Social work in health care
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Soc Work Health Care · Jan 2013
ReviewPerson-centeredness in home- and community-based long-term care: current challenges and new directions.
Person-centered care (PCC) has demonstrated to be a viable and preferred model of providing health and institutionalized long-term care services. However, the concept of PCC has not been fully extended to home- and community-based long-term care services (HCBS) for older adults with chronic conditions. This review highlights the need for PCC in HCBS and suggests that social workers may play a role in overcoming cultural and structural barriers to extending PCC to HCBS that include: the fragmentation of the industry, financial structures, regulation of services, and paternalism in policy and practice. Recommendations for practice, policy, and research are provided.
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Soc Work Health Care · Jan 2013
Professional competencies and training needs of professional social workers in integrated behavioral health in primary care.
The Affordable Care Act has led to a widespread movement to integrate behavioral health services into primary care settings. Integrated behavioral health (IBH) holds promise for treating mild to moderate psychiatric disorders in a manner that more fully addresses the biopsychosocial spectrum of needs of individuals and families in primary care, and for reducing disparities in accessing behavioral health care. For behavioral health practitioners, IBH requires a shift to a brief, outcome-driven, and team-based model of care. ⋯ Online snowball sampling methods were used over a period of 1 month. Results indicate that social workers feel prepared for general practice in IBH settings, but would benefit from additional training in IBH-specific competency areas identified in the survey. Findings can help guide social work training to improve workforce preparedness for practice in IBH settings in the wake of health care reform.
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Soc Work Health Care · Jan 2013
Birth cohort testing for hepatitis C virus: implications for clinical social workers in health care settings.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends one-time hepatitis C virus (HCV) testing for baby boomers born between 1945-1965 in the United States. This public health initiative is known as birth cohort (baby boomer) testing for HCV. ⋯ The purpose of this article is to inform clinical social workers in health care settings of HCV, the standard of care and treatment for HCV, and clinical dilemmas associated with HCV patient care. Epidemiology and natural history of HCV, the standard of care and treatment for HCV, and etiology and management of neuropsychiatric adverse effects associated with patient care are discussed.
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Soc Work Health Care · Jan 2013
Future trends in health and health care: implications for social work practice in an aging society.
Major economic, political, demographic, social, and operational system factors are prompting evolutionary changes in health care delivery. Of particular significance, the "graying of America" promises new challenges and opportunities for health care social work. ⋯ This article identifies the aging shift in American demography, its impact on health policy legislation, factors influencing fundamentally new service delivery paradigms, and opportunities of the profession to address the health disparities and care needs of an aging population. It underscores the importance of social work inclusion in integrated health care delivery and offers recommendations for practice education.