What are some of the issues relating to the field of social work in Singapore? What should social workers in Singapore do, the challenges they face and how do they achieve work-life balance? I am happy that visits to Thye Hua Kwan Family Service Center (THK FSC) @ MacPherson and WINGS Counseling Center (WCC) answered these questions and allowed me to gain deeper insight into the social service sphere. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay On several occasions it has been mentioned and highlighted that inter-agency cooperation is vital in the social services sector. For example, the WCC would coordinate its services with other agencies, for example by referring cases to FSCs for services that fall outside their remit, while the Ministry of Social and Family Development and the Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore would coordinate efforts in developing an information and communication technology plan for effective service delivery in the social services sector (IDA, 2013). I agree with the underlined statement because all efforts will be coordinated effectively and efficiently to respond to people's needs, as I believe that no one agency can do everything alone. Similarly, I assume that the practice of coordination of efforts also applies to social workers, where the Code of Professional Ethics for Social Workers (SASW, 2004, p. 4) states that social workers should cooperate across various disciplines for a 'effective service delivery due to individual needs. specific expertise. This practice is essential because social workers can leverage the strengths of other disciplines and even their own agency to help the client. Since I believe that social workers are not superheroes capable of solving all the problems presented, therefore, in order for the client's benefits and his needs to be met competently and timely, it is necessary to bring together different skills of various professions. Below, although the visits did not really focus on the current trending issues such as silver and migrant population, but focused on the youth issue which is very close to my heart and dysfunctional families. I truly agree with Mr. Lau Hon Shin, WINGS advisor, when he said that prevention is better than cure when it comes to youth issues. It is evident that our government is focusing heavily on preventative methods such as attractive and engaging youth programs and key methods of keeping young people in school, such as the Institute of Technical Education and Northlight School, to keep them out of trouble and develop them holistic. These comprehensive interventions on youth issues should be given top priority because these issues are one of the main causes behind the vicious cycle of intergenerational dysfunctional families. However, in my opinion, although there are many interventions for youth issues, they fail to effectively reach all those who are in need or at risk. Compulsory school-based programs for at-risk youth may not effectively engage and engage all wayward youth who are in their freedom phase wanting to participate in those sessions. Furthermore, speaking from a youth perspective, I think a young person would tend to hide their pain and problems or share them with their closest peers and may not know where or who to turn to for help, or how to do so. .Therefore, it is extremely difficult for parents, teachers or school counselors to identify at-risk youth, especially those with thoughts of self-harm. Baumrind (1991) stated that parents are a part of oneself and that attachment to family positively facilitates adolescent development (p.60). Like her, I believe that good parenting skills and a strong family really make a difference in the lives of these young people, as I always firmly believe that to solve a problem they should involve and start from the core or within, their family. Furthermore, I believe that the programs created should meet the character, needs and desires of individual youth. Even though it will be boring, personalized intervention will be more suitable and benefit the child. Likewise, social workers and programs should help young people find their potential, see their strengths, gain self-confidence and solve their problems under supervision and help. As cliché as it may be, young people are the future of this nation, they are competent agents and useful partners of social workers. So, this brings me to the next point of dysfunctional families, an issue that is one of the many causes behind young people. problems. Ms Adilah from THK FSC said most customers who came forward only to seek financial help are the most common problem they present. However, there are many other underlying problems hidden behind a dysfunctional family. So I think it's crucial to build a good relationship with customers and show that we believe in them; only with a good relationship will the client trust the social worker. Therefore, all social workers need to be persistent as some clients may not solve their problems all at once. Following the previous point, many social workers may have cases where clients do not listen to or take into account their advice. The visits once again underlined the key term of social work, the client's self-determination. Essentially, I believe the role of a social worker is to discover the client's strengths and exploit them. They should not focus too much on mistakes made or weaknesses, but attach importance to finding strengths. Furthermore, according to SASW (2004), the role of the social worker is also to provide all the necessary information so that users can make an informed decision and take note of the user's affirmation of the right to self-determination (p.3) . I think social workers are empowering their clients by respecting their abilities, making their own decisions, and solving problems. Social workers don't just feed them, but guide clients and make them change agents of their lives. Based on the experiences shared by various social workers, there are many challenges that social workers would face that could affect the service provided. An example would be countertransference, when the social worker's unconscious emotions or feelings towards the client might filter through and interfere with how he or she deals with certain problems. Although countertransference is inevitable, I think social workers should recognize and report these issues to their supervisors or colleagues for advice in managing these issues. Subsequently, Mr. Lau highlighted the importance of self-care for social workers. I was initially worried and often wondered about this career prospect when several colleagues and educators warned me about long working hours and stress. But, similarly to what many have said,.