Elderly hospitalized patients' perceptions of the interaction with the social worker during discharge planning

Twenty-four elderly hospitalized patients and their social workers were interviewed regarding their perceptions of the discharge planning process. One-half of the clients did not know how they were referred to social work and sixty percent did not know what to expect from the contact with the worker. Workers and clients agreed on the existence of environmental problems and interventions to address these problems, but were less likely to agree on the existence of intra- and interpersonal problems and interventions. At the termination of the contact, approximately forty percent of the clients were still confused about the social work role. However, in spite of these misunderstandings, clients cooperated fully with their workers, neither challenging them or asking for additional information. It is concluded that the patients in this study assumed the "good patient" role in interacting with their social workers. Implications for practicing and research are discussed.