Hello everyone! My name is Kiara Houston, and I reside in Augusta, GA. I currently work as a coordinator for a community-based research project focused on cancer prevention. I hold a Master of Public Health, but I am now pursuing a Master of Social Work because my career goal is to become a medical social worker supporting individuals within the health care system. In both my personal and professional life, I use technology for organization, primarily through calendars to track appointments and meetings. Personally, I also use it for entertainment, such as streaming my favorite shows and listening to podcasts. Professionally, I rely on technology for researching new collaborative sites or new advances made in cancer prevention and outreach. I also use technology to create flyers and other materials for community programs and to develop presentations for displaying progress. I also utilize AI technology in several ways, such as getting directions, generating ideas, and simplifying complex topics. I believe technology has both positive and negative impacts on social work practices today. On the positive side, it allows colleagues to collaborate across the world, advance research that can improve practice, and expand professionals’ reach to their target population. On the negative side, technology has advanced tremendously since the COVID-19 pandemic, and it can sometimes create disconnection, since our reliance on technology often takes away from meaningful human interaction in day-to-day life. I am looking forward to learning a wealth of knowledge from this course!
I like what you shared and I really like that photo. I think the links between social work and health care will become even more important as technology advances. The issue of concern is about the ability to maintain our human connection and we will be discussing that a lot during the semester.
Dr P
That photo is everything! I think technology has enhanced the human connection, however that connection loses its meaning when it negatively impacts society, such as misinformation from unreliable sources.
Kiara,
Great post and I like your picture as well. I agree that technology can create a disconnection between human interaction and the ability to effectively communicate. Your professional background and your integration into social work is really interesting and I am excited to hear some of your experiences. It seems like you have alot of experience with technology and Ai and that’s great to have as it’s becoming so competitive across all career paths. However, the use of technology and Ai will be inevitable.
Hello Kiara, your job sounds rewarding. I agree that technology has made everyone’s life easier, even for schooling, no matter what profession you are in. However, it has become a crutch for people and has also hurt people in their careers, leading to job loss. A boundary must be established because nothing can replace a human touch. Technology has also made finding and keeping a good connection.
Kiara,
Thank you for sharing your experiences and thoughts. I look forward to learning from your perspective as a public health professional. I too have benefited from the ability of AI tools to consolidate information and summarize complex issues into more manageable pieces. I am a Perplexity fan myself, enabling me to consolidate research and yet still get down to the specific source.
We will spend a good deal of time in this class talking about the interactions between technology and human beings. As professionals, we have ethical concerns and challenges we must confront. As individuals and family members, we can see the impact technology is having on the connections between people in our culture. And as a society/ country, we are constantly making choices about the role we are willing to allow technology to take in our world.
Every question we ask will bring up more questions. Every technological advancement brings potential innovation and possible catastrophe. it won’t be simple, but I am looking forward to many more conversations.
Dr P