Responding to COVID-19 in social work field education in Australia, New Zealand and the United States.

This descriptive article reports immediate responses to COVID-19 by social work field education faculty in four universities in Australia, New Zealand and the United States. Moving swiftly to online innovations, tele-supervision, teaching remote practice methods, and establishing alternative placements allowed students to meet required competencies while supporting students during the immediate crisis. Collaboration between field education faculty teams, professional bodies and agencies and clear communication with students and supervisors enabled all stakeholders to be open to flexible placement options. To conclude, COVID-19 brought opportunities to reflect on responses and explore new possibilities for field education in a post-COVID-19 world.

Moral distress as experienced by hospital social workers in South Korea and Australia.

This exploratory, qualitative research explored the ethical problems faced by hospital social workers in South Korea and Australia, and what and who influenced their decision making using a focus group design. Although dilemmas of boundaries, confidentiality, self-determination, and other complex scenarios found in practice were identified, moral distress, a consequence of the unresolvable conflicts, dominated participants' narratives. This was particularly the case for the Korean social workers in this sample. A thematic analysis of the data yielded three main themes: 'Under pressure-"It's very uncomfortable"'; 'Failing our patients'; and 'Coping and codes'.

The lived experience of fathers with intellectual disabilities: An interpretative phenomenological analysis.

Fathers with mild to moderate intellectual disabilities (ID) are under-represented in research. This article explores the lived childhood experiences of fathers with ID using interpretive phenomenology to understand the meanings ascribed to these experiences and how this has shaped their understanding of self. Rich data was collected through in-depth interviewing of fathers in Poland. The analysis yielded thirteen constituent themes and four superordinate themes: traumatic experiences; resilience; the positive impact of significant others; and becoming a better parent. Many fathers focused on traumatic experiences associated with problematic parental practices (abuse, neglect, parental substance misuse) and discrimination in schools. Participants made meaning of adverse experiences especially resilience, strengths and a determination to be a better parent, which helped them cope with adverse situations. This study provides insights into the impact of lived childhood experiences of these fathers, which in many ways shapes their own parental practices.

Demoralization in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic: Whereto the future for young Australians?

COVID-19 is changing lives. Less attention has been paid to the future of young people by governments since the onset of the pandemic. We suggest that young people are vulnerable to demoralization, a state of hopelessness and helplessness, during and post-COVID-19. This reflection drawn from journaling and ongoing reflexive conversation from December 2019 to April 2020 offers a critical perspective on the circumstances of young Australians that encompasses consideration of the structural factors that impact on health, life chances, equality and social justice as well as the personal aspects of reflection.

Towards healthy professional-client relationships: the value of an interprofessional training course.

Boundary violations that threaten professional-client relationships are rarely discussed at the coalface. There is an assumption that healthcare practitioners have the skills necessary to manage professional boundary dilemmas with clients. The issue, if addressed, is usually confined to discipline specific education and training. A one-day Professional Boundaries for Health Professionals (PBHP) training program was developed in response to real life practice dilemmas experienced by health practitioners across the continuum of care. The program was delivered to 109 participants throughout the state of Queensland, Australia, from government and non-government organizations. Participants were doctors, nurses, allied health (physiotherapists, occupational therapists, social workers, psychologists, dietitians, speech therapists), therapy assistants and personal care staff from a diverse range of hospital and community settings. Evaluations of PBHP suggest that the interprofessional learning context was valued with specific advantages identified in the use of adult learning approaches, the teaching of ethical decision making principles, the value of supervision and peer support and the opportunities provided for critical reflection. The effectiveness of training for healthcare practitioners in this area is discussed as a meaningful way of developing skills and engendering collaborative relationships between professional (e.g., occupational therapist, social worker) and paraprofessional (e.g., therapy assistant, personal care worker) groups. A combination of intensive training in professional boundaries and opportunities for ongoing professional development are important for all health practitioners.

Incorporating Demoralization into Social Work Practice.

This article explores the relevance of demoralization to social work research and practice. Demoralization connects to the very core of being human. It is present in social work client groups and is an important but neglected concept in social work. Demoralization occurs when life becomes so overwhelming that daily functioning is affected and people lose all hope, agency, and the capacity to overcome their circumstances. Although a demoralized state is not recognized as a mental illness in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, it is often confused with psychiatric disorders and its presence can lead to clinical conditions and suicide. This article discusses demoralization and its place in social work practice, identification, and measurement, and appropriate psychosocial interventions are also explored. The article concludes that demoralization has particular relevance to contemporary social work and should be considered in social work practice and research.

Perceptions of influenza and pneumococcal vaccine uptake by older persons in Australia.

BACKGROUND: Influenza and pneumococcal vaccinations reduce adverse health outcomes in older adults. The Australian National Immunisation Program (NIP) provides free seasonal influenza and pneumococcal vaccinations for adults ≥65 y. Guidelines recommend all adults ≥65 y receive one dose of 23-valent pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine (23vPPV) regardless of their risk of invasive pneumococcal disease. However, the reported rate of vaccination against pneumococcal disease is much lower than seasonal influenza. Identifying and understanding the perspective of older people on vaccination is important to informing effective promotional strategies for this age group. METHODS: Using a purposive and snowball recruitment strategy, 36 participants aged between 65 and 84 years of age were recruited in south-east Queensland and northern New South Wales. Face-to-face qualitative interviews conducted between July 2017 and January 2018 were recorded, transcribed and thematically analysed. RESULTS: In this sample, the uptake of the influenza vaccine (n = 28, 78%) was greater than for the pneumococcal vaccine (n = 14, 39%). Five key themes identified were health practitioner influence; anti-vaccination influence; social responsibility; work-based vaccination; and perceptions of age. The influences on uptake were complex and multi-faceted. CONCLUSIONS: Findings provide new insights, in particular, the role of social responsibility, the long-term impact of workplace vaccinations, and how older people do not necessarily consider themselves old.

The impact of Professional Boundaries for Health Professionals (PBHP) training on knowledge, comfort, experience, and ethical decision-making: a longitudinal randomized controlled trial.

PURPOSE: A randomized controlled trial was conducted to evaluate the impact of Professional Boundaries for Health Professionals (PBHP) training program on the knowledge, comfort, experience, and ethical decision-making of multidisciplinary practitioners facing client-practitioner boundary dilemmas. METHODS: In all, 36 rehabilitation practitioners from an Australian state-wide spinal cord injuries service were assigned to experimental and control groups. The Boundaries in Practice (BIP) Scale measured outcomes at four points: pre, post, 3 months, and 1 year. The control group received the training after 3 months. Nonparametric Friedman's two-way analysis of variance was used to examine the trajectories over time. RESULTS: Analysis was conducted using the data of 10 experimental and 13 control group participants who responded at four data collection points. The experimental group showed significant improvement in knowledge (χ2 = 10.673, p = 0.014) and comfort (χ2 = 9.727, p = 0.021) managing professional boundaries post-training. The control group showed no significant change in knowledge or comfort. No significant change was seen in experience across either experimental (χ2 = 3.609, p = 0.307) or control group (χ2 = 7.800, p = 0.050). Ethical decision-making improved in the control group (χ2 = 13.188, p = 0.004) following training, however remained unchanged in the experimental group. CONCLUSIONS: The findings do not definitively support this training approach. Ethical decision-making may improve more substantially within the practice context and organizational culture change. Multifaceted approaches are indicated. Implications for Rehabilitation Ethical dilemmas related to boundaries between clients and practitioners are a frequent occurrence in the rehabilitation setting. In a relatively small sample, the current randomized trial provided inconclusive evidence on the benefit of a 1-day needs-oriented training program to improve knowledge, comfort, and ethical decision-making. Randomized trials of education and training for rehabilitation practitioners are fraught with challenges in the clinical environment of the rehabilitation setting. Multifaceted training approaches, management support and training as well as changes to policy and organizational context in the rehabilitation setting may be needed to more holistically address the issues surrounding professional boundaries in the rehabilitation setting.