Social work had come a long way from attempting to squeeze all citizens of America in the model of the 'perfect American' as it had done in the 1920s. Nowadays, it is well-recognized that immigrants have many problems that deter them from receiving the rights that all Americans should receive optimal beneficial medical care and healthy living accommodations. Suffering from handicapped language skills and ignorance about the ways of their new land, immigrants are often exploited by an unjust and insensitive system as well as by willful individuals. This is where social workers step in, and their job is best done by understanding the alien culture and by dealing with them on their level and in a respectful manner.
As a case in point, Chesney et al. (1982) notes that depression seems to be more rampant amongst Mexican immigrating than amongst their American-born children. . This may be due to the fact that non-literate Hispanics are more likely to receive sub-standard care and to experience poorer outcomes from anti-depressant treatment, with fewer follow-up visits and earlier discontinuation. It may also be referred to language differences, particularly incomprehension of language nuances relating to health factors, and a consequent fear of dealing with any situation that involves the language on a level that is incomprehensible to them thus causing them to avoid help when they most need it. Differences in cultural idioms used to express comfort or discomfort also play a part as well as somatic presentation....
Social workers, with their focus on ethical care to all individuals with emphasis on sensitivity to aspects of multiculturalism will be better equipped to deal with these instances.
The latest ethical review of conduct for the social work field places as its preamble a spread of six core values on which the social work mission is based. These are: service, social justice, dignity and worth of the person, importance of human relationships, integrity and competence. These core values extend to areas of the social worker's responsibilities: to clients, to colleagues, in professional and practice settings and to society at large. To be an effective social worker, in other words, one has to understand how people, in all aspects of society function. Individuals have universal commonalties, but there are also characteristics that are peculiar to cultures and subgroups. Social workers have to possess a multicultural tolerance and understanding. Only then can they be the effective and professional social worker that the 1996 NASW code of ethics requires them to be, sustaining their intellectual and professional growth and working through their various and diverse challenges.
Reference
Chesney, A.P., Chavira, J.A., Hall, R.P., & Gary, H.E. (1982). Barriers to medical care of Mexican-Americans: the role of social class, acculturation, and social isolation. Med. Care 20, 883 -- 91
Raemer, F. (1998) The evolution of social work ethics Nat. Assoc. Of Social Workers.
