NASW Standards for Social Work Case Management - National ...

each individual experiences a mutuallyinfluential relationship with her or hisphysical and social environment and cannotbe understood outside of that context. Thisecological perspective recognizes thatsystemic injustice and oppression underliemany challenges faced by clients.■ Strengths perspective. Rather than focus onpathology, the social work case managerelicits, supports, and builds on the resilienceand potential for growth and developmentinherent in each individual. Client strengthsand assets may be intrapersonal, found withinthe environment, or developed in response tothe environment.■ Collaborative teamwork. The social workcase manager does not work in isolation.Collaboration with other social workers,other disciplines, and other organizations isintegral to the case management process.■ Intervention at the micro, mezzo, and macrolevels. The social work case manager uses avariety of approaches to effect change inindividuals, families, groups, communities,organizations, systems, and policies. Advocacyfor systemic change plays a key role.Similarly, although the roles and responsibilitiesof individual social work case managers mayvary considerably depending on program orsystem objectives, some core functions arecommon to social work case management:■ engagement with clients■ assessment of client priorities, strengths, andchallenges■ development and implementation of acare plan■ monitoring of service delivery■ evaluation of outcomes18