Theories of successful aging explain factors that support individuals as they grow old, contributing to their ability to function. Increasing your understanding of factors that support successful aging improves your ability to address the needs of elderly clients and their families.
To prepare for this Discussion, review this week’s media. In addition, select a theory of successful aging to apply to Sara’s case.
By Day 3
Post a Discussion in which you:
- Explain key life events that have influenced Sara’s relationships. Be sure to substantiate what makes them key in your perspective.
- Explain how you, as Sara’s social worker, might apply a theory of successful aging to her case. Be sure to provide support for your strategy.
By Day 5
Read a selection of your colleagues’ posts.
Respond to at least two colleagues who applied a theory of successful aging to Sara’s case that differs from the one you applied. State whether you agree that your colleague’s strategy for applying the theory to Sara’s case is likely to be helpful. Provide support for your response and suggest one additional way your colleague might support Sara’s psychological well-being.
Assignment: Models of Grieving
The death of a loved one is a significant event that everyone experiences. An individual’s social environment, including societal and familial cultural factors, may influence how an individual approaches death or grieves the loss of someone else who dies. You can anticipate addressing grief in your social work practice and, therefore, should develop an understanding of the grieving process.
Models of grieving may identify stages through which an individual progresses in response to the death of a loved one; however, these stages do not necessarily occur in lockstep order. People who experience these stages may do so in different order or revisit stages in a circular fashion. Understanding the various ways individuals cope with grief helps you to anticipate their responses and to assist them in managing their grief. Select one model of grieving to address in this assignment.
Addressing the needs of grieving family members can diminish your personal emotional, mental, and physical resources. In addition to developing strategies to assist grieving individuals in crisis, you must develop strategies that support self-care.
In this Assignment, you apply a grieving model to work with families in a hospice environment and suggest strategies for self-care.
By Day 7
Submit a 2- to 4-page paper in which you:
- Explain how you, as a social worker, might apply the grieving model you selected to your work with families in a hospice environment.
- Explain why you selected to use the grieving model you selected versus other models of grief.
- Identify components of the grieving model that you think might be difficult to apply to your social work practice. Explain why you anticipate these challenges.
- Identify strategies you might use for your own self care as a social worker dealing with grief counseling. Explain why these strategies might be effective.