Bridging service gaps for the Sanchez family through advocacy

Advocating for Organizational Change
Abstract
This paper discusses the Sanchez family with regards to the service gap the family presents to the social work agency and how that gap can be bridged using a systems perspective. It analyzes how the writer can be an agent for change within the agency by employing leadership skills and advocating for better client access to services. Finally it discusses ways trauma-informed practice can be engaged by agency staff delivering indirect services and by social workers delivering direct services to clients.

Introduction
The Sanchez family has a number of needs that it must attend to. The father Hector does not make enough money to support the extended family, which is why one of the sons has held off on going to college so as to work and provide additional financial support for the family. The matriarch, Celia Sanchez, worries that the income will still be insufficient but she lacks English language skills to pursue avenues of inquiry about how to address this issue. She also has concerns about adopting their grandson, who is living with them. She lacks information on these issues and does not know the processes for seeking assistance. This paper will identify the service gap, discuss a way to bridge the gap using systems perspective, evaluate the process to advocate for better client services, identify the strengths I will bring and the ways in which trauma-informed practice can be engaged by the agency when assisting this family.
Service Gap
One service gap or limitation in the delivery of social services for the family is the lack of information it has on how to pursue welfare assistance and information on the adoption of their grandson. The agency does not have a system in place to provide matched services or access to peer support programs. Both of these services should be available, particularly for the Sanchez family, which could benefit substantially from them. For example, for the matriarch, Celia Sanchez , the language barrier is the main obstacle preventing this gap from being bridged. She is not proficient in the English language and it prevents her for making inquiries into issues that she feels are important for the family. She is concerned that there is not enough income to support the family, but the language gap prevents her from inquiring about welfare services and whether her family qualifies. She is concerned about adopting their grandson, but does not know how to make inquiries about this as the language barrier prevents her from obtaining information. She is also concerned about the tension between her husband Hector and herself over the stay of their nephew Roberto in the home, though the language issue is not an obstacle here. For the social worker, the service gap that needs to be addressed most with Celia Sanchez is the language barrier. Once Celia is able to communicate more effectively, she will be able to provide much more service to the family in terms of obtaining information that can help them all.
Systems Perspective to Bridge the Gap
From systems perspective, the agency can change in order to bridge this service gap by assisting Celia in her language needs. If the agency does not have a translator or Spanish-speaking agent, it can hire one or it can help to enroll Celia in English language courses so as to assist her in her development and acquisition of English language skills. Materials and assistance should be made available to her in her native language, however, especially in the meantime as the family is in need of assistance right now.
The systems perspective shows how the needs of individuals living within a system impact one another and how the best approach for a social worker to take is to start with one individual at a time, because as each individual is helped there will be a beneficial impact on the whole. By starting with Celia first, the mother of the household sets the example for the others and is able to guide the rest of the family in the fulfillment of their needs. Hector’s lack of sufficient income can begin to be addressed in turn, particularly if Celia obtains the linguistic assistance she requires so as to make use of social welfare programs. The adoption of the grandson can also be a matter that is pursued by Celia through the use of linguistic assistance.
The agency may be able to offer Spanish language materials or portals online that can assist her in obtaining information. Spanish services should be available through government websites. Spanish speaking support is something that can be provided particularly for immigrant families like the Sanchez family. This should not be a difficult service gap to close.
Process to Use to Advocate for Better Client Access to Services
The process I would use to advocate for better client access to services would be to remove obstacles so as to eliminate conflicts between the agency providing services and the client. Factors that can lead to significant conflict during a time of change typically come from put who resist the new concept or practice being put forward. Resistance tends to have a variety of different causes: lack of information or else misinformation about the new concept, lack of communication among stakeholders, lack of inquiry among workers and lack of feedback from stakeholders (Hanif, Khan & Zaheer, 2014). Kotter’s 8-step model for managing change dictates that those who advocate for change should engage stakeholders to help establish a guiding coalition that can in turn work to better reduce the risk of obstacles and resistance forming among the people and stakeholders involved who aim to benefit from the change (Mason, Cogua & Thompson, 2018).
One practice change I would advocate for would be matched services strategy. Matched services strategy is one way to help Celia and the Sanchez family (Askheim, Beresford & Heule, 2017). Matched services works by matching the service with the need of the client so that the client can obtain the assistance required. For Celia Sanchez, the access to services is the problem: she is blocked by the language barrier; therefore, it is important that the agency be able to assist her with this barrier. Learning a language should not be entirely placed on the client: the agency should be able to assist in this matter. As Sun and Yang (2015) show, learning a foreign language in order to help clients can be an effective strategy for social workers in bridging service gaps and addressing needs.
Another way to advocate is to push for the use of peer support programs. As MacLellan, Surey, Abubakar, Stagg and Mannell (2017) note, “peer support programmes use individuals with specific experiences to improve engagement and outcomes among new clients” (p. 76). For this client, peer support programs could be of help in introducing Celia and the rest of the members of the Sanchez family to other peers in the community who might be able to share similar experiences, provide emotional and social support, and give guidance and advice for the particular problems that they face—from raising children with disabilities to tackling immigration issues and financial aid needs. Peer support can be a great way to help others become advocates as well, so the goal for this approach would be to strengthen the network of support for the Sanchez family—that way the family will have multiple places to turn to for help as they become more informed on the services available to them. By promoting the idea of implementing better access to peer support programs for clients like the Sanchez family, the agency could take a more holistic approach to providing quality care for clients.
Strengths I Will Bring
Strengths I will bring to this change process as a change agent will be my leadership skills and my cultural awareness. When advocating for a change, transformational leadership is one of the most important skills that a person can have (Niessen, Mäder, Stride & Jimmieson, 2017). Whenever a person’s territory is disrupted by an outside change, there are typically hurt feelings because someone did not anticipate or want such a change. To prepare for change of this nature, social workers should be given the opportunity to offer their opinions to the person in charge so that they feel that they are at least being heard and that their input is important to the director. This does not have to be done in a person-to-person setting but rather the leader could ask the social workers for their input so that he could pass it along up the chain of command. This way the social workers at least feel that they have been consulted and that they have had the chance to voice their views on the matter.
Change is always more easily accepted when one can understand the logic and reasoning for the change (Hanif et al., 2014). It is when workers do not understand the reason or purpose of the change that they begin to resist the change. If, on the other hand, stakeholders can see that a positive benefit will come from reorganization—both for them and for others—then they are more likely to support it, rally around it, embrace it and drop all resistance to it.
It is also important to have an understanding of culture and how culture can impact people’s perspectives. To advocate for change and to be an effective change agent, it is crucial to have a high degree of cultural competence (Leininger, 2008). This is another strength that I can bring as I am very aware of diverse cultures, effective forms of communication for diverse people, and how to find ways to appeal to various people of different backgrounds.
Ways Trauma-Informed Practice Can be Engaged
Agency Staff Delivering Indirect Services
Ways trauma-informed practice can be engaged among agency staff delivering indirect services (such as receptionists, drivers and behavioral managers) are: to have a high regard for safety, transparency and trust, and choice. Safety is most important because people need to feel safe when reaching out for support or for supportive services. Receptionists, drivers and behavioral managers can all play a role in making clients feel safe and accepted no matter what their cultural background by being as open and receptive as possible, considering the emotional needs of the client and maintaining a sense of awareness of the client’s comfort.
The agency staff can also provide all the information about what is happening and what will be happening for the client so that there is no confusion about what is going on and what the process entails. Clients can become nervous, filled with anxiety and fearful if they lack information about what is in store for them. By being up front and helpful with as much information as possible, the staff can ease the client’s anxiety and fears and instill calm.
The staff can also make sure the client is aware that there will be a variety of choices available to the client. Social workers delivering direct services will be the ones to go over those choices with them. However, staff providing indirect services will help to prepare the way for the client by informing them about the various options that are open for providing services.
Agency Social Workers Delivering Direct Services
Ways trauma-informed practice can be engaged among social workers delivering direct services can be through the delivery of choice, a sense of collaboration and mutuality and empowerment. Choice should be delivered as it allows the client to be respected and his or her own personal dignity to be honored. The client should be able to select an approach that is right for him or her. The sense of collaboration and mutuality should also be presented, because for clients healing takes place when partnerships are created and relationships built. Empowerment is provided when the client’s strengths are recognized and through collaboration are built upon so that the client is able to begin to grow and become independent.
Conclusion
The Sanchez family is in a unique situation that will require cultural appreciation and sensitivity. From a systems perspective, Celia Sanchez is in an important position in the family: she is the matriarch and has concerns about adopting the grandson and maintaining income. However, the language barrier is an obstacle. The agency could help to overcome the services gap by addressing the language barrier, providing matched services, and offering peer support groups. Strengths I would bring would my transformational leadership skills. Ways that staff and social workers could provide care for clients via trauma-informed approach is through safety, transparency, choice, collaboration and empowerment.

References
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