Integration Of Social Work Research Articles

Holistic Defense: Attorney Perception and Social Work Integration in the Courtroom

The goal of this project is to survey attorney perceptions of social workers. This will lead to suggestions on how social workers can be more effectively integrated into the courtroom and legal system as well as to suggestions for further study. This goal reflects Person-In-Environment theory by highlighting the importance of attorneys needing to understand the contextual variables social workers can explain to the court, thereby explaining what social, political, and economic issues may have caused a client to be involved in crime in the first place. This goal also reflects Holistic Defense Theory by ensuring that clients legal and social needs are met by highlighting the need for both attorneys and social workers as part of the defense team. Lastly, this project may contribute to making justice in the courtroom reachable for traditionally disaffected people who can be made whole again by legal and social intervention.

From Intent to Impact: Building University-Assisted Community Schools in New Mexico

Abstract Universities have the potential to bring significant assets to community school development, and community school models align with emerging priorities in higher education, including shifts toward community engagement. University-assisted community schools (UACS) present an ideal place for these mutual interests to be met, although barriers to these partnerships exist. Experiences from the state of New Mexico provide a unique case study of successes and challenges with the development of UACS. This article draws on the historic and current efforts to build UACS in New Mexico, sharing key considerations for university faculty, PK–12 educators and administrators, social workers, and social work faculty. The authors integrate literature around the development of UACS and their personal experiences as university faculty and district/community leaders in New Mexico, describing successful partnerships and barriers to sustainability. These experiences are used to propose key features, structures, and resources to consider in the development of UACS and the integration of social work into these structures.

Supportive Care Needs Among Head and Neck Cancer Patients Prior to Oncologic Treatment: A Prospective, Nested Cross-Sectional Qualitative Analysis.

To qualitatively characterize pretreatment head and neck cancer (HNC) patients' supportive care (SC) needs, attitudes toward SC, and barriers to SC utilization. A prospective, nested, bi-institutional, cross-sectional pilot study design was employed. Participants were sub-selected from a representative sample of 50 patients newly diagnosed with mucosal or salivary gland HNC or sarcoma of the head and neck. Eligibility criteria included reporting ≥2 unmet needs (according to the Supportive Care Needs Survey-Short Form 34) or clinically-significant distress (National Comprehensive Cancer Network Distress Thermometer score ≥4). Semi-structured interviews were performed prior to initiation of oncologic treatment. Audio-recorded interviews were transcribed and thematically analyzed using NVivo 12.0 (QSR Australia). Thematic findings and representative quotes were interpreted by the entire research team. Twenty-seven patients were interviewed. One-third were treated at the county safety-net hospital and the remainder were treated at the university health system. An equal proportion of patients presented with oral cavity, oropharyngeal, and laryngeal or other tumors. Two significant findings were identified on semi-structured interviews. First, patients did not perceive the relevance of SC prior to treatment. Second, anxiety surrounding the HNC diagnosis and impending treatment dominated in the pretreatment phase. Improved HNC patient education about the relevance and importance of SC in the pretreatment setting is needed. Integration of social work or psychological services in HNC clinics is warranted to address patients' cancer-related worry-a discrete, dominant pretreatment SC need.

Oral Health and Social Work Integration: Advancing Social Workers' Roles in Dental Education.

Oral health remains underutilized within both integrated service delivery and educational settings. Advancing social workers' roles in the education of oral health providers is one strategic way to expand oral health and social work integration. Although the involvement of social workers in dental education is not new, fewer than 18 percent of the country's 68 accredited dental schools have active social work departments or services. This exploratory study sought to determine how, as of 2021, social work has been integrated into U.S. dental education programs (N = 13). Findings offer an overview of current social work programs in existence, roles social workers have in addressing social and behavioral health needs in dental education settings, and barriers to and facilitators in developing and sustaining integrated partnerships. This article discusses ways social work and oral health educational settings can mutually benefit from developing and/or strengthening their integrated collaborations. It also addresses a comparison of educational missions, clinical learning opportunities across both professions, and how patient care can be improved by expanding oral health and social work integration.

431 - Social Work Integration into Transplant and Cellular Therapy Program

431 - Social Work Integration into Transplant and Cellular Therapy Program

Integrating Social Workers’ Christian Faith in Social Work: A National Survey

Over the past few decades, researchers have focused considerable attention on religion, spirituality, and faith (RSF) in social work. However, most of this research has been focused on the RSF of clients rather than on RSF of social workers themselves. This study used the Social Worker’s Integration of their Faith – Christian (SWIF-C; Author, 2019) to explore efforts by NACSW members (n = 486) to integrate their Christian faith and social work. Overall, participants reported high levels of faith and social work integration—with both faith and social work influencing the other—and also noted some experience of conflict in their effort to integrate their faith and social work. With a goal of developing sustained ethical and competent professional practice, the paper concludes with recommendations for helping students and supervisees integrate their own faith and social work.

The Emerging Role of Social Work in Primary Health Care: A Survey of Social Workers in Ontario Family Health Teams.

Primary health care systems are increasingly integrating interprofessional team-based approaches to care delivery. As members of these interprofessional primary health care teams, it is important for social workers to explore our experiences of integration into these newly emerging teams to help strengthen patient care. Despite the expansion of social work within primary health care settings, few studies have examined the integration of social work's role into this expanding area of the health care system. A survey was conducted with Canadian social work practitioners who were employed within Family Health Teams (FHTs), an interprofessional model of primary health care in Ontario emerging from a period of health care reform. One hundred and twenty-eight (N = 128) respondents completed the online survey. Key barriers to social work integration in FHTs included difficulties associated with a medical model environment, confusion about social work role, and organizational barriers. Facilitators for integration of social work in FHTs included adequate education and competencies, collaborative engagement, and organizational structures.

Using Cognitive Neuroscience to Improve Mental Health Treatment: A Comprehensive Review.

Mental health interventions do not yet offer complete, client-defined functional recovery, and novel directions in treatment research are needed to improve the efficacy of available interventions. One promising direction is the integration of social work and cognitive neuroscience methods, which provides new opportunities for clinical intervention research that will guide development of more effective mental health treatments that holistically attend to the biological, social, and environmental contributors to disability and recovery. This article reviews emerging trends in cognitive neuroscience and provides examples of how these advances can be used by social workers and allied professions to improve mental health treatment. We discuss neuroplasticity, which is the dynamic and malleable nature of the brain. We also review the use of risk and resiliency biomarkers and novel treatment targets based on neuroimaging findings to prevent disability, personalize treatment, and make interventions more targeted and effective. The potential of treatment research to contribute to neuroscience discoveries regarding brain change is considered from the experimental-medicine approach adopted by the National Institute of Mental Health. Finally, we provide resources and recommendations to facilitate the integration of cognitive neuroscience into mental health research in social work.

Primary health care social work in Aotearoa New Zealand: An exploratory investigation

INTRODUCTION: The social work profession has a long-standing history of contributing to health care in Aotearoa New Zealand. Traditionally, hospitals have been the stronghold for the profession. However, both international and national evidence demonstrates that social workers have also been integrated in primary health care practices (PHCPs). Primary health care (PHC) provides care in the community and is recognised for its potential to achieve health equity across all population groups. This article reports on a small, qualitative research project which explored the perceptions of key stakeholders about social work integration into PHC and the experiences gained by social workers working within PHCPs regarding their contributions to the achievement of national aspirations for PHC.METHODS: Semi-structured, one-to-one interviews with 18 participants representing three groups (social workers, other PHC professionals and key informants) were undertaken in 2012. The interviews took place in various locations in Aotearoa New Zealand. A general inductive approach was used to identify key themes. FINDINGS: Three key themes were identified from the data: these are issues of context, namely social work professional factors, organisational factors in PHC and lastly, wider factors in the health care system. The integrated social workers enhanced the access of populations to coordinated care, increased engagement with communities, and strengthened the workforce, among other things. These unique contributions towards the PHC vision were well recognised by all groups, with participants calling for the establishment of integrated social work positions on a larger scale. CONCLUSION: The study evidences the successful integration of social workers into PHC practices in Aotearoa New Zealand. This viable model should be of special interest for key stakeholders regarding the design of local, holistic, PHC services which serve populations most affected by health and social inequalities. Importantly, “health for all”, as anticipated by the PHC vision needs long-term and real commitment especially by financial decision-makers.

Social Work Education without Walls: Ethnography as a Lens for Transformative Learning

A call for innovation in social work has been put forth to address our society’s greatest problems. This call applies to social work education, which encompasses multiple functions including teaching, research, and practice. Yet, innovation in social work is constrained by the limits of current social work approaches and methods. Increasing social work’s impact in the real world requires illuminating the complexities of reciprocal forces between human lives and the environment. Understanding such complexities incorporates spatial and interdisciplinary approaches, such as ethnography. Ethnography, as method and metaphor, is a lens for transformative learning in social work education: It is the message. Ethnography illuminates real-world complexities and deepens social work education through its core contributions: methodological holism, methodological engagement, and methodological comparison. In deepening social work education, ethnography renders visible salient links in social work’s field of dialectics, invoking the systems perspective. Yet, ethnography extends beyond and expands on the systems perspective, emphasizing engaged integration. Engaged integration of social work’s dialectics forwards the discourse about the profession’s identity. Thus, ethnography is a tool for advancing knowledge and promoting transformative learning in social work education.

Teaching Note—Educating Public Health Social Work Professionals: Results From an MSW/MPH Program Outcomes Study

Dual-degree programs in public health and social work continue to proliferate, yet there has been little research on master’s of social work (MSW)/master’s of public health (MPH) graduates. The purpose of this study was to describe and better understand the self-reported professional experiences, identities, roles, and outcomes associated with 1 group of graduates from an established MSW/MPH program. A 57-question electronic survey was administered to 214 alumni in 2010; the response rate was 71.4% (n = 153). Findings provide a snapshot of public health social work alumni experiences, including diverse employment opportunities, high career satisfaction, and a strong sense of reported public health and social work integration in the workplace.

Contextual Meanings in Action: Integration of Social Work and Family Therapy in Child Protective Services

Two graduate student interns discuss a practice approach they developed working at a large metropolitan Child Protective Services (CPS) site. The students draw from a social constructionist framework and stress the use of relational responsibility in working among multiple system partners. During a year-long practicum, the students provide voluntary in-home family therapy and contribute to group services that assist stability and permanency for families involved with CPS. Cases are drawn from all interactive levels of the agency, including family preservation, foster care, and pre-/postadoption. The pilot project not only impacts case outcomes, but provides a communication field which joins agency processes with collective formative actions.

SWiSP: The social work students in schools project

Current changes to social work education require an increased emphasis on the practical element of the programme and a significant increase in the number of placement learning days undertaken by students: a minimum of 200 days overall. The Social Work Students in Schools Project (SWiSP) addressed this need whilst also raising the profile of the social work profession and local programme providers within the community. The project enhanced links and increased awareness of the role of social workers within primary and secondary schools at a time when the integration of social work, health care and education is increasingly promoted. This paper describes the context and rationale for the project, the views of stakeholders in the first phase and considers the learning potential for existing and changing social work education.

Soziogenese und Sozialtherapie

Sociogenesis is divided into primary sociogenesis (direct connection between social conditions and mental disorders), secondary sociogenesis (indirect connection), and tertiary sociogenesis (social consequences of a disorder according to the degree of acceptance). It has to be interpreted in a system network with organo- and psychogenesis. Social therapy is, according to that, an integration of social work, psychotherapy and pedagogics. Its main instrument is the therapeutic community.