safety. I forget it isn't always the same in all areas of social work heh.
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Well that's expected in any field of social work...im pretty confident in my judgement.
 
I don't have my real name of Facebook, but someone tracked down a person I worked with in my last job and then found me that way!
 
Global Stoner said:
I don't have my real name of Facebook, but someone tracked down a person I worked with in my last job and then found me that way!
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Me neither. One of the first things I do when I get a new client is to do a quick FB search and then block them, before they've found me and so that I don't mysteriously "disappear". The biggest problem isn't direct contact - I'm not searchable in FB either - but mutual friends.
 
Global Stoner said:
I don't have my real name of Facebook, but someone tracked down a person I worked with in my last job and then found me that way!
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Ive had two try to add me on FB. I also find it weird that ive had "friend suggestions" for another two, though we have no common anything.
 
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existentialist said:
Me neither. One of the first things I do when I get a new client is to do a quick FB search and then block them, before they've found me and so that I don't mysteriously "disappear". The biggest problem isn't direct contact - I'm not searchable in FB either - but mutual friends.
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Is it likely you'd have mutual friends? I find it weird they'd want to add me but Id have no problem telling them its not appropriate if I didn't accept their request
 
sovereignb said:
Is it likely you'd have mutual friends? I find it weird they'd want to add me but Id have no problem telling them its not appropriate if I didn't accept their request
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It has been alarming how regularly it happens. There's an ongoing one where a client was friends (itself in a somewhat complicated way) with my dealer. I've had to take that one to supervision a couple of times...
 
It may be different with social work, but I find that clients quite often want to perpetuate the (or "a") relationship after the work is done. And sometimes, they can be quite creative about it.

In my field, the general view is: if you're a member of a club or organisation, and a current client swans in, you need not to be encountering them on an ongoing basis. I've had to swerve two karate clubs like that (doesn't look good to be counselling your clients one day, and trying to punch them in the head the next), and I've known counsellors who've had to drop out of choirs or similar groups for the same reason. Likewise, it can get awkward if you're at a party somewhere and a client wanders over...

There's a few sacrifices we have to make in this job!
 
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