The Importance of Support System in a Strenuous Situation - Essay Example

Peter Johnson is a CVS specialist at the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services, a division of Texas Health and Human Services. He says that the company he works for is fondly called the “department’ in the legal court system. His unit works for the state of Texas with children that have become temporary (and sometimes permanent) wards of the state. He primarily deals with parents who have issues that result in their children being brought into state care. The children are also among the clients who get help in his department. So many times, the unit has to work with families as a whole” in order to decrease the safety and risk factors that brought the children into state care in the first place”. Johnson’s job seems extremely difficult because they deal with families that have drug and violence problems, mental health issues, and societal dysfunctions. He is exposed daily to violence and other strenuous situations which could really take its toll in a period of time. Still, he performs his duties and responsibilities to reunite the children back with their parents or legal guardians. However, his department’s goals are seldom achieved. Nevertheless, he still continues to work and do his best to make a better place for Texans to live.
With the strain employees can get from the situations described above, Johnson does not say he loves or even enjoys it. He claims though that “it takes a certain mentality to work at my job”. He tries to explain this by further saying, “There is a high degree of employee turnover and burn-out. My co-workers are all operating under the same level of stress and workload as I do, so there is an inherent bond we all share related to the understanding of what each co-worker has to deal with on a day to day basis”. Despite the stressful work, every employee still wants to maintain their position, especially with the current economic downturn. Moreover, they also can be mentally and emotionally affected by the events of the day because they deal with human problems. However, the strong bond that they create among themselves in their department has become a big help for each other. They perhaps consciously or unconsciously formed an action that benefits them emotionally and psychologically, assuring each other that they understand how they feel because they are going through similar situations. Probably, the knowledge that one is not alone in his struggles is already a great help for the employees especially for those who are dealing with difficult situations. This seems to be a different story told compared to other companies and departments. Nevertheless, perhaps the bond between the co-workers is more of a necessity that is called for by their circumstances and not an unusual occurrence that happens in their office.
One negative impact of Johnson’s job is not having enough time with family. He claims that he loves his family, composed of a great wife and two children, and mentions their cat and dog with a smile. He says he would really love to stay with them as much as he can. However, his job places restraints on this desire. He says, “I am on call 24 hours a day, and could have to go into work at any time”. He further adds, “I often work more than an 8 hour day”. Asked how he handles situations between work and family, Johnson says he and his wife handle difficult situations the best way they can. He also informs that they learn from past mistakes and move on in better directions.
When inquired if he ever tried some solutions to reduce pressure, he expressed his gratefulness for the counseling support given in their department. He also claims that with the nature of their work, it is not uncommon for the employees to seek counseling with therapists because they deal with really horrific situations. Speaking with therapists largely helps employees cope with stress however Johnson claims that whether or not employees are willing to deal with it is another issue. With the descriptions of Johnson’s job mentioned earlier, the wonderment of how he and his wife juggle their work time and family time was expressed. Toward this, he answered, “We are fortunate enough to have the maternal grandmother living near us and she is able to watch the youngest child during the day. The 5-year-old goes to Kindergarten and stays a while longer in after-school care. The biggest issue for us was how to manage the children during the day. We have a schedule of drop-off and pick-up for the school-age child. It has worked so far for us.”
It is seen in the responses in the interview that support groups are very important and helpful for employees to cope with everyday stress. Read More