Working With Older Adults in Integrated Health Care: Social Workers' Perspective.

Objective: Older adults are a rapidly growing segment of the global population; a paucity of research exists on social workers supporting this vulnerable group in integrated health care that focuses on both physical and behavioral health. To fill the gap, this study explored social workers' perspectives of working with older adults in integrated healthcare settings. Methods: Using qualitative methods, a constant comparison data analysis approach was conducted to identify themes. Results: Themes included: (1) working with and highlighting the unique needs of older adults in integrated health, (2) identifying skills needed for working as a social worker within integrated healthcare settings, (3) supporting patient families, and (4) needing to make decisions on behalf of patients. Discussion: Study findings demonstrate social workers as key members of interdisciplinary team as well as highlight the unique needs, skills, and challenges for working with older adults in integrated healthcare settings.

Social workers' experiences in integrated health care during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Summary: The massive spread of the novel COVID-19 virus across the globe has been disruptive to all providers within integrated healthcare systems, including social workers. The literature on how the pandemic has impacted medical workers are emerging. The present article explored the experiences of social workers. A purposive sample of 40 social workers in integrated healthcare settings was interviewed from September to November 2020 prior to vaccine availability to learn about how they managed the earlier months of the pandemic. A constant comparison approach was used to analyze the data. Findings: Themes identified included: (1) how social workers felt about safety in their work environments; (2) what it was like for social workers to transition to remote work; (3) how the pandemic affected social workers' workload and mental health; and (4) what were the preparedness issues and lessons learned. Applications: This study adds to the existing literature on provider experiences of the pandemic in integrated health care with social workers' voices. This additional perspective may contribute to better preparedness of behavioral health services and taking care of social workers in future crises.

Making the Case for Proactive Strategies to Alleviate Homelessness: A Systems Approach.

Homelessness is a complex public health issue that affects some of the most vulnerable populations in the United States. This study takes a holistic approach to better understand and analyze the multiple factors and their interconnections that contribute to the complexity of this problem. A systems analysis was conducted by utilizing the system dynamics method, which allows analyzing and comparing trends and behavior of system outcomes for different "what if" scenarios, interventions, and policy implications. Three leverage points were identified in this study to increase the effectiveness and efficiency of the current strategies to address homelessness: (1) increasing the number of affordable permanent housing units, (2) increasing the utilization of transitional housing units or shelters by the individuals experiencing homelessness, and (3) providing preventative services to at-risk populations before the onset of homelessness. Our results demonstrate that the most effective strategy is an amalgam of the solutions identified by these three leverage points. In addition, a policy analysis was conducted to study and estimate the effectiveness of various potential scenarios. This research provides data-driven and model-based insights into how decision-makers can utilize a systems approach to analyze new policy implications and create effective solutions to homelessness.

Racial-Ethnic Differences in Turnover Intent Among Home Health Aides.

Home health aides are crucial to ensuring quality services for the growing older adult population needing home-based care in the United States. We utilize data from the nationally representative 2007 National Home Health Aide Survey (N = 3,344) to analyze racial-ethnic disparity in turnover intent. Non-Hispanic Black and non-Hispanic Other home health aides had higher all-cause turnover intent than Non-Hispanic Whites. Cause-specific turnover intent varied by race-ethnicity. Compared with non-Hispanic White home health aides, (a) non-Hispanic Black home health aides were more likely to leave due to low pay and educational/advancement opportunities; (b) Hispanic home health aides were more likely to leave due to a perceived lack of respect or difficulty with their supervisor/agency; and (c) non-Hispanic home health aides were more likely to leave due to an impending move. Findings suggest that efforts to address high levels of turnover intent among home health aides should account for differences in race-ethnic groups.

Issues of Aging: An Exploration of Asian American Families in the Southern Region of the United States from the Perspective of Community Leaders.

This paper focuses on older adults and the aging concerns of this population among groups of Asian American communities in a specific state in the southern region of the United States. A qualitative approach was used to gain a more in-depth understanding of issues related to aging from caregivers who are Asian American leaders from a community perspective. Areas of concern identified include intergenerational dynamics, physical and mental health concerns, and the need for a community center and living facility. The paper concludes with discussion on how to address the areas of concern.

Strategies for Working with Asian Americans in Mental Health: Community Members' Policy Perspectives and Recommendations.

This qualitative study used snowball sampling of individuals known to provide informal assistance to Asian American community members with their mental health problems in a locality in the South where there has been an exponential increase of the Asian American population. The major themes found include: (1) the existence of cultural, language, knowledge, and transportation barriers and the importance of policy in addressing them; (2) the impact of the model minority myth and the need for inclusive policymaking; and (3) the unique service and policy needs of immigrants. Findings demonstrate the importance and value of including diverse Asian American individuals in mental health policymaking efforts.

Culture and Language Discordance in the Workplace: Evidence From the National Home Health Aide Survey.

Purpose of the study: Home health aides (HHAs) provide valuable resources to address existing and predicted needs for taking care of the aging population. Both the older adult and healthcare provider populations in the United States are becoming increasingly diverse. The study examined the effect of culture and language discordance between HHAs and their patients or coworkers on worker outcomes. Design and methods: Data from this study were from the 2007 National Home Health Aide Survey. T Tests and ordinary least squares regression were used to analyze the relationships between cultural discordance and worker outcomes. Results: Cultural discordance with patients was associated with lower levels of job satisfaction among HHAs. Cultural discordance with coworkers was associated with lower levels of job satisfaction and, increased intent to leave one's job. Implications: The current study suggests that cultural discordance does affect worker outcomes. However, home healthcare workers appear to differentiate between cultural discordance with patients and with coworkers. This article concludes with strategies for all involved in the care of older adults to improve the experience of HHAs and to ensure patients receive the best possible care.

Asset mapping for an Asian American community: Informal and formal resources for community building / Mapa de activos de una comunidad asiático-americana: recursos formales e informales para la construcción comunitaria

With the growth of the Asian American population in the Southern region of the United States, mainstream and Asian American community must be aware of both informal and formal supports that are available for the population in order to effectively address needs and allocate resources. This community-based project identified informal and mainstream support that is available to an Asian American community using asset mapping. The asset-based community development framework was used in which the capacities of the local people and their associations are recognized to be essential in building a more powerful community, to helping a community be more self-sustaining, and to developing better relationships among entities. This study provides an inventory of community assets that otherwise may have been ignored and thus has the potential to contribute to a better functioning Asian American community in Jacksonville, Florida. 719 assets were identified as available potential resources for members of the Asian American community with a majority as formal resources. Of the informal assets, a majority are organizations. In general, formal resources are centralized, whereas informal resources are more evenly distributed throughout the city. These results can contribute to the establishment of more culturally accessible services and utilization of services

Con el crecimiento de la población asiático-americana en el sur de Estados Unidos, tanto la sociedad mayoritaria como la propia comunidad asiático-americana deben ser conscientes de los apoyos formales e informales que están disponibles para la población, con el fin de abordar de manera efectiva las necesidades y asignar recursos adecuadamente. Este proyecto comunitario recurrió al mapeo de activos para identificar los apoyos informales y generales que están disponibles para la comunidad asiático-americana. Se utilizó el modelo de desarrollo comunitario basado en activos, en el que las capacidades de la población local y sus asociaciones son fundamentales en la construcción de una comunidad más poderosa, más autosuficiente, al mismo tiempo que facilitan mejores relaciones entre las entidades. Este estudio proporciona un inventario de activos comunitarios que de otro modo serían ignorados, contribuyendo a un mejor funcionamiento de la comunidad asiático-americana en Jacksonville, Florida. Se identificaron 719 activos, como recursos potenciales para dicha población, en su mayoría de carácter formal. De los activos informales, la mayoría son organizaciones. En general, los recursos formales están centralizados mientras que los recursos informales se distribuyen de manera más uniforme en toda la ciudad. Estos resultados pueden contribuir a la creación de servicios culturalmente más accesibles y a la utilización de los mismos