The Social Work Competency Framework: Acquired Brain Injury has been developed to support social workers who work specifically with adults who have an Acquired Brain Injury (ABI). It is the result of a joint collaboration between social workers from various inpatient and community settings in Ireland, with the leading authors based in the National Rehabilitation Hospital, Peamount Hospital and Acquired Brain Injury Ireland. The Framework comprises specific competencies, in the form of knowledge, skills and values, to which social workers must adhere and that can be utilised by employers for performance management purposes, Continuing Professional Development, and for identifying training needs. This should help to ensure a better service for adults with ABI and also, a more supportive structure for social workers.
In Ireland, approximately 19,000 people sustain an ABI annually and 7,500 suffer a stroke, while approximately 120,000 are living with a disability (ABI Ireland, 2023). Social workers can therefore come into contact with adults with ABI in many settings and services. However, there are some agencies such as hospitals, rehabilitation settings, and ABI specific community services where social workers work almost exclusively with adults with a brain injury or stroke. This Framework was designed specifically to meet the needs of these social workers who engage with individuals with a brain injury on a daily basis, providing practical, emotional and social support.
Click here to view the framework.