How satisfaction with hospital field work affects social work students' willingness to accept employment in hospital settings.

This study of 238 social work students in 27 hospital field work programs examined how student satisfaction with field work affects their willingness to accept employment in host hospitals. Job willingness was positively correlated with five measures of student satisfaction. Factors predictive of each measure were identified. Findings suggest strategies that can be used by hospital social work managers and field work supervisors to enhance student satisfaction with the field work experience, in order to maximize the benefit of providing field work education as a way of recruiting graduating students for employment in hospital settings.     

The impact of hospital restructuring on social work field education

Hospital restructuring has had a dramatic impact on social work practice and field education. In a qualitative focus group study of nine educational coordinators responsible for educational programs in teaching hospitals with 25 to 100 social workers each, four main themes emerged: (1) difficulty managing field education when the actual change experienced in restructuring hospitals was far less progressive and systemic than the hospital missions espoused; (2) a struggle to maintain stable student programs when change was unpredictable; (3) the importance of support, reciprocity, and advocacy from the university; and (4) the need to be creative in delivering the educational program while undergoing organizational change.     

Hospital graduate social work field work programs: a study in New York City

Twenty-seven hospital field work programs in New York City were studied. Questionnaires were administered to program coordinators and 238 graduate social work students participating in study programs. High degrees of program structural complexity and variation were found, indicating a state of art well beyond that described in the general field work literature. High rates of student satisfaction with learning, field instructors, programs, and the overall field work experience found suggest that the complexity of study programs may be more effective than traditional field work models. Statistically nonsignificant study findings indicate areas in which hospital social work departments may develop field work programs consistent with shifting organizational needs, without undue risk to educational effectiveness. Statistically significant findings suggest areas in which inflexibility in program design may be more beneficial in the diagnostic related groups era.     

Proprietary hospital social work

The rapid growth of the proprietary sector in the provision of social services creates a challenge for the social work profession. Little is known about social work services in for-profit organizations or about how they compare with similar services in nonprofit setting. The authors report on a comparative study of social work services in proprietary and nonprofit hospitals that used the results of the Membership Survey, 1985 of the Society for Hospital Social Work Directors and a sample of 50 proprietary hospital social work departments. Services and staffing, characteristics of directors, and responses to diagnostic related groups are contrasted, and the significance for the profession discussed.     

Staying in hospital social work

Hospitals have traditionally been large employers of social workers. As workplaces they are often identified as being challenging and ambiguous environments for social work practice. In this study the experience of hospital work is explored. Social workers' 'tolerance' of the hospital environment is identified as a way of explaining 'staying.' Staying has both positive and negative features which arise from the interaction between workers' tolerance of the environment and their qualities of 'self-actualisation.' The identification of this relationship informs and challenges existing theories of retention and turnover of workers.     

Community fieldwork collaboration between medical and social work students.

This article describes an educational demonstration in interdisciplinary community field experiences between social work and medical students at the University of Kentucky Medical school, the hospital social service department, the school of social work, and community social and health agencies. The pilot program in which students from different professions lived for 6 weeks in outling rural communities served by the medical center, provided an opportunity: (a) to study the feasibility of combining a borad community health study experimence with casework services in a hospital-based educational program and (b) to assess the benefits of early interdisciplinary community and clinical work between future doctors and social workers. Students saw the advantages of cooperative teamwork in studying community problems, and were able to apply classroom theory about community organization to real community situations. The organizational structure and staff resources required to carry out such a demonstration are described, and the implications of the training project are discussed.     

Sixty years ago: hospital social work in 1918.

The year 1918 marked a juncture in the development of social work in health sare. During that year, the fledgling group of hospital social workers responded to needs created by World War I, the influenza pandemic, and epidemics of tuberculosis and venereal disease. At the same time, in order to meet these needs and to professionalize their services, they formed a professional organization, published two new journals, and expanded opportunities for professional education. Examination of these matters helps to explain the place and direction of hospital social work exactly 60 years ago.     

A frame for defining social work in a hospital setting.

A frame for articulating the unique role of social work in a hospital setting is presented which links the patient's experience of the disruptive impact of illness and hospitalization with the historical roots of the profession of social work. The presentation emphasizes the social worker's role in orienting patients and families to the importance of their part in the process of healing and helps partialize this task into specific areas of work with the social worker. A consideration of the process of discharge planning within this framework is discussed.     

The AIDS epidemic: professional and personal concerns of graduate social work students in field placement

Social work educators and health care practitioners have been increasingly concerned about the cognitive and affective preparation of graduate students for practice with AIDS-related issues. A pilot study of students from six graduate schools of social work was conducted in an effort to address these concerns. This article focuses on the affective experiences of students who worked with AIDS in field placement. The study questionnaire provided information about: (1) the concerns of students working with AIDS populations; (2) the nature and effectiveness of the help students required in coping with concerns; and (3) students' recommendations for future AIDS-related field placements. Study findings revealed that while the frequency of reported concerns was low overall, those concerns elicited revolved around clients' reactions, and knowledge and skills for practice. Students sought diverse resources for support in coping with their concerns, but other professionals and staff groups in field placement were the most helpful resources. A large percentage of students at least conditionally recommended future AIDS-related field placements. Recommendations for field education in health settings are offered.     

Costing social work services in a hospital setting

A basic task in social work organizations concerns the allocation of scarce resources to achieve desired goals. Although some attention has been given to this topic over the years, few costing models have been developed that can be applied particularly to social work in health and other host settings. This paper describes a cost analysis study in the social work department of a large academic health center with emphasis on how a methodology was developed. Generalizations relevant to other social work departments are included and the uses and limitations of such a cost study are discussed.     

Panel provides 1978 update on hospital social work

In a roundtable discussion, three hospital social workers explain some of the special problems and issues confronting them in their individual and interdisciplinary roles in health care settings.     

What families know about funeral-related costs: implications for social work practice.

Social workers provide essential services in the area of end-of-life care to individuals who are dying and their families. Results reported here suggest that social work's role be expanded to provide basic information about local final arrangement (funeral and burial) options and costs. This study was undertaken to determine the knowledge and experience level of people responsible for funeral and cemetery arrangements and to investigate factors affecting familiarity with final costs. Survey responses from 163 survivors of older adults in Kansas City showed that adult children play an important role in the final arrangements of a parent and that half the survivors responsible for final arrangements had no idea what to expect in terms of costs.     

Predicting patterns of social work staffing in hospital settings

One long-standing problem of social work departments in acute care hospitals has been their diverse patterns of staffing. The lack of a standard or guide has tended to diminish the utilization of social work services in hospital settings. Over a period of six years, the Society for Hospital Social Work Directors of the American Hospital Association developed and revised a guide for inpatient staffing. The guide is designed to assist hospital and social work administrators establish an inpatient line staffing plan which is based on the number of hospital beds, the number of patients to be served and the number of functions carried. The logic of the inquiry and the findings can serve as a base for future research in inpatient, ambulatory care and other settings which serve special populations.     

Issues for hospitals in educating social work students for social work practice in health care settings

Conflicting values and issues emerge when hospital and professional school converge to educate the next generation of the profession. These values derive from issues of authority, responsibility, accountability, status, communication, and mutuality. This paper identifies their occurrence, describes a method for managing them, and delineates a hospital social work department's role in developing an educationally based, practice focused practicum site. The components and results of the relationship between the department and the school, including details of the practicum model, are discussed.     

Electroconvulsive therapy from a social work perspective.

The purpose of this paper is to fill a gap in the social work literature which has not, to date, included a thorough discussion of electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) from a social work perspective. It discusses the rationale for ECT in current practice; enumerates improvements made in stimulus delivery since convulsive therapy was introduced in 1934; and summarizes the myths, realities, advantages and limitations of the treatment in modern psychiatry. It advocates a team approach, which includes social work support and education of the patient and family regarding treatment related matters and discharge planning. Several clinical vignettes are included to illustrate the types of illness for which ECT is used as well as the social work role with the team and patient/family during hospitalization and discharge planning. The Ontario College of Certified Social Workers Guidelines are used to explain social work interventions. The paper is also relevant to social workers in non-psychiatric settings in understanding and planning with patients and families where a member has experienced ECT.