Yael Eis
“People think my work is sad, and it’s true that the stories are heartbreaking, but I don’t feel sad about my work. I feel privileged to help empower clients to develop their own skills and resilience, knowing that when they have challenges, they will have the tools to help themselves. When they come back for check-ins, I get to see that impact.” As a social worker on a pediatric brain injury rehab team, Yael Eis experiences first-hand how support makes all the difference. “You never know what action will resonate.”
As many do, Yael found her way to the field of social work through personal experience. During high school, she was thrust into Sick Kids for medical reasons and pulled away from life as a regular teenager. She directly witnessed the ethos of her medical team, seeing her as a “patient first, as a whole human.” Yael had a lot of time to reflect and think about how other people were experiencing their own health crises. “Not everyone was as privileged as I was with an amazing support system.” Emerging from her experience, she knew she wanted to be in the “medical world, working with children and families.”
“When there is a trauma, the doctors are always communicating with the parents. With my team, kids often have their first opportunity to answer questions directly. We hear from kids; they often feel a lot of guilt, feel they are tearing apart their families, the financial impact, trauma within the trauma.” In her work with parents she emphasizes “acknowledge the trauma, take care of yourself in order to take care of others.”
A Netivot graduate, Yael returned to do a placement at Netivot during undergrad before continuing for a MSW. It was “early days of mindfulness and social skills development…The ones who were more attention-seeking got the help. I’m so proud of the school for recognizing that there is someone for everybody – There are so many initiatives now.”
“There’s strength in asking for help. Take that first step,” Yael encourages. “Shared experiences are powerful; we’re not meant to be alone. I’m so grateful for my friends and community.”
Yael and her husband Yoel have 4 children, all current Netivot students.
