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Vol. 8 No. 2 (2020)
Space and Culture, India

Reviews

Human Well-Being and Pandemic Crisis: Implications for Social Work Practice from Kerala Experience

https://doi.org/10.20896/saci.v8i2.1046

Published 2020-09-28

  • Elsa Mary Jacob
    • ,
  • Arya Chandran L
    • ,
  • Dr.Abraham Francis

Elsa Mary Jacob
Bharata Mata College, India

Arya Chandran L


Dr.Abraham Francis


Abstract

Nipah virus, the consecutive 2018 and 2019 floods, the internal social, economic, and political struggles have had a significant impact on the lives of people in Kerala, India.   While the state of Kerala was trying to get back to some form of stability, Covid-19 slams into, in an unprecedented way, drastically disrupting the lives of many. It has shaken the interconnectedness and interdependence of families and placed communities in a state of fear, anxiety, and uncertainty. This article is about the vulnerabilities, experiences, voices, and untold stories of courage and resilience among people in Kerala. Authors present a reflective analysis of the multidimensional impact of Covid-19 on the ordinary lives of the people of Kerala. 

The deleterious impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the entire humanity reckons the attention of governments, economists, educators, social scientists, medical and allied professionals, including social workers, to make concerted efforts to preserve and promote human well-being. Taking into consideration the structural inequalities in society, the present paper utilises a critical social work theoretical lens to analyse how it has impacted the well-being of people, especially the marginalised and vulnerable communities in Kerala.

Keywords

Wellbeing, COVID-19, Kerala, Professional Social work, Reflective analysis, Critical Perspectives in Social Work

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Author Biography

Elsa Mary Jacob

Dr Elsa Mary Jacob is an academic in Social Work at Bharata Mata College, Kerala, India, with extensive experience of practice, teaching, research and training. Her experience in social work research is focused on intervention studies with adolescents and youth, and evaluation studies of progrmmes. Her practice experience in Child Welfare, Community Development, Women Empowerment, Community Based Rehabilitation (CBR) and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) alliance with white Ribbon Alliance India (WRAI) programme have contributed remarkably to the Social Work teaching.  As a researcher Dr Jacob was one of the pioneers who initiated Bal Panchayat, and developed a model for working with disadvantaged youth in Kerala.

Arya Chandran L

Ms Arya Chandran L is Assistant Professor of Social Work at Bharata Mata College, India. She is young academician with extensive research experience in gender, inequality, marginal communities and public health. Her publications are mostly on health and education of tribal community in India. Her academic career envisions contributing to update the indigenous knowledge base of social work curriculum.  She is currently working on her doctoral thesis on the gender aspects of fisherwomen’s health in the state of Kerala.

Dr.Abraham Francis

Dr. Abraham P. Francis is an Associate Professor, and currently the Head of Academic Group in Social Work and Human Services at James Cook University, Australia. Dr Francis is a research fellow at the department of social work, Stellenbosch University, South Africa and an Adjunct Faculty with Prasanna School of Public Health, MAHE, Manipal, India. In 2018, Dr Francis received the NAPASWI lifetime achievement for his outstanding contribution to Social Work Education.

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