The Social Work Café

Welcome back to the Social Work Café. Field placement is essential for students to develop their professional identities and social work practice framework. It is also an ideal setting to learn how to become a disruptive social worker! To explore this tantalising topic, I am joined by the fabulous Dr Shirley Ledger who did her PhD in this area. We explore disruptive social work practice and the ways in which social work students and qualified practitioners can acquire the skills needed to achieve our professional objectives despite challenging practice contexts.

Learn more

Click here to connect with Shirley.

Click here for information on an interesting article co-written by Shirley.

How you can get involved

Become a friend of the podcast by tapping the subscribe button on your podcast app, leaving a positive review, and sharing the podcast with other social workers.

You can connect with me via the details below. 

Click here to connect with me on Instagram.

Click here to read the blog post for this episode.

Click here to connect with me on LinkedIn.

It is not uncommon for some people to be deemed too “complex” or “difficult” to treat in the mental health system. In this episode of the Social Work Cafe, we meet a passionate social work therapist and advocate who is determined to address those outdated ideas. Alex Wilson is an experienced practitioner with her own private practice, Mindful Recovery. Alex shares her social work perspective on working in the mental health space, especially with young people who get thrown onto the merry-go-round of mental health services.  

Learn more

Click here to learn more about Alex and her private practice.

Click here to learn more about dialectical behavioural therapy.

How you can get involved

Become a friend of the podcast by tapping the subscribe button on your podcast app, leaving a positive review, and sharing the podcast with other social workers.

You can connect with me via the details below. 

Click here to connect with me on Instagram.

Click here to read the blog post for this episode.

Click here to connect with me on LinkedIn.

Dr Will Dobud is back in the café to explore the wild side of social work! He survived chatting with me about feedback-informed treatment in season 1. This time he is going to speak with us his number one passion of wilderness therapy. Will is going to clarify some terminology in this field, as well as explain the theory and practice methods that are common to this field. Be sure to stick around for this advice on how to work in this exciting field.

Learn More

Click here to find out more about Will’s research.

Click here to find out more about Will’s podcast – Adventure Therapy Collective Podcast.

Click here to learn more about the Hell camp documentary Netflix.

How you can get involved

Become a friend of the podcast by tapping the subscribe button on your podcast app, leaving a positive review, and sharing the podcast with other social workers.

You can connect with me via the details below. 

Click here to connect with me on Instagram.

Click here to read the blog post for this episode.

Click here to connect with me on LinkedIn.

Welcome to the launch of season 2 of the Social Work Café podcast. I’m your host, Bernadette Moorhead, aka Dr B. In this brief trailer, I reveal what’s in store for season 2, including the question that each guest will answer.  Whether you are a social work student or practitioner in any part of the world, this podcast is for you. So go brew your favourite drink and join me in the Social Work Café.  

How you can get involved

Become a friend of the podcast by tapping the subscribe button on your podcast app, leaving a positive review, and sharing the podcast with other social workers.

You can connect with me via the details below. 

Click here to connect with me on Instagram.

Click here to read the blog post for this episode.

Click here to connect with me on LinkedIn.

Acknowledgement of Country

The Social Work Café Podcast is produced on Wiradjuri Country. I acknowledge the Traditional Owners of this land and would also like to pay my respects to Wiradjuri Elders past and present, as well as any First Nations listeners.

Disclaimer

The views, opinions, and ideas expressed in this podcast are solely those of the host and guests and do not reflect the views of their employers or any other institution.

For our last episode for 2023, I’m joined in the Social Work Café by Kasey Henshaw, a dedicated listener who is about to graduate! We’re going to talk about what she has gained from listening to season 1 of the podcast and how she would answer that all-important question: What is social work? Dr. B will chime in with her very own answer as well.

How you can get involved

Become a friend of the podcast by tapping the subscribe button on your podcast app, leaving a positive review, and sharing the podcast with other social workers.

You can connect with me via the details below. 

Click here to connect with me on Instagram.

Click here to read the blog post for this episode.

Click here to connect with me on LinkedIn.

Welcome back to the Social Work Café. As a profession largely consisting of women, it is no surprise that many social workers embrace a feminist worldview. We are passionate about liberation, class struggle, and addressing gendered injustices, which are exemplified in the UN Sustainable Development Goals. With this in mind, does contemporary social work adequately centre feminist theory and practice? To examine this question, Jac McNamara, from our recent bonus episode, is back in the café to talk about feminism in social work. We cannot promise that bras won’t be burned during this episode.

Learn more

You can contact Jac via her email: jmcnamara@csu.edu.au

Click here to read more about Jac.

Click here to read a recent blog post written by Jac on this topic.

Click here to learn about the Helem Yumba Healing Place.

Click here to learn about the Healing Our Spirit Worldwide Conference.

Click here to download the complete works of Andrea Dworkin for free (Right-wing Women and Woman Hating are highly recommended by Jac).

Click here to learn more about Gail Dines.

Click here to access Feminism is for everybody: Passion politics, by bell hooks.

Click here for details about Patriarchy, by Pavla Miller.

How you can get involved

Become a friend of the podcast by tapping the subscribe button on your podcast app, leaving a positive review, and sharing the podcast with other social workers.

You can connect with me via the details below.

Click here to connect with me on Instagram.

Click here to read the blog post for this episode.

Click here to connect with me on LinkedIn.

The International Federation of Social Workers (IFSW) plays a key role in promoting our profession at a global level, especially through the international definition of social work. But what is it that makes social work a global profession? In this episode, I speak with Dr. Sebastian Cordoba, an Australian social work educator at RMIT and member of the IFSW Asia-Pacific Regional Representatives of the United Nations Commission. He tells us about his fascinating macro work and what makes social work a global profession, particularly considering our diverse contexts.

Learn more

Click here to learn more about Dr. Cordoba.

Click here to learn more about The International Federation of Social Workers.

Click here to sign up for the free IFSW e-newsletter.

Click here for details on an interesting article about globalising social work.

Click here for another interesting article about the global definition.

How you can get involved

Become a friend of the podcast by tapping the subscribe button on your podcast app, leaving a positive review, and sharing the podcast with other social workers.

You can connect with me via the details below. 

Click here to connect with me on Instagram.

Click here to read the blog post for this episode.

Click here to connect with me on LinkedIn.

Welcome back to The Social Work Café. Within the vast field of health, is the equally vast field of mental health. Social workers have a lot to offer the mental health space, but we have some work to do when it comes to promoting a social work perspective of mental health. I have the perfect guest to speak on this topic, my fabulous colleague, Dr. Fredrik Velander, who is an experienced social work practitioner, educator and researcher in the mental health space. He has wonderful experience and wisdom to share, including how we can promote ourselves in this important space.

Learn More

Click here to check out Fredrik’s research.

Click here for a book recommendation from Fredrik that great content on nutrition and mental health.

Click here for a book recommendation from Fredrik that has great content on ecological loss, climate change and mental health.

How you can get involved

Become a friend of the podcast by tapping the subscribe button on your podcast app, leaving a positive review, and sharing the podcast with other social workers.

You can connect with me via the details below. 

Click here to connect with me on Instagram.

Click here to read the blog post for this episode.

Click here to connect with me on LinkedIn.

I often come across social work students who baulk at the idea of working with older adults, which is a shame because it is a group that desperately needs us. Joining me in the Social Work Café is the fabulous Dr. Belinda Cash, whose passion for working with older adults is utterly infectious. In this episode, Belinda explains the many ways that social workers can make vital social justice and human rights contributions to the lives of older adults and their families.

Learn more

Click here to learn more about Dr. Belinda Cash.

Click here to learn more about Belinda’s doctoral research.

Click here to learn more about the Australian Association of Gerontology.

How you can get involved

Become a friend of the podcast by tapping the subscribe button on your podcast app, leaving a positive review, and sharing the podcast with other social workers.

You can connect with me via the details below. 

Click here to connect with me on Instagram.

Click here to read the blog post for this episode.

Click here to connect with me on LinkedIn.

Welcome to this very special bonus episode of the Social Work Café, where the usual format has been thrown out the window for now. I’m joined by the amazing Jac McNamara, a field education coordinator at Central Queensland University. I have the great pleasure of co-supervising Jac for her PhD, and even more exciting is that we both attended and presented at the International Federation of Social Work Europe Conference in May, held in Prague. It was such an adventure, so we decided to tell you all about our experiences, our research, and what we think the themes from the conference mean for social work.

Learn more

Click here for information on Michael Rasell’s keynote.

Click here for details about IFSW Global President, Joachim Mumba

Click here to download a free IFSW book on Ubuntu philosophy.

Click here for information on Valentin Inzko’s keynote.

Click here for information on Richard de Brabander’s keynote.

Click here to learn about Jac’s presentation.

Click here to learn about Bernadette’s presentation.

Click here to learn about Sharon Razon’s presentation.

Click here to watch Malcolm Payne’s keynote presentation on YouTube.

Click here to learn about the forthcoming 2024 Joint Conference on Social Work, Education and Social Development (#SWSD2024) in Panama.

How you can get involved

Become a friend of the podcast by tapping the subscribe button on your podcast app, leaving a positive review, and sharing the podcast with other social workers.

You can connect with me via the details below.

Click here to connect with me on Instagram.

Click here to read the blog post for this episode.

Click here to connect with me on LinkedIn.

Welcome back to The Social Work Café. From time to time, students and newly qualified practitioners ask me how they can go about becoming an accredited mental health social worker in Australia and whether it is worth undertaking at all. I have not been through the process myself, so it is shrouded in mystery for me. Fortunately, Ashton Hayes has her own podcast on this very topic! Ashton is an experienced social work practitioner, supervisor, and trainer, and in her work, she pulls back the curtain on the whole accreditation process and why the mental health sector needs accredited social workers. She joins me in the café for a conversation about what she has learned from interviewing practitioners on her podcast and provides insightful advice for career planning.

Learn More

Click here to learn more about Ashton.

Click here to check out Ashton’s podcast.

Click here for Ashton’s Instagram handle.

Click here for more information about mental health accreditation through the Australian Association of Social Work.

How you can get involved

Become a friend of the podcast by tapping the subscribe button on your podcast app, leaving a positive review, and sharing the podcast with other social workers.

You can connect with me via the details below. 

Click here to connect with me on Instagram.

Click here to read the blog post for this episode.

Click here to connect with me on LinkedIn.

Welcome back to the Social Work Café dear listeners. Have you heard? We are all trauma-informed these days! In this episode, joining me in the café is experienced practitioner, researcher and academic, Dr. Andreia Schineanu. We chat about trauma-informed social work at the practice and organisational level to get a better idea of how these ideas can be of benefit to social work, rather than becoming another fad that loses its focus and intent.

Learn more

Watch this 4 min clip featuring Andreia talking about childhood trauma (you will also spot some other familiar Charles Sturt University faces in the video).

After our chat, Andreia shared with me these great recommendations for our listeners to follow up:

· Click here to learn more about feminist psychologist Dr. Jessica Taylor, and click here to visit her website for resources

· Click here to check out a book recommendation, Rhythms of Recovery: Trauma, Nature, and the Body, by Leslie Korn

·Click here to learn more about the NeuroAffective Relational Model (NARM)

How you can get involved

Become a friend of the podcast by tapping the subscribe button on your podcast app, leaving a positive review, and sharing the podcast with other social workers.

You can connect with me via the details below. 

Click here to connect with me on Instagram.

Click here to read the blog post for this episode.

Click here to connect with me on LinkedIn.

Welcome back to the Social Work Café. Have you ever been sitting in another pointless meeting that could have been an email? Perhaps this has prompted you to flirt with the idea of becoming your own boss? In this episode, I have the perfect guest to talk about the journey of becoming a private practitioner. Cass Fletcher is an experienced social worker, therapist, and early-career researcher. We talk about how she made the brave leap into private practice, some of the benefits and challenges she has experienced, as well as any bits of advice she would give to others contemplating this career move.

Learn more

Click here for useful information about self-employment written by the AASW.

Click here for details about an article I mentioned during the interview.

How you can get involved

Become a friend of the podcast by tapping the subscribe button on your podcast app, leaving a positive review, and sharing the podcast with other social workers.

You can connect with me via the details below. 

Click here to connect with me on Instagram.

Click here to read the blog post for this episode.

Click here to connect with me on LinkedIn.

Welcome back to the Social Work Café. In this episode, Vicki Shevlin joins me for an exciting conversation about newly qualified social work. Vicki started her own podcast to give practical advice and support to newly qualified social workers in the UK. She shares those insights with us, which I am sure will be helpful to social work students, new graduates and even experienced practitioners who might have their own advice to impart, no matter where they are in the world.

Learn more

Click here to learn more about Vicki.

Click here to check out the Social Work Sorted podcast.

Click here to listen to Vicki interview me for her podcast.

Click here to follow Social Work Sorted on Instagram.

Click here to check out The Social Worker & The Mentor Podcast that Vicki mentions.

Click here to check out the Surviving Safeguarding blog Vicki mentions.

How you can get involved

Become a friend of the podcast by tapping the subscribe button on your podcast app, leaving a positive review, and sharing the podcast with other social workers. You can connect with me via the details below.

Click here to connect with me on Instagram.

Click here to read the blog post for this episode.

Click here to connect with me on LinkedIn.

Click here for a video on Zone of Fabulousness, recommended by Mikaela.

Click here for a Brené Brown video on empathy, recommended by Mikaela

Click here for details of a study on predictors of secondary trauma.

Click here for details of a model for self-care based on ecological systems theory.

Click here to read about why social workers in Wales are more likely to be happy.

Click here to read more about a self-care movement for social workers

How you can get involved

Become a friend of the podcast by tapping the subscribe button on your podcast app, leaving a positive review, and sharing the podcast with other social workers. You can connect with me via the details below. 

Click here to connect with me on Instagram.

Click here to read the blog post for this episode.

Click here to connect with me on LinkedIn.

Can you be a social worker in any job, even if you work outside of the human services industry? I have the perfect guest joining me in the café to explore this question. Karise McNamee has enjoyed a fascinating social work career across government, non-government, and private practice, including outside of the human services world. Karise shares insights from her captivating career, including how her social work identity has been carried across her various roles. In short, you will learn that no matter where you go in life, social work can be there.

Learn more

Click here to learn more about Karise and her private practice.

Click here to listen to Karise be interviewed about her work on the dark web

Click here for the Social Work & Therapy Memes Group

Click here for the Psychotherapy Memes page

How you can get involved

Become a friend of the podcast by tapping the subscribe button on your podcast app, leaving a positive review, and sharing the podcast with other social workers. You can connect with me via the details below. 

Click here to connect with me on Instagram.

Click here to read the blog post for this episode.

Click here to connect with me on LinkedIn.

Welcome back, café dwellers. Joining us in the Social Work Café is my adventurous colleague Will Dobud, aka Docbud (or even Dodobud). In this episode, we examine how social workers can get FIT, without putting on spandex. Evaluation is an important part of social work practice, but are we doing it in a meaningful way that invites genuine feedback we can use to improve? Docbud explores this question and shares his passion for feedback-informed treatment (FIT). He explains how social workers can create a trusting space for receiving constructive feedback from clients that can help us continually improve our practice.

Learn more

Click here to learn more about Feedback Informed Treatment on Scott Miller’s site.

Click here to listen to Will interview Dr. Scott Miller on his own podcast (get ready for some reality checks).

Click here to find out more about Will’s research.

Click here to read about Will’s journey into social work.

Click here to check out a recent publication that Will mentions in the interview.

Click here to find out more about Will’s favourite book recommendation – Heart and Soul of Change.

How you can get involved

Become a friend of the podcast by tapping the subscribe button on your podcast app, leaving a positive review, and sharing the podcast with other social workers. You can connect with me via the details below. 

Click here to connect with me on Instagram.

Click here to read the blog post for this episode.

Click here to connect with me on LinkedIn.

There has been a green explosion of social work literature on environmental social work. To help us make sense of what this all means for social work practice, the wonderful Associate Professor Heather Boetto and social worker, Laura Fletcher are joining us in the café. Heather and Laura have been researching, teaching, and doing community projects in this exciting area for a number of years. Together, they offer a lot of inspiration about the necessity of environmental social work and how you can incorporate it into your practice.

Learn more

Click here to read an article Laura wrote for the AASW Social Work Focus bulletin (starts on p.28).

Click here to learn more about Heather’s research.

Click here for details of an article that Heather recommends.

Click here for another fabulous article that Heather recommends.

Click here for details of a symposium presentation involving practitioner perspectives

How you can get involved

Become a friend of the podcast by tapping the subscribe button on your podcast app, leaving a positive review, and sharing the podcast with other social workers. You can connect with me via the details below. 

Click here to connect with me on Instagram.

Click here to read the blog post for this episode.

Click here to connect with me on LinkedIn.

Social workers are being increasingly employed by public libraries. I am incredibly excited to learn more about this burgeoning field of practice. Joining me in the café is the first library social worker in Texas, Patrick Lloyd. He has been writing and presenting on library social work for a number of years and has a lot of wisdom to share. You will learn how library social work is taking form and how you can get involved.

Learn More

Patrick is more than happy for you to contact him via email: patrick.lloyd@utexas.edu

Click here to read a blog post written by Patrick.

Click here to listen to a conference presentation delivered by Patrick.

Click here for details on a peer reviewed article written by Patrick.

Click here for details about Whole Person Librarianship.

Click here for details and recordings from the CSU Social Work in Libraries Symposium in late 2022, courtesy of my dear colleague A/Prof Karen Bell.

How you can get involved

Become a friend of the podcast by tapping the subscribe button on your podcast app, leaving a positive review, and sharing the podcast with other social workers.

You can connect with me via the details below. 

Click here to connect with me on Instagram.

Click here to read the blog post for this episode.

Click here to connect with me on LinkedIn.

Click here for details about Chenoweth and McAuliffe’s introductory book that I mention during the episode and my blog (check out their final chapter).

Click here for details about an interesting article on this topic.

How you can get involved

Become a friend of the podcast by tapping the subscribe button on your podcast app, leaving a positive review, and sharing the podcast with other social workers.

You can connect with me via the details below. 

Click here to connect with me on Instagram.

Click here to read the blog post for this episode.

Click here to connect with me on LinkedIn.

Let’s talk about sex. No, put the 80s crimping iron down! Sexual and reproductive health issues are rarely addressed in social work education and practice. It’s time to examine these taboo subjects and the role social workers can play in this field. Our guest is the wonderful Katie Murrell-Orgill, another very dear friend and former study buddy. Katie is now an incredibly experienced psychosexual therapist and has lots of great insights to offer about a social work perspective on sex therapy.

Learn more

Click here to check out Katie’s website.

Click here to read the WHO overview statement on sexual health.

Click here for details about the PLISSIT model Katie highly recommends and says is transferable for social work practice.

Click here for details about the media interview I mention at the end of the episode.

How you can get involved

Become a friend of the podcast by tapping the subscribe button on your podcast app, leaving a positive review, and sharing the podcast with other social workers.

You can connect with me via the details below.

Click here to connect with me on Instagram.

Click here to read the blog post for this episode.

Click here to connect with me on LinkedIn.

Click here for details on an interesting article about social work in health

How you can get involved

Become a friend of the podcast by tapping the subscribe button on your podcast app, leaving a positive review, and sharing the podcast with other social workers.

You can connect with me via the details below.

Click here to connect with me on Instagram.

Click here to read the blog post for this episode.

Click here to connect with me on LinkedIn.

There are some really intriguing changes going on at the Australian Association of Social Work (AASW). To find out more, we are joined by the fabulous Cindy Smith, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the AASW. Cindy reflects on her journey as CEO and how she has made it her mission to promote professional identity through the AASW. Her passion for this topic is infectious, so tune in to learn more about how you can get involved.

Learn more

Click here to learn more about Cindy.

Click here to listen to Cindy talk about leadership on the AASW’s podcast.

Click here to learn more about the AASW.

Click here to follow the AASW on Facebook.

Click here to learn more about credential opportunities at the AASW.

Click here for some broader literature on the impacts of de-professionalisation.

Click here for one of my articles on sustaining professional identity.

How you can get involved

Become a friend of the podcast by tapping the subscribe button on your podcast app, leaving a positive review, and sharing the podcast with other social workers.

You can connect with me via the details below.

Click here to connect with me on Instagram.

Click here to read the blog post for this episode.

Click here to connect with me on LinkedIn.

Welcome to the very first episode of the Social Work Café. We start this exciting journey with the main question of season 01: what is social work? Joining me in the café is a very dear colleague, Katrina Gersbach. I ask Katrina about how she discovered social work and determined it was the right profession for her. She shares some great insights that can help students and practitioners explain social work clearly to others.

Learn more

Click here to check out Katrina’s academic profile.

Click here to learn more about studying social work.

Click here for a CSU social work taster course.

How you can get involved

Become a friend of the podcast by tapping the subscribe button on your podcast app, leaving a positive review, and sharing the podcast with other social workers.

You can connect with me via the details below.

Click here to follow me on Instagram.

Click here to read the blog post for this episode.

Welcome to the launch of the Social Work Café podcast. I’m your host, Bernadette Moorhead, aka Dr B. In this brief trailer, I tell you more about season 01 of this exciting educational series, and how you can become a friend of the podcast. Whether you are a social work student or practitioner in any part of the world, this podcast is for you. So go brew your favourite drink and join me in the Social Work Café.

Learn more

Click here to read the blog post for this launcher trailer (there will be memes!)

Click here to connect with me on Instagram.

How you can get involved

Become a friend of the podcast by tapping the subscribe button on your podcast app, leaving a positive review, and sharing the podcast with other social workers.

Feel free to reach out to me with questions and topic ideas for the podcast.

Email: socialworkcafe@gmail.com

Social work shout out

A big thank you to my CSU colleagues who shared their expertise with me about podcasting, especially Dr. Will Dobud, Tim Crutchett, and Damian Moloney. And, of course, Dr. Belinda Cash for her unwavering support and wicked humour.

Acknowledgement of Country

The Social Work Café Podcast is produced on Wiradjuri Country. I acknowledge the Traditional Owners of this land and would also like to pay my respects to Wiradjuri Elders past and present, as well as any First Nations listeners.

Disclaimer

The views, opinions, and ideas expressed in this podcast are solely those of the host and guests and do not reflect the views of their employers or any other institution.