Amanda Pressly:
Hello, social workers. This is the national association of Social Workers New York Chapter's first recording of the Power of Social Work podcast. Today we have Herman Sanchez Malcswrdt. He has served in the Army national guard for over 10 years, since 2012, and he's currently serving as a behavioral health officer for the New York National Guard. Herman Sanchez, please introduce yourself to the social workers who are listening.
Gideon Mosse:
Hello.
German Sanchez:
Thank you. Thank you, everybody for having me here today. Thank you for allowing me to be the first speaker in this podcast for our state. Hopefully, I do it justice today.
Amanda Pressly:
Thank you so much for being here. My name is Amanda Presley. I'm one of the policy coordinators here at NASW New York. And if you get involved with advocacy, you'll be interfacing a lot with myself and my colleagues.
Gideon Mosse:
Hi, everyone. I am Gideon Mosse. I'm also a policy coordinator here at NASW New York. And we're super excited to be talking with you today, German.
German Sanchez:
Thank you.
Amanda Pressly:
So firstly, how long have you been a social worker and what do you do at your current role?
German Sanchez:
Yeah, so I got my Master of social work in 2019 from the Catholic University of America in Washington, DC. Currently, I have about two jobs, so I'm behavioral health officer for the United States Army. That's part of my continued service for our country, helping service members into families, veterans. And then second, I'm the clinical supervisor at the HEAT program at SUNY Downstate, which is a very specific clinic that works towards helping adolescents who are HIV positive as well as transgender adolescents and trying to explore their gender identity.
Gideon Mosse:
Super, super interesting and incredibly good work. Obviously, as we know many social workers do. So just to get into it and how you really started. Talk us through how it was to get your LCSW, what was the educational process like, what were the tests like, what was the exam like, et cetera.
German Sanchez:
Yeah. You know, my career trajectory towards social work definitely started with me going to therapy when I was 22 and I was stationed in Alaska, and I was living in Alaska, and I was just a kid fresh from Texas who just graduated and was put in probably one of the coldest places in the world. And I never saw snow until the very first time in my life. And in that moment, I started to realize, like, wow, there's like, a lot of feelings going on. And I found a therapist who was an LCSW as well, and I started working with her and, like, kind of like unraveling family trauma, my feelings around certain things. Life in the army, being away from home for the first time, living in a Whole mother state. It was through that experience that really pushed me towards wanting a career in mental health and really seeing what social workers do and how they support people and really encouraging me to pursue my master's of social work when I first left active duty in 2016.
Amanda Pressly:
Yeah, as they say, hurt people, heal people. So that's amazing that you took your generational trauma and you were able to turn it into a career that helps educate others, but also, you know, it heals a little inner part of yourself. Right. When you go through that journey. Thank you for sharing more about that. You told us a little bit about what motivated you to stay in the field. But as we see social workers with increased burnout rates, the profession often is faced with low pay and high educational debt. What is something that motivates you to keep going in this field?
German Sanchez:
It's going to sound dorky, impossible to be true. It's really helping people, and it's really showing up for those who are marginalized in our community. I work with a kid who is 16 years old. They have had more suicide attempts than they have years in this world. And to me, being able to work with this kid, we started in November. Since then, things have turned around and this kid is in a much better space. Not just because of my work with them, but, you know, they finally found a social worker that they can vibe with, that they can connect with, and that can really start to address some of the underlying issues. And I think part of the work is that I've been doing a great job with people, and that motivates me to keep coming back. I also get paid well, and I know there's some social workers who don't get paid well. It really sucks. And that's something that we need to address. But I've been grateful in my career since 2019 to have worked for agencies who see my worth and my value and have been able to negotiate and work with me in matching that.
Gideon Mosse:
Absolutely. And I totally agree. I mean, it's something we fight for every day, obviously, is that social workers are obviously such an important crux to society in general. I mean, giving that help to people who need it is so wildly important. And in order to do that, we do need to pay social workers more. Obviously, that is a natural conclusion that you can come to. And you kind of already mentioned one. But just for the viewer, tell us about a story you have with one of your patients that really, I guess, just stands out to you and really shows the power of social work in general. Obviously, you've Already given one. But is there anyone where you obviously can see the clear benefits that social workers obviously bring? Do you have a story about a patient like that?
German Sanchez:
Yeah. One of the things that separates us from our colleagues, either they're LCATs or LMHCs or even psychologists, is the fact that we work from a systems perspective and that we're just not addressing just the issue that's in front of us, but all the different issues that might occur with a particular person. And I always remember this patient. It's one of those patients that will always stay with me for the rest of my life. It's when I worked in Community Mental Health Clinic in Brooklyn. I was working with an Air Force veteran, and for the longest time, he chose to never go get care at the VA because he felt like he didn't deserve it. You know, he deployed, but he never really saw combat. And so he felt like, you know, that wasn't really for him. And I validated that. I recognized it. You know, I respected his decision. I remember one day I asked him, like, hey, why don't we just submit the 1010 EZ form so that in case you ever need care at the VA, it'll just be there for you.
Amanda Pressly:
Yeah. Give an easy alternative.
German Sanchez:
And so, you know, this particular veteran deals with bipolar disorder. He hears voices. And so from time to time, he'll have a manic episode where he'll start to act a little strange for people in the community might not like that. And so he reached out to me two years ago. We stopped working. And the last time I worked with him was in October 2022. I heard from him. He sent me an email and a voicemail in October 2024 or 25, somewhere around there. And he said, thank you for making me sign the form to get connected to the VA healthcare. He experienced a manic phase where he was. He ended up hospitalized at one of the city hospitals. He wasn't getting the care that he needed there, and he asked to be transferred to the VA. And he filled out that form. When we met together that first time, he never went back and used it, but when he needed it, the VA was there to provide the care that he needed. And since then, his life has been turning around. He now has supportive housing with the VA housing voucher. He doesn't hear voices anymore because they found the right medication regimen for him. And that is what social work is. That is our superpower. But where we meet people, where they're at, we're not just treating whatever the presenting issue is. But we're trying to work at it from a systems perspective and get them connected to the resources that they need. Even if they never end up meeting them, that's fine. It'll just be there for when they need it.
Amanda Pressly:
And it's so important as a mental health provider and a social worker to understand that not everyone has that trust in the system and that not everyone is actively seeking help until they realize the resources that are right under their fingertips or until they're pushed to a point where they know that they need it. But it's great to offer that no pressure approach just so people don't feel like, okay, I'm going to run away from the system or I want to run away from this person. Especially when you're in that type of mindset. So that's great on how you approach that situation.
German Sanchez:
Yeah. And if I can just say this, I think that's where we are different from all the other healthy professionals. Don't just treat what the issue is. Obviously this person's bipolar disorder, but it's deeper than that. And that's what makes us unique because we see things from a systems perspective and we work on addressing all the psychosocial issues that are happening and making sure that people get the care that they need, that they get access to get the care that they need. That's something that I always try to instill in the social work interns that I see, that I work with and that I teach, and making sure that they address the issues from a system's perspective so that people can get access to the care that they need.
Amanda Pressly:
Yeah. And it's great to have a trauma centered approach where you understand the environmental factors that could lead to somebody to be in the state where they're at or to make the decisions that they do. So thank you for sharing a little bit more about just what makes the social work perspective different and why their interventions are so much more impactful in people's lives because they truly meet where they're at. So thank you for highlighting a great moment like that. What makes social work a professional career and degree path, especially for emerging students that are just coming into this field? What do you make social work professional, in your words?
German Sanchez:
Our MSW degrees, depending on the school that you go to, can either offer a very clinical approach or a very macro approach or a very community approach. And that's what I like about that. Depending on the program that you want and what you want to accomplish, you can set up your degree to help you in that direction. And with that degree, you can do a lot of different careers, from community mental health to working in a hospital, to having your own private practice, to doing policy work, to do research, to doing case management, to doing supportive housing. There's really not a lot. You can work at the VA, you can be a behavioral health officer in the United States army. You can work for the federal government. There's a lot you can do with your MSW degree. And that's why it's one of the best degrees out there. We're not just pigeonholed to just doing therapy. We can do a lot of different things, and that's why that degree is the preference when it comes to, like, a lot of employees, once again, not to try to devalue some of the other degrees. They're also important. But we're taught to address things from a lot of different perspectives. We're just not just doing therapy.
Gideon Mosse:
That makes perfect sense. And yeah, I understand that people do have a misconception about social work in general, where they're like, oh, social work is therapy, and that's it. Right. But as I've worked at NASW for so long now, I've learned that the number of people, especially in those fields like policy that you're talking about, it is a overarching degree that helps on so many facets and factors that we just really need to keep in mind. I guess is it would be. My argument is you can't just imagine. You can't put social workers in the box of therapy. What impact have you made as NASW New York Board president and in advocacy through other facets, and also just speak a bit more about what NASW is doing right now, what you're doing with NASW right now, etc.
German Sanchez:
Yeah. So here at NASW, we're doing a lot of work, constantly doing a lot of work that sometimes I always get this question, what is NASW doing? Because they don't actually see the work that we're doing that's behind the scenes of everybody else's career. Right now, we're getting ready for Capital Action Day, where we're going to be supporting a couple of builds in Albany. We are preparing for our state conference in May or preparing for Social Work Month. But there's always something going on, something for any social worker or social work colleague that is passionate about social work to go and participate in. So there's always something to do. I think what I like about my time here at NASW and as the president of the chapter is definitely helping bring back our conference to in person. The last one we did was more of a remote format. Now we're getting back to person. We're building those relationships again. I hope that we can see a lot of people come out to the conference this year in May at Hunter University. Please come out. Please come support. We understand it's a big state and some people are coming from Syracuse.. Don't worry. Next year we plan to have it somewhere in the north of the state and always move it between the city and other parts of the state so that we try to be as equitable for everybody all over the state. And we're working on getting more sponsors for that. So please come out and support Register. That's the only way we can grow our chapter and make the chapter work for us.
Amanda Pressly:
Great. And I think you highlighted something that really showcases what we do with our advocacy on just people wondering what we're doing and how they can get involved. The first thing you mentioned, we have our Capital action day on February 10th in Albany, which we hope that social workers will make a great impact and really have their voices heard to the legislature and also to the governor. But you really highlighted that members need to get involved in NASW New York's work a lot more closely just to make sure that they're involved in the process, but also that real social workers that are on the ground have their voices elevated. Because, you know, Gideon and I, we are the staff here at NASW. We do a lot of this policy work, but we're not on the ground and we don't have a lot of these human touch experiences that a lot of social workers like yourself have today. And so we need social workers to be involved in this work. The motto that we say at NASW is no decision about you without you. We are member led. And so we want social workers to get involved in our advocacy committees like … the Advocacy and Government Relations Committee, and do things like testify to the legislature and go out to events to connect with the legislature and make a more personal connection with their own public officials and elected officials. Just to really show how on a personal level, every member at NASW can make a difference and all work together to get to the same goal that we're all trying to do, which is advance the social work profession and show the power of. Of the social work profession.
German Sanchez:
Yeah. Right now, in our state chapter, we have close to 10,000 members. I know for a fact that there are more than 10,000 social workers in the state.
Amanda Pressly:
A little bit more than 61,000.
German Sanchez:
Exactly. If you think all 61,000 of us were members of NASW, came out and participated in either Capital Action Day or whatever event that's going on, then that right there is political and voting power. But we cannot do it with just only 10,000, and we cannot do it when there's only 100 of us.
Gideon Mosse:
Absolutely agree. I mean, that is basically the biggest part of Amanda. And my job is to make sure that people go out and get active. Right. We're trying our best to make it incredibly clear to the people who might watch this come out and advocate. I mean, you see what the nurses are able to do in New York City alone, and if we can spare something like that on the social work front, I mean, the amount of change that can occur would be incredible, I feel. So, obviously, if we can rally those 60,000, that is what we try to do the most here at NASW, that's obviously the case.
German Sanchez:
Yeah. And let me add this tidbit with something that I do a lot in couples’ therapy. What you put into the relationship is what you get out of it. And if you put nothing into the relationship, then you cannot be surprised when nothing's given back. And how. I mean that in the work that we do at NASW, as a social worker, if you don't participate in NASW or help out or do anything with the chapter, you cannot be surprised if the chapter that you're in, either if it's this state or any other state, is not as active. Because we really need to participate in order to move legislative priorities, in order to fight for student loan forgiveness, for fair pay, for safety for social workers out in the community. Like, we need you. Come help and participate. We just cannot do it alone.
Gideon Mosse:
Yeah, come out, come out, advocate. We need voices. That's the whole thing. We need voices. So I guess to move on, what would you say empowers you the most when it comes to the social work field? And on top of that, what empowers you the most? When you see these recent challenges that are coming up when it comes to the social work career, the social work field in general, what is keeping you in it and keeping you swinging?
German Sanchez:
I guess, yeah. It's really important to highlight that as social workers, we're always fighting for a better future for our clients, for ourselves, for our country, and that we always and have always been there, where anytime something important has changed in this country, from the 1920s and the settlement house movement with Jenny Adams, through the passing of the New Deal, as we prepared for World War II and during the Great Depression era, to the Civil Rights act, to Vietnam, to as recently as AIDS advocacy in the 90s through the passing of marriage equality. Social workers have always been at the front line and fighting for people and fighting for their rights, not just for their own rights, but for the rights of everybody, regardless of whatever political party, regardless of who they voted for, regardless of if they're right or left or they're center. We're fighting for everybody at the end of the day.
Amanda Pressly:
Thank you. And we know that it's enshrined in the NASW code of ethics for social workers to become politically engaged. And it is a duty not only just for social workers for anybody to understand what's happening in their communities and in their sphere of influence in general, to be able to make the most impact if there is any injustice that they interface with. Just at NASW, to share a little bit more about the New York chapter, to highlight back to how we need the most involvement as possible to look at our political action through candidate Election committee or the PACE Committee. We recently unified our NASW New York State and New York City committees. And so now we represent the entire city and all of upstate. And you know, we have a great dedicated group of our committee, yet we're missing representation in certain areas of the state where we don't necessarily understand what's going on in certain areas when it comes to elections. And the goal of the committee is to advance social work through the power of elections, whether that means candidate that represents social work values or that could be a social worker running for office themselves, which we hope to encourage more social workers to run for office. So that just really shows how we need members in all facets of the state and in all geographical areas, regardless of it's in the city where we are shooting this today, or if it's, you know, in Oswego county where people are graduating with 28 people in their graduating class. Kind of like how I grew up. There's no provider social work provider for, you know, an hour, hour drive in that area. So I think keeping the entire state engaged is a challenging thing to do. And so having active members like you just showing your voice and being courageous enough to be vulnerable and share your story, I think it paves the way for more people to do that. And so what advice would you give to social workers coming into the field that are interested in advocacy? What advice would you give to any social worker that is new to this?
German Sanchez:
What's important to always keep in mind is the work that we're doing and how it's all connected. From a systems theory perspective, what happens in the ground goes up either through your local government, your state government, to your federal government, and whatever they do at those different levels come right back down. And so even if you are working with a client who's not being impacted by any of current policies, don't say when. It's only a matter of time when a direct act or policy starts to affect the clients right across from me. And part of that is fighting for their rights, fighting for who they are and showing up for them. We shouldn't have to wait until they come for you personally at your door. We should be showing up for everybody.
Amanda Pressly:
I think that's a great closing statement to our podcast today. So we want to leave you with some action tools to best guide your advocacy journey before we leave today. Obviously, we have leadership positions open at NASW New York. We've recently elected a new board president who will take into office next year Patricia Gray from Hunter University, Herman Sanchez. He's diligently served for the last three years, three years now, so he's definitely putting his dues in. It is a lot of work to do at NASW New York, but we know that it's incredibly rewarding and not only is it personally rewarding, but you see the results in the people that you touch and also that the policy change that you're able to create. And so if we can give you some leaving tips before we go today, we encourage you to 1. Join NASW New York. We hope for you to be a part of this journey and a part of this movement and to get in touch with us personally. We encourage that. We have two advocacy committees at NASW. We have the Advocacy and Government Relations Committee or … where you can actually decide our legislative agenda for the chapter. AGR is the one who votes on everything that we pursue in a legislative year. And so if you're interested in what we're advocating for and why, you should definitely be a part of the AGR committee that meets monthly. And secondly, we have our Political Action Through Candidate Election Committee where we're looking for all social workers to give us political candidates that represent social work values that are running in the next upcoming election. And also any social workers running for office, we want to be aware of that so that we can support their campaign and advance social work in every way possible throughout the state. So we encourage you to join. If you can reach out to info.naswnewyork@socialworkers.org, we'll get you connected. Herman do you have any leaving notes before we end today?
German Sanchez:
We talked a lot today and why we need to get involved. I always say this and I want to hear from members and non-members alike, always, and I welcome that. If there's an issue or an idea that needs to be addressed, by all means, please get involved, let us know. There's a lot of different issues that we need to address. We need to address supervision for LCSWs. We need to address the exam, we need to address safety. We need to address a lot of different issues that are affecting the social work community. And then maybe there's some that we don't know because it hasn't been brought up to our attention. And so please let us know this chapter, this profession is your home. Come to us and tell us what's going on so that we can best advocate for you at the end of the day.
Gideon Mosse:
Yeah, we're trying to get stuff done. So, let's get stuff done. Tell us your issues and we're going to do our best to help.
German Sanchez:
Right. Right with that.
Gideon Mosse:
Thank you so much, German, as absolute pleasure again, last time. I'm Gideon Mosse, Policy Coordinator at NASW.
Amanda Pressly:
Yeah. And we hope that you'll tune in to the next Power of Social Work episode. We're hoping to keep this series continuing and so this won't be the last time you'll hear from us and hope to be in touch.
Gideon Mosse:
Thank you so much.
German Sanchez:
Thank you.