Students, faculty, and alumni have delivered food to older adults who can not leave their homes, provided teletherapy to students whose schools have closed for the rest of the academic year, and tracked down people who have been exposed to COVID-19. Photo by iStock.
John Carduff dons a cloth mask and puts on a pair of latex-free gloves to take the temperature of residents who enter聽, a homeless shelter located in Brockton, Massachusetts.聽
When the temperature screenings come back normal, Carduff, who is scheduled to receive his master鈥檚 degree from the聽Boston College School of Social Work聽in two weeks, reminds his clients to wash their hands and minimize contact with each other to slow the spread of COVID-19.
He says the homeless shelter, which has to spread out its population, recently moved 60 guests into tents to give residents more space to live and sleep. But that over 30 percent of clients have still tested positive for the disease.
鈥淭he biggest challenge is keeping everyone safe,鈥� says Carduff,聽who鈥檚 been working at the homeless shelter for three years. 鈥淲e are low on hand sanitizer, but at this point who isn鈥檛?鈥�
Carduff is part of a large contingent of students, faculty, and graduates of the School of Social Work who have stepped up to provide crucial support to individuals and families whose lives have been upended by the pandemic. Their efforts include delivering food to older adults who can not leave their homes, providing teletherapy to students whose schools have closed for the rest of the academic year, and people who have been exposed to the coronavirus and helping them isolate.
鈥淪ocial workers are incredibly important during this time,鈥� says Carduff. 鈥淧eople, now more than ever, are looking to social programs to help get through this pandemic.鈥�
Sophia Suarez-Friedman, a second-year student who specializes in mental health, to connect people in need in Watertown, Massachusetts, with those who are able to help.
Applicants fill out a form to , including food, clothing, and money, and get matched with someone who鈥檚 offered to .
鈥淚 definitely feel like I鈥檓 doing something to help,鈥� says Suarez-Friedman, a clinical intern at the in Massachusetts. 鈥淚 think that I would feel lucky to have any job now, but the fact that my work is supporting people affected by the coronavirus does make it more rewarding.鈥�
“Social workers are incredibly important during this time. People, now more than ever, are looking to social programs to help get through this pandemic.”
The World Health Organization that COVID-19 has infected more than 1.1 million people in the United States and killed over 61,000 others. More than 55 million students in grades K through 12 have transitioned to learning from home to slow the spread of the coronavirus, according to a by Education Week, and at least 30 million people have since the pandemic began to destroy the job market in mid-March.聽
COVID-19 has forced Suarez-Friedman to work online. When she鈥檚 not overseeing the mutual aid program, she鈥檚 providing teletherapy to more than half a dozen adolescents who tell her that they wish they could return to school.聽
Suarez-Friedman advises her clients to find activities that they can enjoy at home, whether that鈥檚 playing video games, watching Netflix, or taking hot showers. When one client told Suarez-Friedman that exercise improved her mood, Suarez-Friedman showed her a video that highlighted the mental health benefits of moving your body.聽
鈥淲e talk about what they鈥檙e missing and discuss the positive things they鈥檙e able to do now,鈥� says Suarez-Friedman, who plans to graduate in two weeks and then return to Wayside Youth and Family Support Network to work full time. 鈥淚鈥檓 there for them and let them talk about what鈥檚 difficult.鈥�
Lizzie Fipphen, a first-year student who counsels children who attend the Parker Elementary School in Billerica, Massachusetts, uses Google Meet to play games, read books, and assuage the fears of her clients.
When one child worried that his family would catch the coronavirus, Fipphen provided strategies to minimize the risk of contracting the disease.聽
鈥淚 said that was a very valid worry and all we can do is protect ourselves the best we can,鈥� says Fipphen, who specializes in children, youth, and families. 鈥淚f you go outside, be careful,鈥� she told the child, 鈥渁nd encourage your mom to wear a mask in the grocery store.鈥�
Lizzie Fipphen
Fipphen, who primarily counsels children who have autism, says she changed her lesson plans to work online. She asked the children in one group therapy session to pick objects in their houses and perform show and tell. Sometimes, she says, children just need someone to listen to them. 鈥淥ne kid talked for the entire 30 minutes session,鈥� she says, 鈥渁nd that was what he needed.鈥�
Fipphen described herself as 鈥渄evastated鈥� when she found out that Parker Elementary School had closed for the rest of the academic year, but she acknowledged that teletherapy has reinforced her desire to work with children after she graduates in 2021.聽
Before the superintendent of Billerica Public Schools announced that counselors would be allowed to provide teletherapy to students on a regular basis, Fipphen created a video to connect with the children remotely for what she thought might be the final time of the school year. 鈥淚f this time away from school is making you feel anxious or worried or happy or sad, all of those feelings are OK and they鈥檙e all perfectly normal,鈥� Fipphen told the children in the video. 鈥淵ou鈥檙e really special to me and I want you to be taking care of yourself as well as you can.鈥澛�
Linda Rosa, a social worker at the Parker Elementary School who supervises Fipphen, says children miss the chance to chat with the popular counselor in person. 鈥淪he鈥檚 very compassionate and kind and a good advocate for kids,鈥� says Rosa, who received her master鈥檚 degree from the Boston College School of Social Work in 1984. 鈥淚 would hire her tomorrow if I could.鈥�
Rosa says the Parker Elementary School has donated laptops, food, diapers, formula, and toilet paper to families in need. She says she emails parents resources to help their children cope with anxiety caused by COVID-19 and chats with more than a dozen mom鈥檚 and dad鈥檚 every single day.聽
鈥淎 few parents say they鈥檙e anxious, too,鈥� says Rosa. 鈥淚 talk them off the ledge and tell them these strategies can be helpful.鈥�
Yvonne Casta帽eda
Yvonne Casta帽eda, a behavioral health clinician who works at the , says the coronavirus has raised the level of anxiety among Latinx clients who view the crisis as a major threat to their health, financial stability, and day-to-day lives.
Many Latinx people, making it hard to practice social distancing, and have of underlying health conditions that could exacerbate the risks of COVID-19. The Economic Policy Institute, a nonprofit thinktank, that only 16.2 percent of Latinxs can work from home, raising their risk of becoming infected on the job.
鈥淎nxiety levels are elevated because there is uncertainty and the situation is totally out of our control,鈥� says Casta帽eda, who received her master鈥檚 degree from the School of Social Work in 2018 and now teaches as a part-time faculty member in the school. 鈥淚鈥檝e also seen patients who were struggling with anxiety and depression prior to the coronavirus outbreak, started getting better, and now feel completely isolated.鈥�
Casta帽eda advises her Latinx patients to exercise and practice deep breathing to cope with anxiety caused by the coronavirus. She suggests they to help stop panic attacks by listening to soothing sounds, say, or looking at images that elicit feelings of peace and serenity.聽
鈥淚鈥檓 reminding my patients to use the coping skills they鈥檝e learned to pull them out of an uncertain future and bring them back to the certain present,鈥� Casta帽eda says.