Deb, Community Support Worker, multi-service agency, southwestern Ontario

Deb, Community Support Worker, multi-service agency, southwestern Ontario

How many people can say that they love their job? Well I can say it. And I think it's partly due to the privilege of working with people.

I work with people who have a serious mental illness such as major depression, bi-polar or schizophrenia. I visit people in their home and provide support by assisting and teaching them about symptom management and developing coping skills. I am the person in charge of the case, but I also work with a social support worker. They assist with various tasks such as meal planning budgeting, and organizing a household.

The most rewarding part is assisting someone who may be experiencing a long period of illness. It is really very rewarding just to see the kind of transformation in a person. I had a client that was on the street for a long time and he became very ill. He eventually agreed to move into a rest home and now he's receiving medical care, regular meals every day and a bed to sleep in. It is possible that he may have died had he continued to live outdoors.