In the Global Epicenter: Social Work Leadership in a New York City Hospital

Abstract

The Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City was in the epicenter of the COVID-19 pandemic and had to transform from a tertiary to crisis care hospital and increase its bed capacity by 50 percent to care for COVID-19 patients. The size, scope, complexity and uncertainty of this crisis was unparalleled. This article describes the comprehensive response of the Department of Social Work Services, one of the largest hospital social work departments in the country. The response was informed by four Departmental principles, as well as crisis intervention strategies. This article describes organizational structures, practice models, policies, and protocols developed to respond quickly and effectively, given infection prevention mandates, to patient, population and workforce needs. Finally, it includes how social workers addressed COVID-19 related physical and psychosocial needs and applied and modified interprofessional communication and collaboration. Lessons learned and clinical and administrative changes that will assist in navigating "new normal" operations are discussed.

Social service providers under COVID-19 duress: adaptation, burnout, and resilience

“…Our respondents reported hindering factors more than facilitating factors. Notably, recent literature that reports effective responses during the early days of the pandemic illustrates environments characterized by enough supervisory and administrative infrastructure and containing built-in redundancy, enabling them to maintain strong guidance and support structures for social service workers during the early days of the pandemic ( Jones et al, 2021 ; Xenakis et al, 2021 ). This implies that an important factor in weathering and responding to crises is a robust supervisory and administrative infrastructure that is able to optimize communications within agencies and across organizations while providing clear guidance for direct practice workers.…”

Examining the COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on social work in health care

“…Abrams and Detlaff (2020) conveyed how social workers have made ethical decisions moment-to-moment, citing an example of a practitioner weighing the risks and benefits of wearing or not wearing PPE to avoid frightening a young client. Xenakis et al (2021) described the redistribution of social workers outside of their specialities, and the required assumption of increased administrative and coordination roles related to patient and family care.…”