Close menu

SURE

Sunderland Repository records the research produced by the University of Sunderland including practice-based research and theses.

Social work in NHS hospitals: Opportunities and challenges

Phillips, Carrie, Deacon, Lesley and Burrows, Daniel (2024) Social work in NHS hospitals: Opportunities and challenges. Project Report. BASW, Birmingham.

Item Type: Reports, briefing/ working papers (Project Report)

Abstract

This report draws on data from Freedom of Information requests, interviews with hospital social workers, and a UK-wide online survey.

Key findings
Social workers are often employed by the local authority but support discharges from acute NHS hospitals.

Almost 40% of staff in hospital social work teams do not hold a formal social work qualification.

Flexible and agile working is common, but this has had a detrimental impact on communication between social work and clinical staff in the hospital, and between social workers and patients, by reducing familiarity and opportunity for face-to-face conversation.

Hospital social work has changed due to Covid-19 restrictions, as social work teams were often moved out of hospitals and have not returned.

Discharge to Assess is also changing the nature of hospital social work, as long-term decision-making in a hospital setting is discouraged and patients are moved out of acute hospital settings sooner.

Social workers bring value to the multi-disciplinary hospital team, by centring the importance of individual choice and of the patient’s relationships.

Social workers also report having a greater focus on the patient’s past and their potential future, than clinical colleagues.

[img] PDF (Social Work in NHS Hospitals - research briefing)
181354 Social work in NHS hospitals.pdf
Restricted to Registered users only

Download (9MB) | Request a copy

More Information

Depositing User: Carrie Phillips

Identifiers

Item ID: 18143
URI: http://sure.sunderland.ac.uk/id/eprint/18143

Users with ORCIDS

ORCID for Carrie Phillips: ORCID iD orcid.org/0000-0002-9779-2686
ORCID for Lesley Deacon: ORCID iD orcid.org/0000-0003-0031-2445
ORCID for Daniel Burrows: ORCID iD orcid.org/0000-0003-0534-266X

Catalogue record

Date Deposited: 26 Sep 2024 12:55
Last Modified: 26 Sep 2024 12:55

Contributors

Author: Carrie Phillips ORCID iD
Author: Lesley Deacon ORCID iD
Author: Daniel Burrows ORCID iD

University Divisions

Faculty of Education and Society > School of Social Sciences

Subjects

Social Sciences > Health and Social Care

Actions (login required)

View Item (Repository Staff Only) View Item (Repository Staff Only)