Written by the Director-General of Social Welfare, Ms Ang Bee Lian, these series of letters are for anyone hoping to find out more, and answer any questions you might have about Social Work. These are free for reproduction and distribution in its entirety or unaltered excerpts, as long as you do not charge a fee. Acknowledging the source of the letters on any distributed material is also appreciated.
You may download the e-book for Social Insights here: Volume Three, Volume Two and Volume One.
Identifying Cases of NeglectNo. 1 / 2021We are often asked: is it important to document what transpires in social service interventions? How much information... LEARN MORE |
Multi-Disciplinary Teams for Older PersonsNo. 3 / 2018Why is a multidisciplinary team (MDT) especially important in complex cases? Through experience, we know that the range of perspectives... LEARN MORE |
Caregiving for ElderlyNo. 5 / 2018Many of you would have handled cases with elderly clients who rely heavily on caregivers for assistance in their activities of daily living... LEARN MORE |
Vulnerable Adults ActNo. 6 / 2018The Vulnerable Adults Bill has recently been passed. It aims to protect vulnerable adults from abuse, neglect or self-neglect, and to provide timely and effective interventions... LEARN MORE |
Reflections on Social Service PracticeNo. 7 / 2018In recent months, there has been much discussion about the subject of inequality. Academics to political office holders have actively contributed... LEARN MORE |
Ageing and FamilyNo. 8 / 2018With improvements in science and health, people now live longer. This means that there will be more older persons in society... LEARN MORE |
Dilemmas of Protective WorkNo. 9 / 2018Child abuse or neglect can have a long-standing impact across the whole spectrum of the child’s development and life span... LEARN MORE |
National Family Violence Networking System Conference Closing PlenarySpecial Edition 2 / 2017We have done much in the last two decades in systematically building a system for responding to family violence in Singapore... LEARN MORE |
Early Access to Services by Older PeopleNo. 2 / 2017In recent months, there has been much discussion about the subject of inequality. Academics to political office holders have actively contributed... LEARN MORE |
Early Intervention & StabilityNo. 6 / 2017There has been a lot of interest in preventive work, and especially so in the area of early intervention... LEARN MORE |
Promoting Integrated Help for the ElderlyNo. 6 / 2016It is common to hear the exhortation to promote integrated care and collaboration. What do people generally mean when they say this?... LEARN MORE |
Social Work and Mental HealthNo. 7 / 2016As practitioners, we play a key role in managing risks and complexities that occur in the lives of our clients who are often those who have... LEARN MORE |
APS CaseworkNo. 2 / 2015You would have, of late, been reading about protecting vulnerable adults particularly the elderly. The services provided will include... LEARN MORE |
Understanding Policy Issues on PovertyNo. 3 / 2015By and large, we are fortunate that in a city-state with broadly speaking, good housing means that we do not have to grapple as intensely... LEARN MORE |
Helping Those With DebtNo. 4 / 2015Social workers in the course of their work will come across individuals and families who face debt payment problems. Debt payment problems... LEARN MORE |
Helping Families with Low IncomeNo. 7 / 2015In an earlier letter (“No. 3/ Vol 2/ 2015: Understanding Policy Issues on Poverty”), I touched on how we are fortunate that social work... LEARN MORE |
Re-entry and IntegrationNo. 16 / 2015Social work in the criminal justice system and in particular in aftercare is crucial work although it takes place in a secondary... LEARN MORE |
AdvocacyNo. 8 / 2014Advocacy is certainly one of the key values that social work adheres to. It is part and parcel of the mission of social work which is... LEARN MORE |
Vulnerable PersonsNo. 13 / 2014It is common for a case involving a vulnerable person to be surfaced to an agency through a phone call or an email with some information... LEARN MORE |
Older Persons and NeglectNo. 14 / 2014There is now more news about older persons who are subjects of questionable influence, neglect and abuse or fraudulent activity... LEARN MORE |
Risk AssessmentNo. 15 / 2014We hear about how social workers and caseworkers should conduct risk assessment and consider how to manage the risks. In reality, activities... LEARN MORE |