Jill Spector
The life of a social worker
April 21, 2016
While reading the LA magazine, Jill Spector recommends good restaurants for juniors Natalie Rath and Ashley Avery. Spector has lived in LA all her life and cares for her 81-year-old dad and her children. “My parents have been there to help people and that is what I grew up seeing. They inspire me to help others and continue with my job as a social worker,” Spector said.
Since she was a toddler, geriatric social worker Jill Spector has always liked helping people.
“It has been in my blood my entire life, since I was a toddler. I’ve always loved taking care of people,” Spector said.
Spector knew she wanted her job to involve helping others, but was originally unsure of what path she would take.
“I wanted to be a teacher. I originally wanted to work with children in hospitals, but thought that would be too depressing and too confining. I went to UNC to get my masters in social work since being in social work means you can choose between many fields like business, the young or the old,” Spector said.
For the last 13 years, Spector has worked at Kaiser Permanente, a hospital organization that is dedicated to helping improve their well-being of their members.
“As a geriatric social worker I work with people recovering from illnesses, infections, injuries, wounds and mainly senior citizens. I also work primarily with patients who don’t have family or resources,” Spector said.
Some of the cases Spector deals with are families that have suffered from neglect.
“The hardest cases are the ones where people are addicts, alcoholics, old drug addicts and hoarders who are prisoners in their own home. In addition, there have been patients who are abused or financially abused, where their caregivers steal their money,” Spector said.
Spector keeps a positive attitude in light of the tragedy she witnesses.
“Sometimes my job is to just be there for them even though I can’t make it better. I can’t solve the problems, but I can acknowledge what they are going through. My job is to help them get through their difficult time and have them come out stronger, or at least make the time they have left in their life as good as possible,” Spector said.
Inspired by her parents, Spector continues to positively influence the lives of her patients.
“They have always put themselves out there to help any way they can. They have been there to help people and that is what I grew up seeing. They inspire me to help others and continue with my job,” Spector said.