11 OF THE WEIRDEST THINGS THAT HAVE HAPPENED TO ME AS A SOCIAL WORKER…
S
ocial work is many things, but it’s never boring.
When I cast my mind back to studying for my social work degree, I never anticipated that my future career would involve so many weird, wonderful, heart-breaking, and obscure challenges. People can be so unpredictable, and in a vocation that is so hard to define, it’s no wonder that social workers are faced with a multitude of situations we could have never imagined in our wildest dreams... 1) BEING MISTAKEN FOR A JUNIOR DOCTOR ON A HOSPITAL WARD AND BEING USHERED INTO A SIDE ROOM WITH A DEAD BODY WHEN THE NURSE THOUGHT I WAS THERE TO CERTIFY THE DEATH.
This average day turned out to be way more horrifying than I was expecting. It turns out, there were two people with the same surname on the ward that day; my very much alive and well Mr X - who was awaiting my input to facilitate his discharge - and another Mr X who had unfortunately deceased that morning.
3) BEING CHASED ACROSS A CAR PARK BY AN ANGRY GOOSE. The wild goose took a dislike to my presence as I walked from my car. I screamed and ran whilst it flapped and honked. It was very traumatic.
The nurse found it hilarious when she realised. I almost fainted in shock at being confronted with a corpse. 2) GETTING A BACKSTAGE TOUR OF A MAIN UK AIRPORT AND BORDER CONTROL WHEN I WENT TO PICK UP A VULNERABLE PERSON. My colleague and I were escorted by two handsome, burly men in suits around the airport so we got to experience what it must like to be a Hollywood A-list celebrity, with a private security detail. The only things missing was the paparazzi.
4) ARRIVING AT A HOME VISIT ONLY TO BE TOLD THAT THEIR PET TARANTULA HAD ESCAPED, SO “CHECK BEFORE YOU SIT DOWN.” Fortunately, I never met the tarantula and managed to complete the visit
