Jemima is a mental health social worker in a recovery team in Warwickshire.
I studied sociology at university and then worked for a charity supporting older people, before doing my master’s in social work nine years ago. I initially thought I would carry on working with older people, but I did a placement in a mental health rehabilitation unit and I really enjoyed it, so I’ve worked in mental health ever since.
I’m now in a multi-disciplinary psychosis team that includes two social workers, an occupational therapist, a psychologist, a psychiatrist, and nurses and support workers. It’s always busy and no two days are the same. You get different views from everyone and you learn a lot from other disciplines.
In this job I get to work with service users over a long time – I’ve worked with some throughout the seven years that I’ve been in the team. I’m able to really get to know the person, and their families and social networks, and understand how their situation affects their mental health.
Recently I worked with a woman from Turkey who spoke very little English. She was very unwell, experiencing delusions and hallucinations all the time. Her Personal Independence Payment had been stopped because she’d been to a review but not had an interpreter provided, so the review panel hadn’t understood her illness. Her husband was her full-time carer so wasn’t able to work, and he’d lost his Carer’s Allowance too. They were really struggling. I worked with her family and an interpreter to support her appeal. We went to court and I gave evidence, explaining how she met the criteria for the benefit. As a result, the payments were reinstated, which had a huge impact on the family and they were so grateful. It was great to know that I’d been able to help them.
My favourite part of my job is supporting people through their recovery and seeing them get better. Our service users can feel hopeless at times, and their lives can be turned upside down as a result of their illness. A key part of my role is to provide hope and positivity that the future will improve. Every person I work with is different, as is their recovery, and it is lovely to support people to get to the point that they feel that they no longer need our services.