3 minute read
The Voice of Social Work
As part of our work towards the strategic goals of our College, we continue to be active in public discourse about issues that matter to Nova Scotians. Here’s a small sample of what we were up to in 2023:
The logic behind it was that we could be more preventative if we were intervening earlier. The problem is that’s not really how prevention works,” [Alec Stratford] said. He wants to see the province focus more on the reasons why children are removed from their homes in the first place, such as inadequate food, clothing and shelter.
Shortage of child welfare staff keeps some parents and children separatedEmma Smith, CBC NewsJanuary 26, 2023
Family income is an especially powerful factor in dictating development, as is access to supportive services for children and families. If we want child and family well-being, as this province indicated, we must invest in kids and their families.
The hidden costs of Nova Scotia’s budget Op-ed by Alec Stratford in The Chronicle HeraldMarch 28, 2023
The report points out that gender-based violence is incredibly underreported; many affected do not reach out to authorities for help due to a multitude of reasons, including systemic barriers, interactions among legal regimes and the inability of our systems to take women’s experiences into account.
Turning the tide on gender-based violenceOp-ed by Alec Stratford, in The Chronicle HeraldApril 13, 2023
Alec Stratford, the executive director of the Nova Scotia College of Social Workers, said the delay to date shows there is often “a lack of understanding of the amount of hurt and grief and pain that exists” after such tragedy.
Stratford said there needs to be a recognition that 'grief comes in waves, it comes in different points in time.'
‘Help us heal’: Pleas for mental health support 3 years after N.S. mass shootingRebecca Lau & Callum Smith, Global NewsApril 19, 2023
Perhaps it is fitting that this attempt to grieve the 2020 mass shooting in Nova Scotia began with such dissonance, but the unfortunate juxtaposition of this requested moment of quiet reflection with a daily glorification of military violence illustrates the blind spots that enable the regular retraumatization of thousands by a practice that ought to have ended long ago.
Echoes of cannon fire linger from Halifax’s noon gunOp-ed by Naj Siritsky, in The Chronicle HeraldMay 4, 2023
Youth cannot wait, children cannot wait while government sorts this out,” says Alec Stratford, the executive director and registrar of the college.
Nova Scotia advocate continues push for Child and Youth CommissionCallum Smith, Global NewsOctober 10, 2023
Alec Stratford … said the current guidelines are no longer useful because of social, political and legislative changes that have happened over the past 10 years. “We have new human rights laws, we have laws banning conversion therapy, we also are seeing heightened political rhetoric towards [2SLGBTQIA+] groups and youth in particular, all which warrant a stronger response to uphold and protect the rights of the most vulnerable in our society.
