Community Support Worker: The Importance of their Service in the Community
BY: Neighbors’ Consejo|
The services that many people provide within the community is largely unknown. This is the case of the community support workers (CSW), who based on their professional training, help to strengthen the wellbeing of their community. Why are they so important?
“Community support workers work with vulnerable people within a community and provide them with the resources they need in order to survive. They can work for mental health programs, nonprofits, or other organizations working with groups in need, such as people with mental illnesses or people with disabilities [1] ”.
According to City Care Health Services [2] , some responsibilities of a CSW are: Assisting people in identifying personal recovery goals. Assisting with community resources such as housing, food banks and medical care; providing psycho-educational and teaching symptom management skills to minimize the effects of symptoms of individual daily lives; helping people develop their personal support systems, etc. In conclusion, “a rewarding career providing personal, social, physical and emotional support to clients such as the disabled, poor and elderly [3] ”.
They make a real and positive difference in people’s lives. So, what is the job description for a community support worker? “Assist individuals with daily life skills, social skills and / or behavior management. Teaches and assists individuals with activities such as grooming, basic cooking, money management, shopping, household safety and pet care [4] ”.
In a study made by Zippia [5] , using a database of 30 million profiles, they found that:
- There are over 131.786 personal support workers currently employed in the United States.
- 71.3% of all personal support workers are women, while 28.7% are men.
- The average age of an employed personal support worker is 47 years old.
- The most common ethnicity of personal support workers is White (61.1%), followed by Hispanic or Latino (16%), Black or African American (9.2%) and Asian (8.3%).
- In 2021, women earned 97% of what men earned.
- 7% of all personal support workers are LGBT.
- Personal support workers are 63% more likely to work at private companies in comparison to public companies.
So, “it is possible to become a community support worker with only a high school diploma, most have bachelors or even a master’s degree in psychology, social work, or related field. It also helps to have some practical experience in community-based services, for example through an internship [6] ”.
In conclusion, if you are interested in become a CSW, you can visit different nonprofits to enroll and serve the community. Remember that more hands are always needed to support each other.
[1]https://www.zippia.com/community-support-worker-jobs/
[2]https://citycarehome.com/jobs/community-support-worker/
[3]https://www.seek.com.au/career-advice/role/community-support-worker
[4]https://www.acwa.org.au/students/about-community-work/#:~:text=In%20formal%20terms%2C%20a%20community,clients%20to%20achieve%20their%20goals.
[5]https://www.zippia.com/personal-support-worker-jobs/demographics/