Get ready...get set...go! A new entrant programme for social workers in mental health
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.11157/anzswj-vol34iss4id975Keywords:
New entrant programme, social work, mental health, educationAbstract
INTRODUCTION: Previous research has found that many social work new graduates do
not feel that they come to their work in mental health with sufficient knowledge. One way of remedying this is using post-qualifying New Entrant to Specialist Programmes (NESP), where social workers gain additional knowledge and skills in a particular field of practice.
METHODS: A small-scale research project was conducted with five social workers who
had recently completed a NESP qualification within a district health board (DHB) setting in Aotearoa New Zealand. Semi-structured interviews were used to obtain deep information from participants in line with a subjectivist perspective.
FINDINGS: Participants indicated that they had found the NESP qualification useful in improving their confidence and competence in their early practice years. They found the programme
was useful in decreasing a sense of isolation by bringing them together with other social workers, or members of other disciplines, and they appreciated the skills and support they had received from their group supervision experience. The greatest challenges revolved around time constraints and they wished for more social-work-specific and cultural content within their programmes.
CONCLUSIONS: The programmes appear to serve an important function in improving competence and confidence for social workers new to the field of mental health. Social work’s commitments to social justice and Te Tiriti o Waitangi need to continue to be pulled through into post-qualifying programmes and a sense of professional identity needs to be nurtured within medically oriented settings.
References
Acker, G. M. (2004). The effect of organizational conditions (role conflict, role ambiguity, opportunities for professional development, and social support) on job satisfaction and intention to leave among social workers in mental health care. Community Mental Health Journal, 40(1), 65–73.
Agllias, K. (2010). Student to practitioner: A study of preparedness for social work practice. Australian Social Work, 63(3), 345–360. https://doi.org/10.1080/031240 7X.2010.498522
Appleby, J., Staniforth, B., Flanagan, C., & Millar, C. (2020). Clinical social work in Aotearoa New Zealand: Origins, practice, and future implications. Aotearoa New Zealand Social Work, 32(4), 103–115. https://doi.org/10.11157/ anzswj-vol32iss4id798
Ballantyne, N., Beddoe, L., Hay, K., Maidment, J., Walker, S., & Ngan, L. (2019a). Enhancing the readiness to practise of newly qualified social workers in Aotearoa New Zealand (Enhance R2R). Ako Aotearoa. https://ako.ac.nz/knowledge-centre/enhancing-the- readiness-to-practise-of-newly-qualified-social-workers/ report-on-phase-one-the-social-work-curriculum/
Ballantyne, N., Beddoe, L., Hay, K., Maidment, J., Walker, S., & Mayhew, Z. (2019b). Enhancing the readiness to practise of newly qualified social workers in Aotearoa New Zealand (Enhance R2R). Ako Aotearoa. Report on Phase Two. https://ako.ac.nz/assets/Knowledge-centre/ NPF16-003-Enhancing-the-readiness-to-practice-of- newly-qualified-social-workers/Report-on-Phase-Two- The-Readiness-to-Practise-of-NQSWs.pdf
Ballantyne, N., Beddoe, L., Hay, K., Maidment, J., Walker, S., & Merriman, C. (2019c). Enhancing the readiness to practise of newly qualified social workers in Aotearoa New Zealand (Enhance R2R: Report on phase three. The professional capabilities framework. https://ako.ac.nz/ knowledge-centre/enhancing-the-readiness-to-practise- of-newly-qualified-social-workers/report-on-phase-three- the-professional-capabilities-framework/
Beddoe, L. (2013). Health social work: Professional identity and knowledge. Qualitative Social Work, 12(1), 24–40. https://doi.org/10.1177/1473325011415455
Beddoe, L., Ballantyne, N., Maidment, J., Hay, K. & Walker, S. (2020). Supervision, support and professional development for newly qualified social workers in Aotearoa New Zealand. Aotearoa New Zealand Social Work, 32(2), 17–31.
Beddoe, L., & Davys, A. (2016). Challenges in professional supervision: Current themes and models for practice. Jessica Kingsley Publishers.
Beddoe, L., Hay, K., Maidment, J., Ballantyne, N., & Walker, S. (2018). Readiness to practice social work in Aotearoa New Zealand: Perceptions of students and educators. Social Work Education, 37(8), 955–967. https://doi.org/1 0.1080/02615479.2018.1497152
Bogo, M., & McKnight, K. (2006). Clinical supervision in social work: A review of the research literature. The Clinical Supervisor, 24(1), 49–67. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1300/J001v24n01_04
Braun, V., & Clarke, V. (2006). Using thematic analysis in psychology. Qualitative Research in Psychology, 3(2), 77–101.
Brown, C. (2021). Critical clinical social work and the neoliberal constraints on social justice in mental health. Research on Social Work Practice, 31(6), 644–652. https://doi-org.ezproxy.auckland. ac.nz/10.1177/1049731520984531
Bryman, A. (2015). Social research methods (5th ed.). Oxford University Press.
Clark, T. C., Robinson, E., Crengle, S., Fleming, T., Ameratunga, S., Denny, S. J., Bearinger, L. H., Sieving, R. E., & Saewyc, E. (2011). Risk and protective factors for suicide attempt among indigenous Māori youth in New Zealand: The role of family connection. Journal of Aboriginal Health, 7, 16–31.
Davidson, G., Brophy, L. & Campbell, J. (2016). Risk, recovery and capacity: Competing or complementary approaches to mental health social work. Australian Social Work, 69(2), 158–168. https://doi.org/10.1080/031 2407X.2015.1126752
Donnellan, H., & Jack, G. (2015). The survival guide for newly qualified social workers hitting the ground running (2nd ed.). Jessica Kingsley.
Elder, H., & Tapsell, R. (2013). Māori and the Mental Health Act. In J. Dawson & K. Gledhill (Eds.), New Zealand’s Mental Health Act in practice (pp. 213-228). Victoria University Press.
Enyedy, K. C, Arcinue, F., Puri, N. N., Carter, J. W., Goodyear, R. K. & Getzelman, M. A. (2003). Hindering phenomena in group supervision: Implications for practice. Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, 34(3), 312–317. https://doi.org/10.1037/0735-7028.34.3.312
Government Inquiry into Mental Health and Addiction. (2018). He Ara Oranga: Report of the Government Inquiry into Mental Health and Addiction. www.mentalhealth.inquiry. govt.nz/inquiry-report/
Graham, R., & Masters-Awatere, B. (2020). Experiences of Māori of Aotearoa New Zealand’s public health system: A systematic review of two decades of published qualitative research. Australia and New Zealand Journal of Public Health, 44, 193–200. https://doi. org/10.1111/1753-6405.12971
Gunning, H., Gee, C., & Sheppard, G. (2019). An interprofessional practice development group for newly qualified and new-to-role clinicians in community mental health. Mental Health Practice, 23(2), 29–33. https://doi.org/10.7748/mhp.2019.e1415
Hay, K., Beddoe, L., Maidment, J., Ballantyne, N., Walker, S., & Mayhew, Z. (2017). Literature Scan II readiness to practise part of the project: Enhancing the readiness to practise of newly qualified social workers in Aotearoa New Zealand. https://swrb.govt.nz/educators/ programme-recognition-standards-review-2022/
Hunt, S., Staniforth, B., & Beddoe, L. (2019). Establishing the qualification criteria for social worker registration in Aotearoa New Zealand: Conflict and compromise. Social Work Education, 1–14. https://doi.org/10.1080/0261547 9.2019.1593957
Keen, M. (2016). Mental health social work. In K. Hay, M. Dale, & L. Cooper (Eds.), Social work in Aotearoa New Zealand: Exploring fields of practice (pp. 151–188). Massey University Press.
Ladyshewsky, R. K. (2010). Building competency in the novice allied health professional through peer coaching. Journal of Allied Health, 39(2), 77–82.
McConnell, G. (2022, March 22). Health minister’s bid to attract mental health nurses, with workforce stressed. Stuff NZ. https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/ health/300546721/health-ministers-bid-to-attract-mental- health-nurses-with-workforce-stressed
Ministry of Health. (2018). Tatau Kahukura: Māori health statistics. https://www.health.govt.nz/our-work/ populations/maori-health/tatau-kahukura-maori-health- statistics/nga-mana-hauora-tutohu-health-status- indicators/mental-health
Ministry of Health. (2020). Whakamaua: Māori Health Action Plan 2020-2025. Ministry of Health, NZ
Moorhead, B., Manthorpe, J., & Baginsky, M. (2020). An examination of support and development mechanisms for newly qualified social workers across the UK: Implications for Australian social work. Practice, 32(2), 145–159. https://doi.org/10.1080/095031 53.2019.1660314
Moriarty, J., Manthorpe, J., Stevens, M., & Hussein, S. (2011). Making the transition: Comparing research on newly qualified social workers with other professions. The British Journal of Social Work, 41(7), 1340–1356.
Pack, M. (2009). Clinical supervision: An interdisciplinary review of literature with implications for reflective practice in social work. Reflective Practice, 10(5), 657–668. https://doi.org/10.1080/14623940903290729.
Pack, M. (2010). Allies in learning: Critical-reflective practice on-line with allied mental health practitioners. Social Work Education, 29(1), 67–79. https://doi. org/10.1080/02615470902810876
Pack, M. (2015). “Unsticking the stuckness”: A qualitative study of the clinical supervisory needs of early-career health social workers. British Journal of Social Work, 45, 1821–1836.
Peters, T. (2022, May 18). 10,000 healthcare workers strike in New Zealand. World Socialist Web Site. https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2022/05/19/kacv-m19.html
Reynolds, V. (2019). The zone of fabulousness: Resisting vicarious trauma with connection, collective care and justice-doing in ways that centre the people we work alongside. Context, 164, 36–39.
Smith, F. L. (2018). Identifying the key factors shaping the construction of a social work identity in mental health [Unpublished master’s thesis]. The University of Melbourne.
Social Workers Registration Board. (2021). Social Workers Registration Board Programme Recognition Standards– June 2021. https://swrb.govt.nz/download/swrb- programme-recognition-standards-june-2021/
Social Workers Registration Board. (2019). General Scope of Social Work Practice. https://swrb.govt.nz/download/ general-scope-of-social-work-practice/
Social Workers Registration Board. (2022a). Programme Recognition Standards Review 2022. https://swrb. govt.nz/educators/programme-recognition-standards- review-2022/
Social Workers Registration Board. (2022b). Experience Pathway: S 13. Policy & Implementation. https://swrb. govt.nz/download/revised-experience-pathway-policy- march-2022/
Spence, S., H., Wilson, J., Kavanagh, D., Strong, J. & Worrall, L. (2001). Clinical supervision in four mental health professions: A review of the evidence. Behaviour Change, 18(3), 135–155.
Staniforth, B., & McNabb, D. (2004). Group supervision for new staff: A question of value. In L. Beddoe, J. Worrall, & F. Howard (Eds.), Weaving together the strands of supervision: Conference proceedings of the supervision conference (pp. 147–152). The University of Auckland.
Te Pou (2022). New entry to specialist practice: Allied mental health and addiction. https://www.tepou.co.nz/training- development/grants/nesp-allied-mental-health-and- addiction
Te Pūkenga. (2022). Social work. https://tepu ̄kenga. ac.nz/our-pathway/academic-delivery-and-innovation/ programme-redevelopments/social-work/
Tuckman, B. W. (1965). Developmental sequence in small groups. Psychological Bulletin, 63(6), 384–399. https://doi.org/10.1037/h0022100
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2022 Aotearoa New Zealand Association of Social Workers
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:
By completing the online submission process, you confirm you accept this agreement. The following is the entire agreement between you and the Aotearoa New Zealand Association of Social Workers (ANZASW) and it may be modified only in writing.
You and any co-authors
If you are completing this agreement on behalf of co-authors, you confirm that you are acting on their behalf with their knowledge.
First publication
By submitting the work you are:
- granting the ANZASW the right of first publication of this work;
- confirming that the work is original; and
- confirming that the work has not been published in any other form.
Once published, you are free to use the final, accepted version in any way, as outlined below under Copyright.
Copyright
You assign copyright in the final, accepted version of your article to the ANZASW. You and any co-authors of the article retain the right to be identified as authors of the work.
The ANZASW will publish the final, accepted manuscript under a Creative Commons Attribution licence (CC BY 4.0). This licence allows anyone – including you – to share, copy, distribute, transmit, adapt and make commercial use of the work without needing additional permission, provided appropriate attribution is made to the original author or source.
A human-readable summary of the licence is available from http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0, which includes a link to the full licence text.
Under this licence you can use the final, published version of the article freely – such as depositing a copy in your institutional research repository, uploading a copy to your profile on an academic networking site or including it in a different publication, such as a collection of articles on a topic or in conference proceedings – provided that original publication in Aotearoa New Zealand Social Work is acknowledged.
This agreement has no effect on any pre-publication versions or elements, which remain entirely yours, and to which we claim no right.
Reviewers hold copyright in their own comments and should not be further copied in any way without their permission.
The copyright of others
If your article includes the copyright material of others (e.g. graphs, diagrams etc.), you confirm that your use either:
- falls within the limits of fair dealing for the purposes of criticism and review or fair use; OR
- that you have gained permission from the rights holder for publication in an open access journal.
