Curtin University Social Work student, Belinda James, has spent the past few months immersed in life at Advocare. Since starting in mid-February, she’s gained firsthand experience of advocacy, human rights, and person-centred practice in action.
Belinda’s placement finished recently, so we took the opportunity to ask her to reflect on her time. While social work is a new professional pathway, she brought with her a wealth of experience, particularly from working previously in the aged care sector.
“Over time, I observed how systems can sometimes become overly process-driven and paternalistic, where an older person’s voice and lived experience can unintentionally become lost,” Belinda explains. “That really sparked my passion for rights-based and dignity-enhancing approaches.”
With this idea ignited, Belinda’s placement has deepened her understanding of advocacy in aged care and community settings and helped build her confidence in applying social work values in practice.
“I wanted to go beyond what we learn at university and see how those values come to life in real-world settings,” she says.
During her time with Advocare she spent time with our Advocacy, Care finder and Aged Care Volunteer Visitors Scheme teams, as well as our Seniors Peak Body functions, gaining a broad understanding of the many ways Advocare supports older Western Australians. Her conversations with older people, community organisations and colleagues reinforced the importance of dignity, inclusion and belonging throughout the ageing journey.
In particular, the experience broadened her understanding of advocacy.
“Before placement, I viewed advocacy more as assisting people when problems arose,” Belinda reflects. “Now I see it’s much broader and more proactive. It’s about creating spaces where older people feel informed, empowered, heard and able to uphold their rights.”
“I’ve learned just how interconnected everything is,” she says. “Language, systems and social attitudes all shape people’s experiences. The incredible strength, resilience, wisdom and contribution older people continue to bring to our communities is something we don’t always value enough.”
Walking the talk in the workforce
One area that particularly captured her interest was the concept of ‘collective care’, which explores how organisations and communities can work together to support not only the individuals they work with, but their own workforce and volunteer base, as well.
This is a new way of thinking that addresses the well-being of people working for an organisation and the broader systems they operate within. One of the biggest surprises during her term was not only seeing person-centred practice in action with the older people we work with, but also within the Advocare team itself.
“One of the most meaningful parts of my placement was seeing person-centred practice lived throughout the organisation,” she says. “I felt genuinely supported, listened to, encouraged and guided throughout my learning journey.”
The Advocare team is also thankful for the fresh insight she brought to all the projects she worked on during her time with us. Belinda is now aiming to complete her studies later this year and we wish her all the very best on her ongoing journey of discovery.
Pictured below: Belinda’s thoughtful parting gift to the Perth Advocare team.
