Trabajo social clínico: una mirada desde lo social, económico y político

This conference is part of the keynote presentations of the Annual Symposium of the College of Social Work Professionals of Puerto Rico. It aspires to approximate the different local, regional, and international views of clinical social work. For this, some milestones in the genesis and development of the clinical dimension will be reviewed. The aspiration is to locate the social, political, and economic context in which this specialized practice is exercised. The contextual analysis aims to critique clinical social work centered on the medical model as one that psychologizes the social question “cuestión social” and commodifies mental health outside of a rights approach. Anti-oppressive and counter-hegemonic methods and therapeutic approaches are proposed to develop professional work. Finally, the need to discuss this practice and create agreements that differentiate it from other mental health disciplines and provide it with a political-ethical identity is highlighted.