Undertaking Disaster Social Work: Impact, Preparation, and Support

Increasingly social workers are working within disaster settings, responding to an escalation in humanitarian and environmental crises across the globe. Despite this escalation, little is known about the personal and professional impact of undertaking disaster social work. This qualitative study forms part of a larger research project examining disaster social work and contributes to attempts at filling this knowledge gap. Twenty semistructured interviews were undertaken with past and current Services Australia (Australian Government) social workers. This study found that participants perceived their experience as having a positive impact on them personally and professionally. They developed practice wisdom, realised personal and professional strengths, and were inspired by the resilience of individuals and communities. The findings highlight the importance of self-care, preparation, training, and supervision in managing the risks to physical and psychological wellbeing. The findings have important implications for the social work sector.IMPLICATIONS Social workers within disaster settings can benefit from increased debriefing, counselling, supervisory support, and self-care.Undertaking disaster social work has the potential to have positive impacts on the personal and professional lives of social workers; however, there are inherent risks.Social workers and the employing organisations can mitigate these risks by prioritising a culture of self, organisational, and collaborative care.