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Discharge planning and social work practice.
D C Holliman1, S F Dziegielewski, P Datta
1Division of Social Work, Valdosta State University, GA 31698, USA. dhollim@valdosta.edu
Social Work in Health Care
|May 19, 2001
Summary
Hospital discharge planning tasks primarily involve generalist social work, with specialization based on patient populations rather than specific methods. This highlights opportunities for advanced generalist social work practice in healthcare settings.
Area of Science:
- Healthcare Administration
- Social Work Practice
- Hospital Management
Background:
- Discharge planning is a critical function in contemporary healthcare.
- Understanding the scope and frequency of discharge planning tasks is essential for optimizing patient care transitions.
- Previous research has not fully delineated the specific activities undertaken by discharge planners.
Purpose of the Study:
- To identify and rank the core tasks performed during hospital discharge planning.
- To determine the frequency of these discharge planning tasks.
- To explore the nature of specialization among discharge planners.
Main Methods:
- A survey was distributed to 124 hospitals in Alabama.
- A response rate of 72% was achieved, with 178 surveys returned by discharge planners.
- Core tasks were identified and ranked based on reported performance frequency.
Main Results:
- Discharge planning tasks largely align with the generalist social worker role.
- Specialization in discharge planning is primarily driven by the patient populations served.
- Task or method-specific specialization was not identified as a common practice.
Conclusions:
- Advanced generalist social work practice is highly relevant to current discharge planning activities.
- Recommendations are proposed for integrating advanced generalist social work principles into discharge planning.
- Healthcare organizations should consider leveraging generalist social work expertise for enhanced discharge planning.