Veterans' Affairs social workers face "burnout"
By Kevin Dougherty,
Montreal Gazette July 20, 2010
QUEBEC - Canada's soldiers returning home from the war in Afghanistan with post-traumatic stress disorder face new obstacles because of caregiver burnout at Veterans' Affairs, the federal department charged with caring for them.
Magali Picard, vice president of the union representing Veterans' Affairs employees, told reporters Tuesday that DVA social workers have a case load of 40 clients, compared with a case load of 20 in a provincial CLSC community clinic.
And in the Quebec City office, serving the Valcartier Canadian Forces Base, while department norms say there should be 24 social workers, there are 16.
"Several have left for professional burnout," Picard said.
That means soldiers, suffering from PTSD, can wait four months before seeing a social worker, a necessary step in getting them back into society and back on the labour market.
Read more: Veterans Affairs social workers face burnout
Sounds like the social workers in Quebec working for Veterans Affairs need to go on stress leave through E.I. Having a case load of 40 clients must be exhausting and it is definitely no fair that their counter parts in the same profession in Quebec only have 20. Do these clients see their social worker for an hour each week? I don't know, but it must be exhausting to work 40 hours a week; and that is if they see their client every week.
ReplyDeleteWe have them burning out here too. It's hard to do what they do and too many of them won't go to talk to someone else for support for themselves. We all need help no matter how strong we are.
ReplyDelete