NSCSW Connections: Queering social work

2SLGBTQIA+ social workers in Nova Scotia are invited to join colleagues from across the province to connect, network, organize, & share resources. Providing spaces and resources for closed groups can create safe(R) spaces for social workers who have shared identities and lived experiences.

Communities of practice are wonderful opportunities for like-minded practitioners, or professionals engaged in similar areas of practice, to be able to gather and share ideas and best practices. They are an opportunity for networking, fellowship, resource sharing, and advocacy development. They can also help reduce burnout by reminding us that we are not alone, but rather part of a larger whole. Get together with your 2SLGBTQIA+ colleagues to talk about what matters to you and build your professional network!

These sessions are intended to be a low-barrier and informal opportunity. There is no preparation required to attend these events, and you are encouraged to arrive as you are! Bring your lunch, something you want to talk about, or just show up.

Objectives

• Relational: Connect with other 2SLGBTQIA+ social workers and build relationships that support professional Social Work identity and practice (Connect).
• Skill: Develop and implement self-reflective processes that support ethical social work practice (Apply).
• Knowledge: Identify and understand strategies and approaches to ethical social work practice used by other social workers in the 2SLGBTQIA+ context (Analyze & Understand).
• Values: Examine and shift beliefs, worldviews, and ideologies contributing to ethical social work practice (Evaluate & Understand).

SPEAKER/Facilitator BIO(s)

Jey is a white settler and non-binary person living and practicing in Kjipuktuk (Halifax). They currently work between direct mental health service provision in private practice, and primary care social work with the Halifax Sexual Health Centre. Jey has previously served as a Team Lead with NS Health's outpatient Child & Adolescent Mental Health program in New Glasgow. Jey additionally sits on the Board of Examiners and Complaints Committee with the NSCSW. Prior to their social work career, Jey worked in front-line social service provision including emergency shelters, harm reduction services, and supportive residential youth care. Jey draws on their professional experiences, as well as commitments to anti-oppressive and trauma-informed social work practice to collaborative build safe(r) professional spaces prioritizing critical reflexivity.

Related code of ethics & standards of practice

NSCSW (2008):

Value 6: Competence in Professional Practice.
Associated principles:

• Social workers strive to maintain and increase their professional knowledge and skill.

• Social workers contribute to the on-going development of the profession and its ability to serve humanity, where possible, by participating in the development of current and future social workers and the development of new professional knowledge.

Note: The College is revising our foundational documents to align closely with the new “CASW Code of Ethics, Values and Guiding Principles” published in 2024, with amendments as needed for the Nova Scotian context. A recent draft is available for review online, but further revisions are expected in 2025 before it is enacted.

CASW (2024):

Value 4: Valuing Human Relationships

Value 7: Providing Competent Professional Services

• Guiding Principle 7.1: Social workers continuously develop their professional knowledge and skill at the level required to provide competent professional services.

• Guiding Principle 7.2: Social workers practise within their level of competence and seek appropriate guidance when services required are beyond their competence.

• Guiding Principle 7.3: Social workers contribute to the ongoing development of the social work profession and current and future social workers.

Eligibility

This event is only for members of the Nova Scotia College of Social Workers (NSCSW) who identify as being 2SLGBTQIA+. All active, associate, retired associate, and student members who are part of these communities are welcome to attend. There are no other prerequisites for this session.

This space is created to be a closed group that is not open to allies outside the 2SLGBTQIA+ communities. If you are outside these communities and practicing allyship/solidarity you are invited and encouraged to join the main Community of Practice sessions which occur every three months.

Tracking professional development

For members of NSCSW, this event is eligible towards the annual requirement for professional development in prevention of vicarious trauma & secondary stress. Members who have already fulfilled that requirement may choose to track this session as an informal self-care activity instead.

Visit nscsw.org/pd for more information about the updated professional development requirements for Nova Scotia social workers.

Questions?

If you have questions, please contact the College's Professional Development Consultant, Tyler Colbourne, at [email protected].