Social Work Spotlight

In this episode I speak with Jana, an Accredited Mental Health Social Worker with over a decade of experience working as a practitioner and clinician within community-based and multidisciplinary services, working with individuals and families, providing 1:1 counselling and case management support, as well as offering mentoring and supervision to emerging and graduate social workers. Links to resou...

Hi and welcome to Social Work Spotlight, where I showcase different areas of the profession each episode. I’m your host, Yasmine McKee-Wright, and for the 100th episode of Social Work Spotlight I’ve invited five previous guests to return to the podcast who were all very early on in their careers when we previously met, to let us know what they’ve been up to, where they are working now, and how the...

In this episode I speak with Shahil, who has worked across the areas of youth homelessness, disability and suicide prevention and aftercare and now works in policy, advocacy and social campaigning. Shahil believes in social justice and advocating for the rights of people experiencing challenges in life, finding that focusing on intervention at a micro-level is just as critical as issues on a macro...

In this episode I speak with Kristin, a qualified social worker with 17 years of social work experience in youth justice, child protection and the family court.  Kristin qualified in Australia but has lived and worked in the UK since 2012.  Now alongside her social work role, Kristin supports other overseas social workers making the move to the UK. Links to resources mentioned in this week’s episo...

In this episode I speak with Patricia. Born in Zambia, Patricia has qualifications in Social Work and Social Policy and her experience spans working in government and non-government organisations and co-authoring a chapter of a clinical handbook in adolescent medicine. Her experience as a mother of a child with a terminal illness inspired her to write a book, and she’s now working on a follow up n...

In this episode I speak with Marie, an Accredited Mental Health Social Worker, Couples and Family Therapist, presenter, podcaster, and trainer, renowned for her expertise in the field of mental health and wellbeing. With a focus on normalising discussions around mental health, Marie equips audiences with the knowledge and tools to nurture their own mental wellbeing, helping to break down stigma an...

In this episode I speak with Rhianna, a Certified Humanistic Play Therapist and Interplay practitioner with Play Therapy Australia. Rhianna currently works as the Women and Childrens Crisis Counsellor with Coast Shelter. She values walking alongside her clients in their journey and supporting them to achieve better mental health and life outcomes after experiencing trauma. Rhianna has a passion fo...

In this episode I speak with Dave, a senior social work clinician and supervisor in private practice. Dave works from a combined Schema Therapy and EMDR framework in order to meet the needs of his clients. Links to resources mentioned in this week’s episode: Schema Therapy Training Online - https://schematherapytrainingonline.com/ EMDR Toolbox (James Knipe) - https://www.springerpub.com/emdr-toolb...

In this episode I speak with Kellie, a social worker with comprehensive working experience with Centrelink and Services Australia who has recently entered private practice to assist clients with their healing and recovery journey from trauma. Links to resources mentioned in this week’s episode: Power in Partnerships Network (PiPN) - https://www.socialworkacademy.com.au/pipn/pipn-promotion/ Trauma...

In this episode I speak with Amy, an Accredited Mental Health Social Worker, EMDR accredited Consultant and Parts Work Practitioner who is an enthusiast in all things somatic and creative. Amy started her journey in child and family work but was able to experience a range of work within the education, homelessness, community health and tertiary education sector. Amy co-owns a private practice in t...

In this episode I speak with Kathryn, who has extensive experience in psychosocial disability and mental health through NDIS. She also has a degree in Film Studies and incorporates this in her private practice where she provides a niche therapy modality called Cinematherapy. Kathryn provides counselling through NDIS, mentoring, and mental health support for adult clients, their carers and families...

In this episode I speak with Troy, a Social Justice Advocate in Uniting’s advocacy team. He enjoys movies, asking people if he can pet their dog, American politics, saying unprompted that’s he going to join a sports team this year, social and economic justice, and adding to the pile of books on his bedside table that he never reads. Links to resources mentioned in this week’s episode: Roger Ebert...

In this episode I speak with Chantelle, owner of REACH Wellbeing, a private practice offering supervision to helping professionals. Chantelle has experience working across the lifespan primarily in the areas of trauma and mental health and has a keen interest in education, as well as how social work more broadly can exist in the world of media. Links to resources mentioned in this week’s episode:...

In this episode I speak with Carolyn, who has worked in the trauma, child protection, domestic violence and mental health sectors in Australia and the UK. In addition to her Bachelor and Masters's degrees in Social Work, Carolyn has a Masters in Adult Education and is undertaking a Masters in Applied Neuroscience. She has published more than 20 peer reviewed articles in the areas of supervisio...

In this episode I speak with Peta, an Accredited Mental Health Social Worker who has had extensive training and experience working in the areas of sexual assault, family violence, mental health and trauma.  Peta currently runs a private practice providing evidence-based trauma therapy as well as delivering training on managing sexual disclosures and regulating the nervous system.   Links to resour...

In this episode I speak with Stephanie, who has worked in Canada supporting people with addiction and comorbidities, and now works on accreditation, social impact and organisational transformation. Stephanie is the quality and compliance manager at The Burdekin Association, where she manages a team of six specialists who work to amplify best practice for children and young people with trauma.  Lin...

In this episode I speak with Patty who began her social work career as a domestic violence counsellor before moving into child protection for children in foster care and out of home care. Patty is an external supervisor for social work students at the Australian Catholic University and has had her private counselling practice for 15 years. Patty is also a wedding celebrant, retreat host, workshop...

In this episode I speak with Alex, the owner of Mindful Recovery Services, a private practice providing psychological treatment and support for adolescents and adults. Alex is passionate about dispelling myths about mental illness and is highly skilled in dialectical behavioural therapy. She is an experienced public speaker and provides consultation to other professionals on managing difficult beh...

In this episode I speak with Erin, a senior social worker with over 20 years of experience working in mental health and rehabilitation services in Sydney, Brisbane and London. After spending the first 15 years of her career working in the field of child and adolescent mental health and paediatric rehab, Erin began working in adult neurological rehabilitation. She has recently commenced an exciting...

In this episode I speak with Michelle, whose interest and practice focus on attachment, groupwork, narrative therapy, Response Based Practice, systems, and intergenerational trauma. Her areas of specialty include LGBTQIA+, CALD, trauma and relationship counselling. She currently works in both private practice and in NGOs to provide therapy, consultations and training, and clinical supervision for...

In this episode I speak with Jacob and Aaron. Aaron is a social worker and therapist currently working with children in Out of Home Care across NSW to build the relational networks around children and facilitate their healing from developmental trauma through somatic and play-based therapies. Jacob is a child and adolescent social worker with experience providing trauma-informed therapeutic suppor...

In this episode I speak with Claire, a community based social worker with experience initially in mental health before moving into the field of criminal justice. She has predominantly provided long term case management and support for women as they transition from prison back into the community. Claire is a strong advocate for assisting people to develop pathways and identities outside of the crim...

In this episode I speak with Cherie, an Accredited Mental Health Social Worker who has over 15 years’ experience working with children, adolescents and adults primarily working in the field of trauma, focusing on sexual assault and domestic violence. In addition to her counselling role Cherie provides clinical supervision as well as mentoring, training and resources for social workers wanting to d...

In this episode I speak with Peggy, who completed her social work degree at the University of South Australia in 1994.  She worked in NSW Health for over 27 years in a variety of social work and health manager roles.  She is currently working for Queensland Health as a social worker in the Queensland Pelvic Mesh Service.  She is passionate about supporting and developing social workers and encoura...

In this episode I speak with Cathy who in over 25yrs as a social worker has worked in the community sector and multicultural aged care, in an acute teaching hospital in rehab and aged care, and has developed training tools and social work group supervision. Cathy has now returned to community social work in Northern Sydney for the Community Nursing program, visiting patients with chronic and compl...