13 Social Work and the Health Care System
Medical Social Work
Medical social work can be defined as a specific form of specialized medical and public health care that focuses on the relationship between disease and human maladjustment (NASW, 2012; Gehlert, 2011).
In the 20th century, social service departments in hospitals were developed to address problems associated with the increase of immigration and poverty. The need for medical social work in the United States has intensified due to the substantial inequality of health care resources. Individuals and families that live in poverty or who are a part of certain ethnic communities are additionally at a disadvantage because they are more prone to experience higher rates of acute and or chronic illnesses. Therefore, the unequal distribution of healthcare insurance coverage in the United States hinders some people from seeking medical treatments due to their socioeconomic status. In 2013, more than 42 million people in the United States were uninsured. Today, the number has only increased (NASW, 2016).
Medical social workers practice in a variety of healthcare settings such as hospitals, community clinics, preventative public health programs, acute care, hospice, and out-patient medical centers that focus on specialized treatments or populations. These professionals help patients and their families through life changing and sometimes traumatic medical experiences. They often monitor and evaluate a patient’s mental and emotional health as they transition through a variety of medical treatments. Medical social workers also often find themselves helping the patient and family solve problems be that of financial difficulties or one-to-one counseling to help cope with new stressors (Mizrahi & Davis, 2008; NASW, 2016).
All medical social workers must familiarize themselves with cross-cultural knowledge in order to provide effective health care. They do this by familiarizing themselves with an array of different ethnicities, cultural beliefs, practices, and values that shape their family system. Medical social workers must have the ability to recognize how oppression can affect an individual’s bio-psycho-social-spiritual well-being. As future social workers, being able to understand and identify these issues will enhance your skills as a professional to provide excellent health care (Mizrahi & Davis, 2008; NASW, 2016).
For more information regarding cultural competency in social work, refer to Chapter 3.
Goals of Practice
The National Association of Social Workers (NASW) Standard for Social Work Practice in Health Care Setting (2016), describes eight standards of practice for health care social workers to follow. The eight goals were created as a guideline so that medical social workers would deliver excellent care.
Eight Standards of Practice for Health Care Social Workers
- All medical social workers in the healthcare arena must practice in accordance with the social work code of ethics.
- Advocate for