I studied my first university of applied sciences degree ten years ago, when I studied to become a bachelor of social services. At that time, the use of digital technology in social work was very different from what it is today. From the perspective of the social sector, various social media platforms and applications have brought enormous opportunities, but also challenges. I have worked mainly with children and young people and their families. Digital technology is constantly developing, and children and young people are quick to learn how to use new platforms, and they are often interested in the development of technology. Today’s children and young people have grown up in a different digital world than their parents grew up in. The rapid development of digital technology requires readiness and interest from professionals in various fields and parents of children and young people to learn and familiarize themselves with various social media platforms.


Digitalization of the social sector

The General Data Protection Regulation is a law regulating the processing of personal data, which began to be applied in all EU countries in the spring of 2018. The Data Protection Regulation provides better protection for people’s personal data and more ways to manage data processing.

Considering data security in my own work in the social sector is important. As an employee, it is important to collect the customer’s information in such a way that there is everything necessary for safety, but not to collect anything extra. It is also important to store data securely and only for as long as necessary. All this information must be explained in the privacy statement and the customers have the right to receive the information collected about them. The GDPR reform has required employees to stop at information security issues and to question previous methods of operation. In this way, it has been possible to find better operating methods for the present, work efficiency improves, and the development of new methods is possible. As a threat to GDPR, I see the related freedom of interpretation when situations are not clear-cut and the monitoring of the implementation of data protection issues.

In my work, I think about equal opportunities for customers to use different services. Everyone should have equal opportunities to participate in things that interest them and use different services, regardless of their own skills. I work and have previously worked with children, teenagers, young adults and their families who need special support. They often need more individual support and guidance, unhurried meetings and time to learn new things. In connection with this, I am thinking about the accessibility of the services. Many services have moved exclusively online, which brings with it both advantages and disadvantages. On the other hand, you can use the services wherever and whenever it suits you. Many things can be handled more simply from home, and do not require, for example, visits to different agencies. At the same time, other customers need individual support and help in getting the services that belong to them. Inevitably, not all customers know what they are entitled to or what alternative options they have. In addition to the statutory services, there are many third-sector free complementary services that support the customer’s health and well-being.

I work in a project that enables free time activities for children and young people who need more support for hobbies. The development of digital technology has also enabled a lot from the point of view of hobbies. Children and young people participating in hobby activities can have, for example, individual tablets that facilitate communication, with applications they are familiar with. Using different digital applications and platforms can increase a child’s or young person’s participation and the opportunity to influence matters that concern them.

On the digi cizien page, I will tell you more about some online platforms, chats and applications in the social sector.

How will the digitalization change life and work in the future?

Digitalization has already changed our lives and working methods considerably. We only must go back a few years to the beginning of the 2020s and we can see how fast the development has been. Partly due to the urgency brought about by the pandemic, digitalization took great strides forward in all fields of work in its own way. With remote work and independent working, there was more time for the work being done, while the social encounters at the workplace decreased. Rapid digitization has made it possible to use resources more rationally and employees can be more efficient. On the other hand, I wonder if with digital development it is expected that employees will be more efficient and productive? And how far will it go before it turns against itself? Modern working life puts enormous pressure, and the competition is fierce. However, as an employee, you cannot constantly be more efficient, it is important to consider a person’s ability to cope both at work and in their free time.

From the point of view of the social sector, I am interested in people’s comprehensive well-being, individuality and connection with other people. I am concerned about how, for example, loneliness and bullying among young people can be even more difficult to identify and intervene when things happen “hiddenly” online. The development of digital technology can contribute to the marginalization of a young person, if the young person isolates himself from the rest of the social world by, for example, playing a computer game. At the same time, another lonely young person can experience a strong sense of community and inclusion in some online community.

In the development of digital technology, the different needs of all customer groups, such as the severely disabled or the elderly, must be considered, so that using the services is possible for everyone. Even though modern technology has caused marginalization in some areas, the development of digitalization has worked excellently for other customer groups. There are also clients in the social sector who cannot physically come to the meeting if, for example, they are too anxious. In such situations, working online is a good form of support.

Different fields have different needs for modern technology. I believe that in the future, more and more experts in the social sector will cooperate with, for example, engineers and coders already in the planning and ideation phase, so that various digital devices and applications are even better suited to work in the social sector. I think it’s important that customer groups in the social sector are included in the planning of matters concerning them from the very beginning, so that digital services meet the needs of each customer group as well as possible.

Self-reflection

Digital development doesn’t happen by itself, as it requires good management and a positive attitude towards development. Employees must be open to changes and boldly try to find suitable ways of working. I think that in social work, technology can never replace encounters between people, regardless of how and where the encounters take place. Regardless of the work environment, the goal in the social sector is always to find the best way to help and support customers in their life situation. It’s great to see how different projects related to digitalization have promoted the digitalization of the social sector in recent years. I believe that it will increase even more in the future.

Digitalization facilitates my work in many ways, such as organization and communication with partners and customers. I think that I have good skills for utilizing digital technology and an interest in developing digital methods in my work. Digitality is also interesting because you can never be done with it: technology and society are constantly developing and people’s wishes and needs change. Therefore, the development of employees and the continuous development of operations is essential.

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