ABSTRACT

Medical social workers are essential members of healthcare teams, especially during a pandemic. Their scope of practice includes conducting psychological assessments, coordinating social services, connecting patients to resources that address social determinants of health, discharge planning, and patient advocacy. Social workers’ experiences of psychological distress were unique even before the COVID-19 pandemic; their work demands a high amount of emotional investment as they frequently witness others’ pain and suffering and navigate various daily challenges and crises. This study explores psychological distress experienced by medical social workers and the coping strategies used by these professionals during the pandemic prior to the COVID-19 vaccine rollout. Faced with conflicting information from state and federal agencies, social workers dealt with resource shortages, took on additional roles and responsibilities, and contended with regular value conflicts and ethical dilemmas. Our findings indicate that medical social workers are not sufficiently protected or prioritized in their workplaces and that infrastructure to support social workers’ emotional wellbeing is lacking. Distinct themes that emerged from the data under the umbrella of psychological distress include feeling unprotected, overburdened, and undervalued. We discuss a need for targeted policy and sustainability-oriented solutions to improve coping and resilience, mitigate psychological distress, and prevent burnout among medical social workers.

摘要

医疗社会工作者是医疗团队的重要成员，尤其是在大流行期间。他们的业务范围包括进行心理评估、协调社会服务、将患者与解决健康问题社会决定因素的资源联系起来、出院计划和患者宣传。即使在 COVID-19 大流行之前，社会工作者的心理困扰经历也是独一无二的；他们的工作需要大量的情感投入，因为他们经常目睹他人的痛苦和磨难，并应对各种日常挑战和危机。本研究探讨了医疗社会工作者在 COVID-19 疫苗推出之前在大流行期间经历的心理困扰以及这些专业人员所使用的应对策略。面对来自州和联邦机构的相互矛盾的信息，社会工作者应对资源短缺问题，承担额外的角色和责任，并应对经常出现的价值冲突和道德困境。我们的研究结果表明，医务社会工作者在工作场所没有得到充分的保护或优先考虑，并且缺乏支持社会工作者情绪健康的基础设施。从心理困扰的数据中得出的不同主题包括感觉不受保护、负担过重和被低估。我们讨论需要有针对性的政策和以可持续发展为导向的解决方案，以提高医务社会工作者的应对能力和复原力，减轻心理困扰并防止倦怠。我们的研究结果表明，医务社会工作者在工作场所没有得到充分的保护或优先考虑，并且缺乏支持社会工作者情绪健康的基础设施。从心理困扰的数据中得出的不同主题包括感觉不受保护、负担过重和被低估。我们讨论需要有针对性的政策和以可持续发展为导向的解决方案，以提高医务社会工作者的应对能力和复原力，减轻心理困扰并防止倦怠。我们的研究结果表明，医务社会工作者在工作场所没有得到充分的保护或优先考虑，并且缺乏支持社会工作者情绪健康的基础设施。从心理困扰的数据中得出的不同主题包括感觉不受保护、负担过重和被低估。我们讨论需要有针对性的政策和以可持续发展为导向的解决方案，以提高医务社会工作者的应对能力和复原力，减轻心理困扰并防止倦怠。并被低估。我们讨论需要有针对性的政策和以可持续发展为导向的解决方案，以提高医务社会工作者的应对能力和复原力，减轻心理困扰并防止倦怠。并被低估。我们讨论需要有针对性的政策和以可持续发展为导向的解决方案，以提高医务社会工作者的应对能力和复原力，减轻心理困扰并防止倦怠。