Final Attestations for Students from SFI's Department of Social Work

The examination board, chaired by Elena Ivanova, Director for Strategic Development of the “Old Age in Joy” Charity Foundation, included Marina Naumova, Vice-Rector for Development and Head of the Department of Social Work at St. Philaret’s Institute (SFI), and Anna Savik, Deputy Head of the Department of Social Work at SFI and coordinator of the “Route to Help” programme run by the “Living Together” Charity Foundation.

“The graduates’ projects proved useful even to the examination board, because behind each one lies a deep analysis and real engagement with the client’s family in what is almost always a complex case,” noted the chair of the commission, Elena Ivanova.  “At the same time, we very much look forward to seeing a clear, well-prioritised description of each case, with all key points properly emphasised, and with a sound understanding of the overall work system.”

“It is quite obvious that in our time it is not enough to engage only in the lofty heights of theology. We must also find ways to put our theology into practice,” emphasised St. Philaret’s Institute (SFI) Rector, Candidate of Pedagogical Sciences Alexander Kopirovsky.

Experience That Becomes Part of the System

Anna Sinyavskaya (Moscow) presented a palliative care case: a 43-year-old man with terminal-stage HIV who had been left completely alone after his mother’s death. The situation was complicated by the fact that the client was very reluctant to accept help, being extremely withdrawn.  “With a palliative case, everything has to be done very quickly, and you need alternate plans, because the situation can change rapidly,” Anna shared.  She managed to secure palliative status for the patient, organise effective pain relief, find a psychotherapist, and – most importantly – build a trusting relationship.

“The client was extremely closed at the beginning of our work, finding it very hard to accept help. He would say, ‘I’m going to die soon, so why do I need all this?’ But once he realised that we genuinely wanted to help him, he began to restore hygiene routines on his own initiative. He once again started shaving and dressing properly. You could see he was re-engaging his own inner resources. For me, it was a real miracle,” said Sinyavskaya.

Maria Volkova (Samara), an employee of the “Artist” Charity Foundation, which supports elderly figures from the world of culture and the arts, also successfully defended her final project.  Her client was an 87-year-old Honoured Artist of the Samara Drama Theatre. He was left immobilised after a serious operation, completely alone, and unwilling to see anyone. The situation was further complicated by the near total absence of systematic home-care support in his region.

"We contacted the Samara hospice, and a doctor came out to the house. And something incredible happened: the man who had previously refused to speak to anyone suddenly began to sing and recite poetry to the doctor. It turned out he had a beautiful voice. In that moment, he was himself again,” recounted Volkova.

Volkova managed to find this artist’s former pupils, who recorded a video message for their teacher. She also succeeded in arranging a place for him in a private care home. Unfortunately, Maria’s client passed away very soon afterwards, only a few weeks before the creative evening event they had planned. According to Volkova herself, however, the quality of his life in his final months was radically changed for the better.

Irina Gavrilina (Tver), an economist at the Territorial Fund for Compulsory Medical Insurance, took on what the examination board described as one of the most dramatic cases.  Her client was a 76-year-old woman who held a first-class degree in mathematics (summa cum laude), had worked in administration, and had in her retirement helped people with disabilities. She fell victim to fraudsters and, within just a few months, lost her flat, her life savings, and all her documents.  Irina succeeded in restoring the woman’s documents, finding her temporary accommodation, engaging lawyers, and organising medical assistance. The woman is now back in contact with her friends and is receiving treatment at a gerontological centre.

“We witnessed a very personal, informal approach to this client. Many problems were solved not according to the rules of the system, but because people who simply wanted to help came forward to do so,” said Gavrilina.

Profession Growth as the Primary Result

“My work as a hospice volunteer is different from what I learned through this programme, because in the hospice everything is already arranged and in place for the patients. This training, on the other hand, has given me systematic knowledge, clear rules, regulations and a proper roadmap to follow when you don’t know where to start,” Anna Sinyavskaya explained, describing the change in her professional approach.  Many of her fellow students share this same outlook.

In post-defence discussions, lecturers highlighted the obvious tension between a pragmatic approach (doing what can be done with available resources) and aspirations to push beyond those limits.

“It is important to recognise the value of both approaches. One helps to prevent burnout and allows sober assessment of available resources, while the other drives progress and development,” noted Olga Shalkovskaya, who supervised several of the final projects.

Programme Graduates

The following students also successfully defended final course work: Natalya Tsabeka (St Petersburg), Tatyana Oleynik (Moscow), Natalya Markizova (Moscow), Alexandra Kudryashova (Severodvinsk), Nina Chernova (Voronezh), Margarita Tarasova (Moscow), Larisa Demchenko (St Petersburg), Tatyana Boldenkova (Tver) and Viktoriya Nikiforova (Tver).

All graduates received diplomas qualifying them as Specialists in Social Work (Social Coordinators), and can now work in organisations that support elderly people, palliative patients, families in crisis, people with mental health issues, the homeless and refugees.

After their defences, the graduates turned to the examination board and lecturers with words of gratitude: “The two key words of today are gratitude and joy. Theodor Shanin used to say that social work is a joyful profession. We have clearly felt that joy during the year and a half we have spent in happy study. Our group has become a real community, and we will certainly never close our common chat. There is so much we have to share with one another. We thank everyone who supported us during our placements for their generosity and patience, and for treating us as true colleagues.”