Ward social workers’ views of what facilitates or hinders collaboration with specialist palliative care team social workers: A grounded theory

Abstract

BackgroundInpatient, generalist social workers in discharge planning roles work alongside specialist palliative care social workers to care for patients, often resulting in two social workers being concurrently involved in the same patient’s care. Previous studies identifying components of effective collaboration, which impacts patient outcomes, care efficiency, professional job satisfaction, and healthcare costs, were conducted with nurses and physicians but not social workers. This study explores ward social workers’ perceptions of what facilitates or hinders collaboration with palliative care social workers.MethodsGrounded theory was used to explore the research aim. In-depth qualitative interviews with masters trained ward social workers (n = 14) working in six hospitals located in the Midwest, United States were conducted between February 2014 and January 2015. A theoretical model of ward social workers’ collaboration with palliative care social workers was developed.ResultsThe emerging model of collaboration consists of: 1) trust, which is comprised of a) ability, b) benevolence, and c) integrity, 2) information sharing, and 3) role negotiation. Effective collaboration occurs when all elements of the model are present.ConclusionCollaboration is facilitated when ward social workers’ perceptions of trust are high, pertinent information is communicated in a time-sensitive manner, and a flexible approach to roles is taken. The theoretical model of collaboration can inform organisational policy and social work clinical practice guidelines, and may be of use to other healthcare professionals, as improvements in collaboration among healthcare providers may have a positive impact on patient outcomes.

Healthcare providers’ views and experiences of non-specialist palliative care in hospitals: A qualitative systematic review and thematic synthesis

“…73 It is also likely that other members of the allied care team such as social workers or physiotherapists also have a distinct perspective on providing non-specialist palliative care in hospitals. 83,84 However, this could not be ascertained in the current review due to insufficient evidence.…”

Impact, challenges and limits of inpatient palliative care consultations – perspectives of requesting and conducting physicians

“…This is usually addressed to the hospitals' social service and therefore not a main aspect for IPCC. Earlier studies underscore that there is a need of clarification between the duties of a specialist IPCC social worker and the regular ward social worker [47].…”

The Clarity and Contribution of the Hospital Social Work Role: Observations on its Professional Identity

“…Similarly, in Germany, social workers are an integral part of centres certified by the German Cancer Society (Kowalski et al 2015). A gradual narrowing of the hospital social work role around discharge may explain these professionals' frequent move to palliative care settings and orientations in the US where palliative care teams nearly always include a social worker as a standard team member (Firn, Preston, and Walshe 2017).…”

“…However, research undertaken with other professionals suggested that they valued social workers for their commitment to patient care and perceived them as particularly skilled in understanding and responding to the complex problems of patients and families (McLaughlin 2016, Sims-Gould et al 2015, Dobrof, Bussey, and Muzina 2019, although Firn, Preston, and Walshe (2017) recommended that better defined job descriptions allowing for some flexibility would facilitate collaboration and efficiency even further.…”