Children’s Social Workers Jaime Estrada and Pam Jones show LA County Supervisor Don Knabe how they handle emergency referrals.
‘Angels of God.’
Supervisor Knabe visited the Lakewood office in South County Aug. 5 and he came away wanting more.
Knabe met with social workers and SEIU staff including SEIU 721 Executive Director John Tanner and then worked in the office with Children’s Social Workers Jamie Estrada and Pam Jones on an emergency response referral.
Jaime and Pam showed Knabe how social workers respond and assess a case from the moment a referral comes in through the hotline to ensure the safety of the family and children.
“The county supervisors are in charge of so much and they know so much about Los Angeles, but it’s helpful that he experienced the specifics of how we work,” Jaime Estrada said.
Knabe was hooked and will return soon for a ride along in the field and a Team Decision Meeting, or TDM.
Watch Supervisor Knabe call social workers “Angels of God.”
What’s Next?
The SEIU 721 Walk a Day program gives elected officials and their staff an up-close look at the hard work we do to keep children and families safe. Currently we are taking all five Board of Supervisors to experience emergency response social work firsthand. Earlier in the year, deputy staff members shadowed social workers.
“The experience validated what I thought – social workers’ jobs are very difficult. The kind of decisions they have to make in sometimes a short amount of time are hard. They are truly angels of God.”
Supervisor Don Knabe Watch the complete video here.
“Supervisor Knabe understood what we go through in a short amount of time to work with families and children and he was sympathetic. He was excited and very interested in our work.”Pam Jones
Children’s Social Worker
Lakewood
I am a Los Angeles APS Social Worker, and glad that the Board members (‘our bosses’) have finally taken steps to look into the daily activities of the work of a CSW. Social Work in and of itself is a labor of love and personal commitment . . . . . no one is in this business for financial prosperity. Crisis intervention social workers put their lives at risk everyday with “minimum to no resources and/or support.” Yet, when things go wrong, or mistakes are made, the social worker is the person who has to bear the burden of blame and scrutiny.
Hopefully, APS/Social Workers will someday get the same consideration, because we experience some of the same frustrations as a result of lack of staff to adquately do the job, resources, and support.
Mr. Knabe is right, we are “ANGELS OF GOD”. I look forward to the day when Supervisor Gloria Molina goes out for a ride along with us “angels” to see how difficult are job really is!
i want to be an social worker some day