(PDF) Dealing with Risk in Child and Family Social Work

Foundations of
Working with Family
at Risk

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
MAIN BODY...................................................................................................................................1
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................2
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................3

INTRODUCTION
Families in a country have certain risks which have the capabilities to make them
vulnerable. This is due to difference between the classes in an economy. The risk factors can be
poverty, mental health, child abuse, trauma and many more. These have direct impact on the
health as well as psychology of the people going through hard times. The organization chosen in
this report is World Vision which is located in Melbourne, Australia. This report talks about one
particular risk factor affecting the families by providing facts of the current scenario to show the
impact on such families.
MAIN BODY
Vulnerability is the terms which is associated with physical, social, economic and
environmental factors or processes which makes an individual to live a hard and struggling life.
Australia's economic conditions have direct nexus with many risk factors which impact the
families living in the country. In this report, the risk factor which has been chosen is poverty.
Poverty refers to deprivation of common necessities which are crucial to the quality of
life, such as clothing, food, shelter, water and many others (Meaning of poor and poverty, 2016).
It also means that deprivation of opportunities to learn, to get effective and better employment
opportunities and enjoy respect of fellow citizens. It has variety of impact on the families who
are living under poverty which are as follows:
Health- Every person has a right to have good health. It is possible only when one gets foods
filled with nutrients. Poor families are unable to afford the food, vegetables or fruits because of
low income. This makes their health conditions vulnerable. According to a survey conducted by
Across organisation, it was found that more than 3million people which is about 13.2% of the
whole population are living below the poverty line (Poverty in Australia, 2018). This shows that
people do not have sufficient money to buy basic necessities which are required for survival.
Poverty makes such people rely on drugs, alcohol etc. which deteriorates their health conditions.
1

Fig 1. Weekly Poverty Line by Household size
Source: www.theguardian.com
Mental illness- Poverty impacts the mental condition of poor people. It pushes them into
depression because of non-fulfilment of needs such as food, shelter, clothing. They are
underprivileged individuals who are given the least importance in the society also, many of them
face the situation of discrimination which leaves a long lasting impact on the minds of such
people. When a person suffer from mental issues, the thoughts become negative which make
them attempt suicide (Health conditions in Australia, 2019). Also, in order to get the treatment
for curing the health or mental issues, the low income posses a serious hurdle in availing the
medical services. This adds more depression and trauma. The average cost of medication in
Australia is $100 per month which is not possible fro poor family to afford. Hence, there are
96% of poor people who are unable to afford medication along with basic necessities.
2

Fig 2. Single person household poverty line
Source: www.theguardian.com
Fig 3. Breakdown of population
Source: www.theguardian.com
Employment- Every country has employment level in which individuals get jobs on the basis of
qualification, skills and talent. Education plays an important role in gaining the knowledge which
is used in practical situations. There are schools, colleges and other educational institutions
which make a person qualified by making them excellent in one particular field (Medication in
Australia, 2019). Such organizations charge fees for availing these services which gets inflated
every year making the whole system even more expensive. In such a scenario, it becomes
3

difficult for poor fellows to pay the fees for getting education. This ultimately results in unequal
distribution of income which expand the gap between poor and rich people.
Fig 4. Poverty in Australia
Source: www.theguardian.com
There are non-profit organizations as well as government entities which are towards
providing assistance to families at the risk of poverty to overcome this condition. These entities
make it possible by offering materials and products which will fulfil their basic needs and
improve the lifestyle.
CONCLUSION
From the above report, it has been concluded that every country has certain risk factors
that affect the families living such country. It makes the economic conditions and other
developments worse. This has impact on the families vulnerability making them suffer more.
Therefore, NGOs and government should increase their efforts and help to reduce the risks.
4

REFERENCES
Books & Journals:
Casey, E.C., Shlafer, R.J. and Masten, A.S., 2015. Parental incarceration as a risk factor for
children in homeless families. Family relations. 64(4). pp.490-504.
Online:
Meaning of poor and poverty. 2016. [Online]. Available
through:<https://www.sbg.org.au/effects-poverty-country/>.
Poverty in Australia. 2018. [Online]. Available through:<https://www.acoss.org.au/poverty/>.
Health conditions in Australia. 2019. [Online]. Available
through:<https://www.aph.gov.au/About_Parliament/Parliamentary_Departments/
Parliamentary_Library/pubs/rp/rp1819/Quick_Guides/MentalHealth>.
Medication in Australia. 2019. [Online]. Available
through:<https://www.acoss.org.au/images/uploads/Mental%20and%20poverty
%20feature.pdf>.
5