Hospital Social Work

Below is a sample of the many resources you’ll find in the NASW Research Library on hospital social work.

NASW members have unlimited access to more than 25 international databases with thousands of documents from leading research institutions, think tanks and advocacy groups.

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Example Resources

From Discharge Planner to "Concierge": Recommendations for Hospital Social Work by Clients With Intracerebral Hemorrhage

Authors: Linton, Kristen F.; Ing, Marissa M.; Vento, Megan A.; Nakagawa, Kazuma
Source: Social Work in Public Health. October 2015, Vol. 30, Issue 6, p486-495.

The Affordable Care Act and budget cuts have changed the role of hospital social workers by placing pressure on them to conduct speedy discharges and decrease readmission rates. This qualitative study aimed to assess if hospital social work is meeting the needs of clients in the hospital and postdischarge. Semistructured interviews with 10 clients with intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) and 11 caregivers were conducted.

Hospital Social Work and Spirituality: Views of Medical Social Workers

Author: Pandya, Samta P.
Source: Social Work in Public Health. Nov/Dec 2016, Vol. 31, Issue 7, p700-710.

This article is based on a study of 1,389 medical social workers in 108 hospitals across 12 countries, on their views on spirituality and spiritually sensitive interventions in hospital settings.

Assessing Capacity to Make Decisions About Long-Term Care Needs: Ethical Perspectives and Practical Challenges in Hospital Social Work

Author: Sexton, Martin
Source: Ethics & Social Welfare. December 2012, Vol. 6, Issue 4, p411-417.

This paper examines how the Mental Capacity Act 2005 regulates the assessment of decision-making capacity in England and Wales. The author argues that there are difficulties in reconciling the Act with how people make decisions in practice, and explores how ideas from the ethics of care and from phenomenology can be used to take better account of how capacity flows from a person's relationships as well as their individual abilities.

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