Effective social work practice in evolving health systems necessitates innovation. This special issue includes articles that identify creative strategies that social work practitioners, supervisors, administrators and leaders use to meet the need for streamlined, well-organized and timesaving practices while responding in quality driven ways to the multi-dimensional concerns of patient populations. As the world of healthcare moves at an increasingly quicker pace while placing an imperative on service efficiency and effectiveness – and with the evolution toward a value-based rather than fee-for-service reimbursement system – social workers are challenged to continually establish themselves as critical players within this environment.
Gehlert et al. (Citation2019) outline five key domains in which social workers play a crucial leadership role in strengthening the US healthcare system. These domains include increased screening and prevention, addressing health-related social needs, enhancing care coordination to achieve population health, developing programs for the most vulnerable populations and prioritizing interventions related to care transitions. A laser focus on these domains can improve the efficiency of healthcare institutions while resulting in more effective and quality-oriented services. Additionally, as the COVID-19 pandemic highlighted long-standing health disparities among patient populations that required adaptations in the work of health social workers (Craig et al., Citation2022), we believe social work is in a prime position to lead in efforts toward more equitable health outcomes (Ashcroft et al., Citation2021).
In our work with patients and families, social workers expertly delve into the complex bio-psychosocial issues that arise when patients are facing an acute medical crisis or are dealing with a chronic illness that often upends their lives (Craig et al., Citation2015). Frequently, patients are also managing behavioral health concerns that complicate their medical trajectory. As healthcare professionals working to ensure that patients understand their illness and treatment plan and remain as healthy as possible, social workers closely collaborate with medical teams that are equally pressured to move patients quickly through the healthcare system (Muskat et al., Citation2017). Additionally, new Joint Commission and Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS) guidelines mandate that healthcare institutions assess for and document interventions related to Social Determinants of Health (SDOH). Therefore, social workers in healthcare settings have additional responsibility to screen for the presence of SDOH and intervene with these patients in a meaningful and quantifiable way (Chang & Richwine, Citation2023; The Joint Commission, Citation2022). While the regulations are increasing, resources in the community remain limited or non-existent (Artiga & Hinton, Citation2018). In the context of inadequate resources within and outside of healthcare settings, social workers strive to balance the needs of the organization in which they practice with those of the populations they serve. (Dobrof et al, Citation2019) At the same time, they develop innovative strategies that meet the goal of providing efficient, effective and quality oriented services for patients and families.
To that end, in this issue Hamilton, Zilberfein, Gordon, Xenakis describe an innovative approach to collective social work leadership which has the benefits of reducing time spent on decision-making, enhanced accountability and improved communication with staff, among other delineated advantages. Other articles discuss clinical programs developed to respond to the needs of special patient populations. Author(s) Feigin, Drory, Dori, Krulik, Kedar articulate the value of a social worker-led structured program which provides support, practical tools and options for self-management of illness to chronically-ill individuals and their families. Author(s) Burgos and Gelband explore the challenges of addressing substance use disorders in a hospital prenatal setting and the importance of social work services to destigmatize substance use and pave the way during pregnancy for patients to connect to psychosocial care and resources, including Black and Latinx individuals who are at increased risk of negative outcomes for themselves and their baby. The role of the hospital-based perinatal social worker who is on the palliative care team is Santiago-Warner’s focus. They make use of a case example to emphasize the way in which the social worker’s expertise and support helps patients and families manage issues related to loss and bereavement. Furthermore, given the rise of predictive analytics in multiple areas of healthcare, Kumrar and Suthar use a comprehensive literature review to point to predictive analytics’ value particularly in patient identification to target and intervene with patients who can benefit from social work services early in the illness trajectory with the goal of preventing disease progression and other adverse outcomes. The authors posit that predictive analytics can lead to improved patient outcomes, optimized resource allocation and enhanced healthcare delivery.
Finally, Swann-Thomsen et al. call for enhanced coordination of pediatric patients in need of sedation procedures through a care coordination model that consolidates these procedures in order to reduce barriers to care, improve care timeliness and reduce the trauma of multiple procedures. Citing social workers as healthcare professionals that can fill the care coordinator role, the authors describe augmented coordination as improving patient care and efficiency and smoothing the flow of communication among providers. Taken together, these articles provide a lens into innovative approaches that have the potential to lead to more efficient, effective and quality-oriented practices and procedures in healthcare social work and within healthcare systems. This special issue suggests strategies that social workers can implement to lead clinically, programmatically and managerially.
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This article has been corrected with minor changes. These changes do not impact the academic content of the article.
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References
- Artiga, S., & Hinton, E. (2018). Beyond health care: The role of social determinants in promoting health and health equity. Henry J Kaiser Family Foundation. https://www.kff.org/racial-equity-and-health-policy/issue-brief/beyond-health-care-the-role-of-social-determinants-in-promoting-health-and-health-equity/
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