Student Case

Human Services

Problems Facing Human Services Clients

Many people have critical problems in life that if left unattended subject them to depression and feeling of despair. It is undeniable that human beings face challenges that need close attention. In every society, there are certain groups of people who need special human services because of the nature of their problems. In this context, human services refer to the duties performed by individuals or organized groups aimed at improving general living conditions of people who experience difficulties that demand urgent consideration (Woodside & McClam, 2011). .

Human services clients can suffer from anything from emotional traumas to mental illnesses. There are some members of a community abandoned because of their emotional tribulations. Other individuals treat them as nutty creatures and disregard their mental and emotional needs. As numerous studies show, a majority of such victims continue to deteriorate because no one is doing anything to help them. Therefore, the level of their psychological disturbance continues to build up until it reaches a dangerous chronic level. The cases of mental disturbances that result from stress and depression are not rare. However, some societies associate mental illnesses with superstitions and curses to justify their decisions to neglect them (Woodside & McClam, 2011).

Homelessness is also a challenge facing the clients which is the reason of continuous discomfort and depression. Many families spend their nights in the gutters or shanty structures. Homelessness occurs due to violence, natural disasters, and land grabbing among others. Other people become homeless when financial institutions possess their land to compensate for unsettled loans. In other cases, a family may own a parcel of land but not have enough resources to put up a structure (Gillam, 2010).

Some people who are struggling against drug and alcohol addiction also need personal services. Very often individuals abuse drugs and alcoholic substances due to their harsh economic condition and social experiences. According to Gillam (2010), the cases of addiction due to the increasing cost of living are becoming more common. Individuals who cannot manage to face life at its worst choose to avoid the reality by taking drugs. Human services are very significant at this point. Different studies show that some youths use drugs due to the peer influence. Later, they try to give up the habit but remain trapped in the menace. Human services workers step in and assist to rehabilitate or recommend them to consult specialists.

Persons with physical disabilities, immigrants, the elderly and retired workers need help from the social services assistants as well. These groups of people find it difficult to join the rest of the community; they develop a low self-esteem because they think that they do not deserve to coexist with others. For example, the elderly and those with disabilities think that they are burdening their family members and friends. Retired persons, especially ex-military men, and immigrants find it troublesome to adjust to a new environment. The ex-policemen who fought in the battlefront are in the need of counseling services: horrific scenes they witnessed while serving in the military haunt them (Gillam, 2010). Sometimes, this grows even into a sense of paranoia.

Lack of legal awareness is also among the common problems faced by the human services clients. Matters of law are rather complex, and many people leave it to professionals to handle them. In the process, many suffer in the hands of lawbreakers who take advantage of their legal ignorance. They fear cases of reporting to police and appearance of other relevant authorities because they are ill-informed on the procedure of searching for justice.

Human services clients also face a challenge of hunger and joblessness. This occurs due to the disparity in resource distribution. Capitalist nations do not care whether or not everybody gets food. Massive competition characterized by inhumane aggressiveness ensures that the poor do not get much. It is customary to find that many families are living without a meal in a day. At the same time, cases of joblessness in many countries continue to escalate. A person can miss an opportunity because