I chose to visit Hunterdon Care Center in Flemington, New Jersey. I used to live in Flemington and my Great Aunt Eleanor was placed there six years ago. I felt I would enjoy visiting and interviewing her and also interviewing a social worker on staff there. The social worker that I interviewed at Hunterdon Care Center was Cindy Mendoza who has been working there for about two years.
             Ms. Mendoza is a very experienced social worker. She chose the field of social work because she wanted a branch of health care. Her mother was a nurse who also tried to influence Cindy to become a nurse as well. Cindy knew that being a nurse was not her first choice. She knew there were many jobs available in hospitals, but she felt that the acute nature of the hospital setting would not allow her to get to know the patients well. She preferred the field of social work as a good blend of serving in the health care professions with a personal touch.
             Ms. Mendoza tried many various fields of social work before settling on the branch she loves best care of the elderly or gerontology. She worked with hospisis, assisted living, in a hospital or clinical setting, and experienced working with different populations of people. Working in a nursing home, she found she really enjoyed working with seniors. She feels they have a lot to share through story telling, she enjoys her role as a listener to their tales. She also feels to help make their lives happier and "provide a little quality for their lives". She finds them to be very grateful for the time and attention she gives them. Cindy seemed to feel that with little effort she could improve the lives of seniors that she interacted with daily.
             Cindy Mendoza is currently surviving as director of social service for the Hunterdon Care Center. A lot of her work has to do with quality control and evaluation. She makes sure that projects are followed through and she conducts surveys to see if patients ...