MALAWI: Social Work Students at Catholic University Urged to Have Passion for Persons with Disabilities
Luke Bisani
Social Workers in Malawi have been urged to have passion for serving people living with disabilities as per the demands of their profession.
Speaking during an education visit to Mulanje Vocational and Rehabilitation Centre for the Blind by Social Work students at the Catholic University of Malawi on Friday last week, one of the Instructors Mr. Charles Jesman Banda urged the students to have passion about the people that they serve.
“The problem that most of the people living with disabilities present is the kind of treatment they get from our social workers. Most of them, instead of paying attention to the what is being asked for from them, they ignore them and spend much time on WhatsApp,” said Banda
“What I can ask you is to have passion towards the people that you are serving regardless of the condition they are in,” added Banda.
Concurring with Banda, one of the lecturers at the Department of Social Work at the Catholic University of Malawi Joyce Wanozga Chione said Social Workers must consider the professional a vocation to serve other people.
“Through the courses that we offer these students are taught what Social Work is all about, the ethics just to help them to fully understand social work. However, we understand that it takes a heart to help that is why we have decided to be having these trips so that our students have experience of what it takes to be a social worker,” said Chione.
She added that every citizen must have the passion to assist one another in their respective communities arguing, next could be them requiring help from other people.
“Most of the people whom we have visited at Mulanje Vocational and Rehabilitation Centre for the Blind told us that they were not born blind, they were able to see before they lost their sight. So that is how life treats human beings, today they are the ones in need of the support, tomorrow it will be us, so let us learn to love and support one another” added Chione.
The Catholic University of Malawi offers a Bachelor of Social Science – Social Work that grooms students to aim at enhancing their overall well-being and help in meeting the basic and complex needs of communities and the people.
The Program is among the thirty-three accredited programs offered by the University in the country to students within Malawi and beyond.
