Education Requirements and Job Profile of a Public Health Social Worker

Social work professionals in the domain of public health may take advisory roles, arrange for post hospitalization needs of the patients, act as their counsel and provide psychological as well as emotional support to them.

Public health social workers may join hospitals, social services agencies, nursing care facilities or government agencies. They may also work in teams to study patients suffering from a particular type of disease. A public health social worker has to work on improvement of health of individuals, families and communities on a whole by focusing on different psychosocial factors.

Education Requirements:

A bachelor's degree in social work is needed as the bare minimum educational requirement to qualify and work as a public health social worker. However, degree holders in other relevant disciplines such as sociology, psychology, etc may also get through entry-level positions. For other jobs in public health, a master's degree in social work is a common requirement.

For a rewarding career as a public health social worker, one needs to know how to work with families and larger populations, learn epidemiological approaches to social problems and health and identify association between health and social factors.

The coursework in a public health social worker program may include –

• Social Policy

• Social Work Methods

• Social Research Methods

• Human Behavior in Social Environment

• Epidemiology

• Biostatistics

• Racial and Cultural Diversity

While some classes focus on policy or community factors impacting health, others provide guidance on how to plan and intervene in different levels of prevention, these levels being specific protection, promotion of health, disability limitation, early diagnosis and treatment, and rehabilitation (not in any order). In the duration of the course one may also learn how to reduce social stress which is often associated with health problems.

There are a number of social work programs that offer a joint Masters of Social Work and Masters of Public Health degrees including specializations in maternal and child health.