{"title":"'We are the gatekeepers': the role of health Social workers in safeguarding health equity during emergency discharge policies.","authors":"Yael Goor Kol,Efrat Lusky-Weisrose,Hagar Mizrahi,Rachel Sharon-Garty,Noga Nimrodi Furst,Zohar Sahar Lavi","doi":"10.1080/00981389.2026.2648206","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/00981389.2026.2648206","url":null,"abstract":"This article examines the role of health social workers (HSWs) in implementing emergency bed-reduction policies in Israel, with a focus on their efforts to safeguard continuity of care and promote health equity during the Iran - Israel war (June 2025). Using a qualitative design, we analyzed administrative notes from a real-time telephone survey with 17 heads of hospital social work services, alongside seven follow-up interviews. The analysis yielded two central themes: (1) Challenges arising from emergency discharge and bed-reduction policy, including institutional barriers, limited community care options, and patient- and family-related obstacles that undermine continuity of care; and (2) The role of HSWs in navigating structural gaps and ensuring equitable transitions of care, through bridging fragmented systems, participating in emergency decision-making, and advocating around social determinants of health. Findings show that under emergency discharge conditions, HSWs moved beyond routine coordination to engage in ethical logistics, systemic navigation, and advocacy for vulnerable patients. In so doing, they acted as \"bureaucratic activists,\" reshaping institutional practices from within, safeguarding equity, and alleviating pressures on the healthcare system. The discussion outlines practical recommendations for policy and practice, emphasizing the need to position HSWs in a leadership role at the center of discharge planning during crises.","PeriodicalId":47519,"journal":{"name":"Social Work in Health Care","volume":"33 1","pages":"1-16"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2026-04-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147599512","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Addressing payment for sex in substance use disorder interventions: Unveiling professionals' intentions and practice.","authors":"Inbar Malka,Belle Gavriel-Fried,Einat Peled","doi":"10.1080/00981389.2026.2650445","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/00981389.2026.2650445","url":null,"abstract":"This study explored the perspectives of social workers from addictions field regarding payment for sex (PS) and the associations with self-efficacy, comfort to discuss sexual issues in treatment (CDSIT), and attitudes toward social justice, toward people who receive payment for sex (PRPS) and toward PS. Participants (N = 123) completed an online questionnaire. Main findings showed that while most acknowledge the significance of addressing PS with clients with substance use disorder, they often did not do so in practice. Attitudes toward social justice, attitudes toward PRPS (perceived as victims rather than choosers), and CDSIT were key predictors.","PeriodicalId":47519,"journal":{"name":"Social Work in Health Care","volume":"2 1","pages":"204-219"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2026-03-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147535685","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Lyon Koh Lin Lu,Gerard Chung,Amalia Ariffin,Sophie Cheng,Elizabeth Yee Min Chia
{"title":"Training community advocates: evaluating the training of peer supporters in a peer support program among youths with or at risk of non-suicidal self-injury.","authors":"Lyon Koh Lin Lu,Gerard Chung,Amalia Ariffin,Sophie Cheng,Elizabeth Yee Min Chia","doi":"10.1080/00981389.2026.2648204","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/00981389.2026.2648204","url":null,"abstract":"This study evaluated the effectiveness of training peer supporters in \"Walk with Me,\" a peer support program for youths with or at risk of non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) in Singapore. Using a pre-post design with 76 peer supporters aged 19-35, the study examined program outcomes and mechanisms of change. Results demonstrated significant improvements across all six outcomes for peer supporters: empathetic support awareness, self-efficacy, NSSI knowledge, attitudes toward NSSI, advocacy abilities, and empowerment to effect change. Key mechanisms were supported, showing that awareness improvements predicted self-efficacy gains and knowledge increases predicted more positive attitudes. Participants rated the program highly helpful with the two-day training component most valued. Findings illustrate how social workers can design peer support programs that create pipelines of trained community members equipped to challenge stigma and promote social inclusion.","PeriodicalId":47519,"journal":{"name":"Social Work in Health Care","volume":"17 1","pages":"1-23"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2026-03-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147502400","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Barriers and assets in diabetes prevention: A community-based assessment in a Latino population.","authors":"Maria Cruz,Lynn M Raine,Larry Ortiz,Qais Alemi","doi":"10.1080/00981389.2026.2648201","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/00981389.2026.2648201","url":null,"abstract":"Latino communities in the U.S. experience disproportionately high rates of prediabetes and type 2 diabetes yet remain underrepresented in prevention programs. This qualitative study conducted a needs assessment with 70 Latino adults at risk for diabetes in Los Angeles, recruited via Instagram and local community events. Barriers to prevention included limited accessible information, low program availability, and cultural influences and stigma. Facilitators included program flexibility, incentives, Spanish-language services, and financial assistance. Findings highlight culturally responsive and equitable strategies for social workers to effectively engage Latino populations in diabetes prevention and management.","PeriodicalId":47519,"journal":{"name":"Social Work in Health Care","volume":"12 1","pages":"1-20"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2026-03-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147495128","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"The evidence of a family-based treatment for adults who use psychotropic drugs in community setting.","authors":"Tingyu Luo,Yik Wa Law","doi":"10.1080/00981389.2026.2641427","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/00981389.2026.2641427","url":null,"abstract":"The prevalence of drug use has emerged as a pressing public health concern, particularly in Hong Kong, where hidden drug use negatively affects mental health and family relationships. This quasi-experimental study investigated the effectiveness of family-based treatment for adults using psychotropic drugs in community settings. Significant reductions in drug use frequency (Cohen's d = 0.459, p = .010,) and improvements in mental health (Cohen's d = 0.634, p = .000) were observed. The findings underscore the critical role of family involvement in addressing drug use issues, highlighting the need for social work interventions that not only focus on the individual but also engage family members as active participants in the recovery process.","PeriodicalId":47519,"journal":{"name":"Social Work in Health Care","volume":"44 1","pages":"1-26"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2026-03-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147502401","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Invisible experts: An interpretative phenomenological study of social workers role in interprofessional psychiatric drug and substance care management.","authors":"Taruvinga Muzingili","doi":"10.1080/00981389.2026.2648198","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/00981389.2026.2648198","url":null,"abstract":"This study aimed to explore the role of social workers in the care and management of drug and substance abuse within an interprofessional psychiatric environment, focusing on their practice experiences, challenges, and professional positioning. Using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA), the study engaged 10 purposively selected social workers from Harare Psychiatric Hospital, Zimbabwe's largest mental health institution. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews and analyzed in two phases: initial coding using MAXQDA software, followed by manual interpretation to identify superordinate themes. Findings revealed four key roles: (1) conducting psychosocial assessments that are often excluded from team decisions; (2) attempting to link patients with community-based rehabilitation services despite weak referral systems; (3) engaging families in recovery processes, often without institutional recognition; and (4) advocating for holistic, non-medical interventions that are frequently dismissed by clinical teams. The study concludes that social workers are essential yet undervalued actors in substance abuse care. Their marginalization undermines both patient outcomes and the effectiveness of interprofessional collaboration. Recommendations include integrating social work assessments into treatment planning, strengthening reintegration systems, institutionalizing interprofessional training, auditing policy implementation, and enhancing the resourcing of social work units to support sustainable recovery outcomes.","PeriodicalId":47519,"journal":{"name":"Social Work in Health Care","volume":"13 1","pages":"1-24"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2026-03-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147489914","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Beyond the ideal: Tensions and realities of social work in palliative care.","authors":"Michael Bennett","doi":"10.1080/00981389.2026.2641428","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/00981389.2026.2641428","url":null,"abstract":"Interdisciplinary collaboration is a foundational principle of palliative care, yet social workers within these teams often encounter professional marginalization, role ambiguity, and systemic barriers to full integration. This study explores the experiences of palliative care social workers in Ontario, Canada, focusing on the tensions they navigate within interdisciplinary teams. Using an interpretive qualitative approach, in-depth interviews were conducted with 13 social workers practicing in hospital and community-based palliative care settings. Thematic analysis identified three interrelated themes: social workers' understandings of their professional role within palliative care teams; their perceptions of how their role is viewed by other professionals; and the discordance between internal professional identity and external recognition. Across these themes, participants described experiences of role devaluation, constrained professional autonomy, and conflict between anti-oppressive social work approaches and dominant biomedical norms.","PeriodicalId":47519,"journal":{"name":"Social Work in Health Care","volume":"46 1","pages":"1-15"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2026-03-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147350612","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"The moderated mediation effect of caregiving network and digital competence on caregiving outcomes among carers of multiple chronic conditions.","authors":"Ben Chi Pun Liu,Dion Sik Yee Leung","doi":"10.1080/00981389.2026.2625465","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/00981389.2026.2625465","url":null,"abstract":"The study applies Strong Structuration Theory to explore how informal carers' external structures (the size and quality of their social support network [SN]) influences their internal structures (caregiving network [CN] and levels of digital competence [DC]), action (caregiving hours per week [CH]), and outcomes (health-related quality of life [QL], burden of care [BC], and loneliness [Lo]). Two hundred informal carers of patients with chronic health issues were recruited and assessed, with a mean age was 59.2 ± 12.3 years (range: 25-86). Most were female and married; slightly more than half were the care recipient's children, 19.1% were spouses, 8.1% were siblings, and 7% were sons-/daughters-in-law. Conditional process analysis indicated a positive association between SN and CN, along with a chain mediation from CN to CH, BC, and QL that reduced loneliness. Overall, carers' external structures shaped their internal structures and actions, yielding both positive and negative outcomes. Digital competence moderated the relationship between CH and BC, reducing BC and loneliness. Social workers and healthcare practitioners should implement technology-based interventions to strengthen carers' social connectedness and mitigate the negative effects of caregiving.","PeriodicalId":47519,"journal":{"name":"Social Work in Health Care","volume":"31 1","pages":"1-16"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2026-01-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146095476","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"How does widowhood and social participation impact on the health of older adults: Evidence from a national survey in China.","authors":"He Zhu,Xinyi Li,Honglin Chen","doi":"10.1080/00981389.2026.2615314","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/00981389.2026.2615314","url":null,"abstract":"Social participation significantly contributes to an individual's wellbeing, and it is particularly crucial for older adults who have lost their spouse. Using cross-sectional data of the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS 2018), this paper employs a logit model to examine the effects of widowhood, social participation, and their interaction on the health of the elderly. The findings indicate that social participation has a more pronounced positive effect on the health of widowed elderly individuals and can mitigate the health problems associated with widowhood. The findings indicate that social participation has a more pronounced positive effect on the health of widowed elderly individuals and can mitigate the health problems associated with widowhood.","PeriodicalId":47519,"journal":{"name":"Social Work in Health Care","volume":"17 1","pages":"1-16"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2026-01-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146072920","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Social support profiles, mental health, and future orientation in military trainees: implications for clinical social work and health care practice.","authors":"Pao-Lung Chiu","doi":"10.1080/00981389.2026.2615313","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/00981389.2026.2615313","url":null,"abstract":"The psychosocial transition during military training poses a significant public health risk requiring preventive, health-integrated responses. This study applied latent class analysis to identify five social support profiles among 2325 military trainees in Taiwan and examined associations with depressive symptoms and future orientation. Family cohesion and extraversion predicted membership in higher-support profiles. Trainees in the low-support profile reported elevated depressive symptoms and weakened future orientation, indicating a clinically significant risk group. The identified profiles translate interpersonal dynamics into indicators for health and military social workers, supporting risk stratification, early screening, and targeted micro- and mezzo-level interventions within integrated healthcare systems.","PeriodicalId":47519,"journal":{"name":"Social Work in Health Care","volume":"5 1","pages":"1-16"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2026-01-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145947403","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}