Professional and Educational Needs of Hospice and Palliative Care Social Workers

Abstract

In the past decade much growth has occurred in the numbers of patients and families served by hospices and palliative care services. Thus, not surprisingly, these services have also been subject to increasing regulation by governmental and accrediting entities. In order to stay up-to-date in this ever-changing environment and to continue to provide effective interventions, social workers must stay engaged in the professional community and continuing education. In this quantitative study, 1,169 practicing hospice and palliative care social workers provided information about their practice activities and agency characteristics, professional affiliations and certification, and ongoing educational needs. About one-half of respondents carried a caseload of 21-50 and were most engaged in communicating the psychosocial needs of the patient and family to other members of the team and assessing for grief and bereavement issues. The most important educational needs pertained to the psychological and social needs of patients and families and psychosocial interventions. Most were members of professional organizations and three-quarters were members of NASW. Although many were aware of the joint NASW-NHPCO social work hospice specialty certification, few held this certification yet. The results of this survey can be utilized in the design of continuing education programs and advocacy for programmatic and policy change within agencies and the industry.

Hospice support and the transition to adult services and adulthood for young people with life-limiting conditions and their families: A qualitative study

“…12,61,62 Staff training needs were identified in relation to working with young adults, emotional support provision and developing an advocacy/key working role. Others have found that palliative care professionals have unmet training needs in relation to providing psychosocial support 56,63 and discussing sexual issues. 55 This could be addressed by a combination of formalised training and role modelling, and could involve young people themselves as 'trainers'.…”

Embracing Life

“…Unfortunately, there is dearth of empirically based literature on interventions aimed at measuring or improving the emotional state of hospice clients (Reese & Raymer, 2004). In fact, hospice and palliative care social workers themselves have identified the need for continuing education curricula that addresses the psychological and social needs of patients and families and psychosocial interventions that can ameliorate distress (Weisenfluh & Csikai, 2013).…”

Palliative Care Psychiatry: Update on an Emerging Dimension of Psychiatric Practice

“…As of 2012, qualification for the Hospice and Palliative Medicine subspecialty board required completion of an ACGME-accredited 1-year postgraduate fellowship [13, 14]. As mentioned, palliative care is provided by interdisciplinary speciality teams, and specialist-level training experiences and/or competencies also exist for palliative care nursing [15], social work [16, 17], and chaplaincy [18]. …”