'A Community no matter what': fostering social work professional connections in Italy in COVID-19 times

The COVID-19 pandemic and the associated socio-economic crisis are posing unprecedented challenges both globally and locally, raising many unknowns and imposing difficult trade-offs. One of the side effects of this pandemic, with the ensuing physical distancing rules and quarantine, has been the condition of isolation that is affecting vulnerable populations disproportionately across the world. Against this background, one of the major tasks for social work is to keep up connections, find new ways to sustain relations and networks, and mitigate against inescapable feelings of loneliness and their consequences. Social workers themselves are affected personally and professionally by this crisis, facing new living and working conditions. They experience feelings of uncertainty, fear, and the risk of isolation. The aim of this paper is to present examples of practices intended to promote a sense of community, as such a shared emotion can support present and future social workers. These examples serve to underline how, now more than ever, a central challenge for social work is to strengthen the professional community, find ways to overcome isolation and 'to take care of those who care'.