The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA

Abstract #43404

Elaine Jurkowski, PhD, School of Social Work, Southern Illinois University, Quigley 4, M/C 4329, Carbondale, IL 62901, (618) 453-2243, etjurkow@siu.edu

One of the core values of social work is the self-determination of clients. Public health social work is known for integrating public responses to issues. This session will outline the use of focus groups, focus groups, individual interviews, community surveys and professional literature as resources for developing key issues which are public health social work issues in rural communities. This paper will demonstrate how the KVS model to identify key issues for social work intervention/resource development and manpower training using local contexts, stakeholders and case studies. The KVS Model for the development of public health social work issues integrates the value of self-determination with theory and input from key stakeholders from the “roots” of the rural environment. It is important for social work programs to be responsive to community “roots” because the nature and needs of client systems vary according to multiple factors (e.g., culture, economics, religion). The KVS (knowledge, values, skills) model is specifically designed to utilize these client and community differences.

Learning Objectives: The learning objectives for this presentation are

• To understand what public health social work issues are identified within rural settings.
• To identify a model and methodology which can be used to identify these issues.
• To understand the value and impact of community collaboration with the "roots" of a community to define what public health social work practice should entail.

Keywords: Community Collaboration, Social Work Roles

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.