Shortage of social workers on P.E.I. leading to burnout, long wait times

A shortage of social workers on Prince Edward Island is leading to existing social workers burning out and people in need waiting longer for some services, says the group that represents them.

"In Health P.E.I., we're hearing that over 40 per cent of social work positions are currently vacant," Kathy Jones, president of the Prince Edward Island Association of Social Workers, told CBC News: Compass host Louise Martin. 

"In social development, we're hearing that number is over 20 per cent," Jones said, adding that P.E.I.'s Department of Justice also has vacancies.

One of the biggest effects of the shortage is that existing social workers are being asked to take on extra duties and work longer hours, she said, adding that it can be hard for social workers to say no to extra work when they know the need is there.

"For the public, it means that if you're looking to seek the services of a social worker — for example, in community mental health — you are waiting that much longer, because there are vacant positions," Jones said. 

Recruitment to the profession in P.E.I. has always been a challenge, Jones said, but she said it has been even harder over the last three to five years. 

There are new social work positions in P.E.I.'s 17 new medical homes as well as on student well-being teams, but Jones said filling those jobs means losing staff from jobs elsewhere in the province.

"When you have a short supply of those professionals to start with, what happens is a domino effect … You're pulling from child protection, you're pulling from mental health and addictions," Jones said. 

She said the association is talking with the provincial government about its capacity to help recruit and retain social workers. 

P.E.I. is the only province in Canada that does not have its own school of social work, Jones said, which adds to the challenge. The association has been calling for a faculty of social work for years, she said.

Why is it hard to recruit people to the profession? Jones said there are some misconceptions about the work. 

"There's a public perception that social workers work almost exclusively in child protection," she said, so public education is needed about the variety of work social workers do.

Social workers on P.E.I. are also responding to higher-level situations — in mental health or child protection, for example. They have also been involved in helping families who are in shock and grieving after the many recent road fatalities on P.E.I. 

Exposure to those traumatic situations can wear on social workers, Jones said. That's why in the past year, the association offered a one-day session on vicarious or secondary trauma.