Mrs Nirmala Gopiendran was inspired to be a social worker from young. Today, at the age of 70, Mrs Gopi is still on the front line, devoting herself to her special calling. “Social work is my passion,” said the social worker of about 40 years.
Mrs Gopi did try to retire after 21 years at Rainbow Centre Margaret Drive School, but got back to social work the following year after a call from the Cerebral Palsy Alliance of Singapore (CPAS). Mrs Gopi has been at the CPAS since then.
CPAS executive director Cynthia Wong called Mrs Gopi an “iconic and dedicated social worker”.
Mrs Gopi started her career as a medical social worker at the paediatric unit before rotating to the obstetrics and gynaecology department.
Once, a mother brought her teenage daughter into the hospital because the girl had missed her period. A urine test found her pregnant and the mother was outraged. Mrs Gopi took note of the girl’s expected due date, and when that came around, visited her home to make sure everything was fine.
Such dedication was also evident later when she was working at the Rainbow Centre. Once, she called a mother up offering her son a spot in the school. The mother accepted but when the school year rolled around, Mrs Gopi did not see the boy in class.
She convinced the mother to let her son with autism try out Rainbow Centre for two weeks, and see if there were improvements. The mum agreed and the boy stayed on at Rainbow Centre. Later, the boy entered a mainstream primary school. Mrs Gopi helped his teachers understand how to manage him. He has since graduated from a polytechnic and joined the workforce.
Today, things have changed.
“Singapore is moving in the direction of an inclusive society. Parents now are more receptive, the public is more accepting,” said Mrs Gopi.
She said that she hoped social workers can get more recognition with clear career paths and better pay packages. And that Singapore will go beyond the compulsory special needs education to continually engage those with special needs after they are done with school at 18.
While the work can be rewarding, there are times when she feels tired.
But she has no regrets about a career in social work – if she could relive her youth, she said she would still “go for social work“.
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Source: The Straits Times, 10 August 2017