Discussion 1

Linda M. Buskala

Personal Philosophy Statement of Human Services

In the world, there is good and evil. Humanity has been given

the gift of free will; and, as such, there are many choices

during one’s lifetime. Every person has made a wrong choice

at one time or another. For some, the wrong choice has been

of short duration, with few, if any, ramifications. These

persons, once enlightened, have self-corrected and moved on.

For others, though, the choices are more involved and self-

correction is difficult, if not impossible. All persons, regardless

of their past or their present, have value and are important.

Their narratives matter - they are a part of the body of world

citizens; and they deserve to be heard and to be recognized.

Some persons needing assistance and/or clarity will find their

way into the human services of their own free will, others will

not; but they will come. However they arrive, there must be no

condemnation but compassion, no enmity but empathy. There

can be no judgments of their past, but only justice found for

their future. Life, for some, has been a struggle and filled with

challenges. Consequently, as human service workers, there will

be opportunities to model life in a framework of possibilities

and hope.

Human service workers will enter into these lives through the

personas of natural helpers, social workers, counselors, pastors,

physicians, nurses, and many others. These helpers will show

the way through the labyrinth, either on a familiar path they

have trod, or through a calling not easily described. They will

be the facilitators in determining a course of treatment and

action that will begin the process of healing for each

individual. This process can only occur through team building

with the client, and by their agreement as to the problem and

their involvement in discovering and implementing an

appropriate solution. In order to facilitate the empowerment of

another human being, the human service worker must exhibit

certain critical core values, which include, but are not limited

to, acceptance, tolerance, individuality, self-determination, and

confidentiality.

Human service workers must create and maintain an alliance of

purpose by partnering with community-based organizations,

military, industry, school systems (private and public),

institutions, and others. This alliance of purpose is the critical

dovetailing of assistance providers, who together with the

human service worker, will envelope an individual in an

environment and atmosphere that is derived through respect,

understanding, compassion, and empathy. Here then, they will

be provided an opportunity to heal, grow, and learn again, or

for the first time, the capacity to succeed.

The human service professional will be required to be vigilant

at all times to ensure that no barriers are ever crossed that

would lead to unethical or inappropriate behavior. Professional

human service workers must continually obtain and update

professional competency credentials and care for their own

mental, physical, and spiritual health to ensure that at all times

they are giving only their highest and their best. It is, after all,

what the human service clients need and deserve.