Social Worker Reflects on Her Profession, the New UAB Social Work Partnership

By Tehreem Khan | UAB New Where there is a need, there is a social worker, says Hannah Rose Harkins, a social worker in UAB Medicine’s Center for Psychiatric Medicine. Her statement is echoed by the job market for social work which is growing faster than average for all occupations, according to the United States Department of Labor’s statistics. Hannah Rose Harkins is a social worker in UAB’s Center for Psychiatric Medicine. (UAB) Jobs for social workers are projected to increase seven percent by 2032. Those with degrees in social work are afforded many different options ranging from large and small agencies, schools, hospitals, clinics, residential facilities and industries. The many fields of social work practice include children and families, poverty and income maintenance, mental health, substance abuse, developmental disabilities, medical and health care, criminal justice, gerontology, community organization, and policy development. “Since the profession of social work heavily involves public service, it is for individuals with a passion to serve and better communities,” said Laurel Hitchcock, Ph.D., associate professor in the University of Alabama at Birmingham College of Arts and Sciences’ Department of Social Work and director of the Bachelor of Science in Social Work Program. Translating the passion...