Jennifer Currin-McCulloch, Qi Chen, Shivani Kaushik, Dede Sparks, Barbara Jones
{"title":"The Courage to Continue: Healthcare Social Worker’s Resilience During COVID-19","authors":"Jennifer Currin-McCulloch, Qi Chen, Shivani Kaushik, Dede Sparks, Barbara Jones","doi":"10.1080/15524256.2022.2070330","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/15524256.2022.2070330","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated disparities in access to healthcare and mental health, often forcing healthcare social workers into ethical and moral dilemmas as they endeavor to provide equitable, humanistic care to their patients and caregivers. The purpose of this mixed method study was to explore how COVID-19-related personal and professional grief and losses impacted healthcare social worker’s distress and resilience. Participants were recruited through healthcare social work professional organizations from September-November 2020. Participants (N = 246) completed an online survey capturing sociodemographic variables, as well as mental distress, pandemic-related meaning-making, and resilience. Data analysis included correlations and regressions pertaining to meaning-making, emotional distress, and resilience, as well as thematic analysis of participants’ open-ended survey responses. Approximately one-third of participants reported emotional distress and difficulty in finding meaning from their pandemic-related losses. Participants reported a lower level of resilience when compared with the United States general population. Three themes emerged from social workers’ qualitative responses: the hardest year of my career; the collective loss of our normal; and we were built for this. Pandemic-related grief permeates social workers’ daily lives; yet their training and resilience foster hope to positively impact their clients, communities, and families.","PeriodicalId":45992,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Social Work in End-of-Life & Palliative Care","volume":"81 1","pages":"177 - 192"},"PeriodicalIF":1.6,"publicationDate":"2022-04-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"90110442","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"\"You Lose Some Good Friends\": Death and Grief in Assisted Living.","authors":"Evan Plys, Ronald Smith, Jennifer D Portz","doi":"10.1080/15524256.2022.2050339","DOIUrl":"10.1080/15524256.2022.2050339","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The purpose of this study was to investigate responses to death at multiple levels within the assisted living (AL) system and to characterize the psychosocial impact of death on surviving residents. This study used secondary thematic analysis of multiple data sources collected as part of a larger quantitative-focused study with 21 ALs. Data sources included: (a) community documents, e.g., newsletters; (b) descriptive and reflective observational field notes; and (c) memos and key statements from interviews with residents (<i>n</i> = 18). Three themes emerged from the data: administrative memorialization practices, resident perceptions of staff communication related to death, and resident psychosocial responses to death. Surviving residents reported using both adaptive and avoidant strategies to cope with psychological responses to death; noting that grief responses extended to the loss of the deceased resident's family, friends, and pets. Residents also perceived staff-resident communication and community memorialization practices as incongruent with a \"family-like\" social climate. Findings highlight the potential utility of a multi-level approach to improving psychosocial aspects of end-of-life care and grief management by targeting AL administration, workforce, and individuals. Social workers are well-positioned to lead these types of psychosocial interventions but must contend with staffing barriers limiting clinical roles in AL.</p>","PeriodicalId":45992,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Social Work in End-of-Life & Palliative Care","volume":" ","pages":"160-176"},"PeriodicalIF":1.6,"publicationDate":"2022-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"40313994","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Navigating Power Dynamics and Racism in Palliative Care.","authors":"Christen Skolnick","doi":"10.1080/15524256.2021.1977764","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/15524256.2021.1977764","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":45992,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Social Work in End-of-Life & Palliative Care","volume":" ","pages":"116-118"},"PeriodicalIF":1.6,"publicationDate":"2022-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"39562140","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Reflections from the Field Seeking Wholeness: The Black Women Patient Experience.","authors":"Eunju Lee","doi":"10.1080/15524256.2021.1984370","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/15524256.2021.1984370","url":null,"abstract":"At the intersection of gender and race are Black women, who experience higher levels of racism, sexism, and discrimination than Black men and White women, with greater impact on their health. Theirs is a legacy of trauma as enslaved bodies whose procreative function served as instruments of economic profit, vehicles of sexual pleasure, and matter for medical experimentation. Their mothers were Henrietta Lacks, whose cancer cells were preserved and propagated without her knowledge and Anarcha, on whom J Marion Sims, the “father of modern gynecology” performed 30 fistula surgeries without anesthesia. I understood this as the history Ms. C carried with her to her hospital bed as she recovered from surgery for her colorectal cancer and relayed a series of experiences where her Black body was fodder for careless disregard and easy slights.","PeriodicalId":45992,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Social Work in End-of-Life & Palliative Care","volume":" ","pages":"119-121"},"PeriodicalIF":1.6,"publicationDate":"2022-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"39510827","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Debra Parker Oliver, Karla T Washington, Jacquelyn Benson, Patrick White, Dulce Cruz Oliver, Jamie B Smith, Joshua Mazur, Abeba Lakew, Alexandra Lewis, George Demiris
{"title":"Facebook Online Support Groups for Hospice Family Caregivers of Advanced Cancer Patients: Protocol, Facilitation Skills and Promising Outcomes.","authors":"Debra Parker Oliver, Karla T Washington, Jacquelyn Benson, Patrick White, Dulce Cruz Oliver, Jamie B Smith, Joshua Mazur, Abeba Lakew, Alexandra Lewis, George Demiris","doi":"10.1080/15524256.2022.2046236","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/15524256.2022.2046236","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Research has demonstrated a lack of support for hospice caregivers and a higher than average level of self-reported anxiety and depression. While online support groups are gaining popularity, few protocols have been published, little research has demonstrated the skills required to facilitate, and virtually no data has explored the clinical outcomes affiliated with participation in such groups. This paper presents the preliminary experience and results of a clinical trial testing the use of online support groups designed to both educate and provide social support to caregivers of hospice cancer patients. A detailed protocol outlines educational strategies, discussion questions, and a blueprint outlining ways to engage participants. A review of field notes completed by the interventionist reveal specific facilitation skills and strategies used to engage participants. Finally, preliminary analysis of 78 participants shows the group is having a statistically significant impact on the caregiver depression.</p>","PeriodicalId":45992,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Social Work in End-of-Life & Palliative Care","volume":"18 2","pages":"146-159"},"PeriodicalIF":1.6,"publicationDate":"2022-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9262848/pdf/nihms-1802001.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"9233012","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Palliative Care and Racism in Medicine.","authors":"Elizabeth Walmsley","doi":"10.1080/15524256.2021.1977763","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/15524256.2021.1977763","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":45992,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Social Work in End-of-Life & Palliative Care","volume":" ","pages":"111-115"},"PeriodicalIF":1.6,"publicationDate":"2022-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"39483359","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"\"Will These White Doctors Do Right By Me?\"","authors":"Lisa Petgrave-Nelson","doi":"10.1080/15524256.2021.2015738","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/15524256.2021.2015738","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":45992,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Social Work in End-of-Life & Palliative Care","volume":" ","pages":"122-124"},"PeriodicalIF":1.6,"publicationDate":"2022-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"39614906","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Editor Introduction.","authors":"Ellen Csikai","doi":"10.1080/15524256.2022.2092692","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/15524256.2022.2092692","url":null,"abstract":"The journal had a call for manuscripts for a special issue on “Racism and its Challenges in Palliative Social Work” in 2021. Dr. Karen Bullock served as the Guest Editor for this call (assisted by Stacy Orloff, Reflections section Editor). Thanks to Dr. Bullock for agreeing to work on this issue and for her oversight of the reviews of the manuscripts we received for this special call. In this issue, we share several “Reflections” received for this topic. Please don’t miss the Reflections as these social workers’ share their thoughts and experiences. Unfortunately, we did not have other submissions that were able to be accepted among the very low number submitted for practice concepts or research categories. We were expecting to produce a meaningful full issue addressing this important area affecting everyday policy, practice and research. We hope that this does not mean that the work addressing challenges that racism poses in providing palliative care is not being done. On behalf of the journal’s editorial board, I invite those of you doing this work to please submit your projects, programs, and studies to the journal at any time for potential publication. We will look forward to seeing your submissions. Our goal is that this journal continues to be a vehicle to share good work as well as highlight what needs to be done better. Moving on to the research articles in this issues, the first addresses the important topic of preparing for death of an older adult family member by the family caregivers. Hovland and Fuller specifically focus on a sample of African American family caregivers because African Americans are at higher risk of dementia-related health problems, although diagnosed at a much lower rate than Caucasians. They are also less likely to enroll in hospice services, therefore the authors believed there was something we could learn from those that do that could possibly help others to enroll. In their qualitative study including five hospice family caregivers, all reported that they felt “prepared” for their family members’ deaths and further believed that being prepared was important. The role that hospice played in helping them to achieve this is discussed through their narratives. In another entry regarding hospice family caregivers, Oliver and colleagues describe a Facebook online support group for hospice family caregivers caring for people with advanced cancer. They describe this intervention, implementation and results. The online support groups were designed to provide education and support. The participants in the group reported lower levels of depression after participation in the group. Hospice programs may wish to develop similar online protocols/groups adapted for the caregivers they serve. Next, Plys et al. present a study focusing on the psychosocial effect of death on the surviving residents with Assisted Living Facilities. They took a qualitative look and analyzed several sources of data within 21 AL facilities, including","PeriodicalId":45992,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Social Work in End-of-Life & Palliative Care","volume":" ","pages":"109-110"},"PeriodicalIF":1.6,"publicationDate":"2022-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"40573743","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"P.s. pps","authors":"M. Mahendiran","doi":"10.1080/15524256.2022.2053029","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/15524256.2022.2053029","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":45992,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Social Work in End-of-Life & Palliative Care","volume":"62 1","pages":"202 - 202"},"PeriodicalIF":1.6,"publicationDate":"2022-03-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"86435370","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"An Honorable Ending: Mobilizing Bereavement Resources Amidst a Christmas Tragedy","authors":"Aysha Jawed","doi":"10.1080/15524256.2022.2050340","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/15524256.2022.2050340","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":45992,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Social Work in End-of-Life & Palliative Care","volume":"21 1","pages":"199 - 201"},"PeriodicalIF":1.6,"publicationDate":"2022-03-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"73514237","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}