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NEWS
Agencies strive to lower the risks for workers
HUNTINGTON -- Communication and pairing up employees for home visits in some cases are key strategies employed by social service agencies to try to keep their workers safe.
Although officials with the agencies say threats to social workers don't come frequently, the workers often go into unknown situations where dangers could exist.
Tiffany Pittman, supervisor of In-Home and School-Based programs at Prestera Center, said the 20 social workers she supervises sometimes receive threats, which are reported immediately. In the three years she's been supervising, she said no one has been in imminent danger from clients, who are in the program voluntarily.
"But, there are always situations you can't predict," she said.
Attention to social workers' safety has received increased attention in West Virginia since social worker Brenda Lee Yeager was killed in Cabell County in July while making a home visit regarding an infant. The infant's parents have been accused of killing her.
Recent law changes in Kentucky, implemented after a social services aide in that state was killed, require that social workers make home visits in teams -- a strategy that some agencies in West Virginia try to employ, particularly when a risk is suspected.
Pittman said the Prestera program's social workers make home visits in teams. Like some other agencies, Prestera allows meetings to take place in public if a family is considered to be dangerous. Late evening visits are not allowed, and two new people are never sent alone to a home.
Pittman said staff is required to update her on their whereabouts, as well.
Hope Smith, social services coordinator for the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources, said the state tries to avoid sending workers into homes alone when possible, and employees are asked to tell supervisors if they ever feel unsafe.
If a late-night call requires a home visit, Kanawha Valley Center social workers typically contact their supervisor for guidance or to let them know their plans. If the social worker feels comfortable with the situation, though, they can respond to the incident themselves, said Lori Haldren, KVC's regional director for Cabell, Lincoln, Wayne and Kanawha counties.
Alice Downey-Hunter, a social worker for Kanawha Valley Center in Cabell County, said the majority of her cases are referred from DHHR. She said her days begin by telling her supervisor her schedule as best she can.
"Every day you can't schedule this. You try really, really hard, but people are no-shows or you go to somebody's house and there's a situation going on and you need to spend a few more minutes with that person," she said.
Downey-Hunter said if she has concerns about handling a case alone, she tells her supervisor right away. But, that rarely happens.
"I have a tendency to think everybody loves me. No one's going to bother me, which is not really realistic," she said.
Haldren said one social worker typically makes visits for Kanawha Valley Center, but an additional person may be sent out if safety is in question.
She said cases usually involve a therapist and case manager, too, so both will often visit the home anyway. Social workers should also be in continued communication with their supervisors, she said.
KVC social workers also let clients know when they will be visiting the home.
Despite the risks and pay below the national average, many social workers trudge on.
Workers are paid so little for what they go through, Downey-Hunter said. "But when we go into college everybody says that. It's common knowledge that social workers don't get paid well."
West Virginia child, family and school social workers made an annual mean wage of $28,230 in May 2007, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The mean annual wage for child, family and school social workers nationwide was $41,920 in May 2007.
Smith said money would do a lot to improve the field, including attracting more social workers and keeping them in the field longer.
But, Downey-Hunter said social workers understand the risks and accept the pay.
"That's kind of the bullet we bite down on," she said.
Social worker and self defense instructor Janet Nelson, who is from Florida but has conducted self-defense training for social workers in West Virginia, said the "this is how it is" attitude has prevailed too long. She wants social service workers to talk about their experiences and advocate within their agencies and with legislators for more protection.
Response to Nelson's push to speak out has been powerful, she said.
"I have people say to me, 'You're the first person who's given me permission to think about myself,' " she said.
