9 Examples of Invaluable Human Services

 Arguably one of the most selfless careers, human services undeniably improve society, ensuring that the most vulnerable members of the community have the support they need to survive and thrive. Yet, few members of society understand exactly what human services entail. Here are a few examples of crucial human services organized and offered by human services professionals:

Elderly and Aging Services

Older adults can be some of the most vulnerable members of society. Often struggling with serious health conditions, managing fixed incomes and facing limited transportation options, seniors require various forms of additional support. Human services professionals can create and maintain programs that allow older adults to survive and thrive within their communities, such as teaching family members to function as caregivers, offering legal and Medicare assistance, providing protective services and more.

Shelter Assistance

Shelter is a fundamental requirement for human survival, which makes homelessness a particularly devastating development within a community. Human services professionals are often involved in shelter assistance programs, which involve creating places where unhoused community members can find safety and comfort while searching for more permanent places to live.

Child Welfare Services

Child welfare systems exist to ensure the safety and success of children and to prevent harm due to neglect or abuse. Various services operate within child welfare systems, such as investigating reports of abuse, arranging for the safe relocation of children in risky homes, providing childcare and offering services that can help with reunification, such as mental health counseling or parenting classes.

Community Integration Programs

Community integration is a vital yet often overlooked human service that involves ensuring that people with disabilities can assimilate effectively into the broader community. Often, communities overlook the needs of people with disabilities. Through community integration programs, human services professionals can deliver the full spectrum of social, educational and professional opportunities to all members of the community.

Insurance Assistance

The insurance system is far from intuitive. Unfortunately, many members of society cannot afford standard health insurance policies, let alone healthcare outright. Therefore, all states offer some form of insurance assistance, which helps community members cover the costs associated with health insurance and access the healthcare services they need to maintain a certain standard of health and wellbeing.

Assistance With Crimes and Abuse

Victims of crimes and abuse tend to suffer effects of their experience beyond what criminal justice authorities can address through convicting perpetrators. Human services professionals can offer victims support through programs like crisis intervention, counseling, advocacy and more, which can help victims maintain physical and emotional safety as they recover from their ordeal.

Food and Clothing Assistance

In addition to shelter, the human body needs food and clothing to survive. These basic necessities are often the first to be lost by those struggling with income, and many unhoused neighbors are perpetually in desperate need of reliable sources of sustenance and covering. Human services professionals work with shelters and other organizations to deliver food and clothing to those in need.

Language Barrier Assistance

Contrary to popular belief, there is no official language of the U.S. at the federal level. America boasts more than 430 different languages, and each speaker deserves an equal opportunity to access community services. Human services professionals can organize and provide language barrier assistance, which means delivering translators to community members struggling to communicate in key situations, like criminal justice or healthcare facilities.

Community Events

Too often, human services professionals step in when community members are in crisis. However, by working on community events, human services professionals can be instrumental in strengthening the community with opportunities for joy and celebration. Community events might include drives for food, clothing, toys and other donations, volunteering activities like street clean-ups or perhaps free music and movies in neighborhood parks. These events help community members form strong bonds with one another and their area, which can improve circumstances for everyone.

Society runs on human services. Human services professionals deliver support to every member of society through the development and deployment of various critical direct services. Those who want to do good in the world might consider how they can  use a master’s in human services to improve their own communities today.