scholarly journals Resistance from within: social work within the community support sector of the Ontario Ministry of Health and Long Term Care

Author(s):  
Joseph L. Durand

This study examines the impact of surveillant care managerialism upon the practice of three social workers employed within the community support sector in Ontario health care. It applies the “Foucauldian Toolkit” of Jason L. Powell to examine the nature of the discourse shaping their practice and how they are both complicit and resistant to these discourses. It introduces recognition theory as counter discourse and argues that through the unique knowledge gained through relationships of respectful recognition that social workers act justly. Moreover it is argued that the relationships between social workers and their clients is the source of our unique knowledges as practitioners. Finally, this study examines the implications of social workers integrating a Foucauldian understanding of the reflexive relationship of power/knowledge and how through intersubjective relationships, we practice, create identities and serve the needs of justice even in a system and profession which does not acknowledge it as a requirement.

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joseph L. Durand

This study examines the impact of surveillant care managerialism upon the practice of three social workers employed within the community support sector in Ontario health care. It applies the “Foucauldian Toolkit” of Jason L. Powell to examine the nature of the discourse shaping their practice and how they are both complicit and resistant to these discourses. It introduces recognition theory as counter discourse and argues that through the unique knowledge gained through relationships of respectful recognition that social workers act justly. Moreover it is argued that the relationships between social workers and their clients is the source of our unique knowledges as practitioners. Finally, this study examines the implications of social workers integrating a Foucauldian understanding of the reflexive relationship of power/knowledge and how through intersubjective relationships, we practice, create identities and serve the needs of justice even in a system and profession which does not acknowledge it as a requirement.


2020 ◽  
Vol 77 (3) ◽  
pp. 160-167
Author(s):  
Kelvin Choi ◽  
Esther T Maas ◽  
Mieke Koehoorn ◽  
Christopher B McLeod

ObjectivesThis study examined time to return-to-work (RTW) among direct healthcare and social workers with violence-related incidents compared with these workers with non-violence-related incidents in British Columbia, Canada.MethodsAccepted workers’ compensation lost-time claims were extracted between 2010 and 2014. Workers with violence-related incidents and with non-violence-related incidents were matched using coarsened exact matching (n=5762). The outcome was days until RTW within 1 year after the first day of time loss, estimated with Cox regression using piecewise models, stratified by injury type, occupation, care setting and shift type.ResultsWorkers with violence-related incidents, compared with workers with non-violence-related incidents, were more likely to RTW within 30 days postinjury, less likely within 61–180 days, and were no different after 181 days. Workers with psychological injuries resulting from a violence-related incident had a lower likelihood to RTW during the year postinjury (HR 0.61, 95% CI 0.43 to 0.86). Workers with violence-related incidents in counselling and social work occupations were less likely to RTW within 90 days postinjury (HR 31–60 days: 0.67, 95% CI 0.48 to 0.95 and HR 61–90 days: 0.46, 95% CI 0.30 to 0.69). Workers with violence-related incidents in long-term care and residential social services were less likely to RTW within 91–180 days postinjury.ConclusionsWorkers with psychological injuries, and those in counselling and social work occupations and in long-term care and residential social services, took longer to RTW following a violence-related incident than workers with non-violence-related incidents. Future research should focus on identifying risk factors to reduce the burden of violence and facilitate RTW.


2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wendy Chicoine

Seasonal influenza is a serious public health problem that contributes to significant morbidity and mortality locally, nationally, and globally. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that influenza has caused between 9.2 million and 60.8 million illnesses, between 140,000 and 710,000 hospitalizations, and between 12,000 and 56,000 deaths annually since 2010, and approximately 80- 90 percent of influenza related deaths occurred in people 65 years and older. In 2012, prompted by the mounting\ evidence of the risk of nosocomial influenza infection for patients and low influenza vaccination rates of health care workers, the Rhode Island Department of Health (RIDOH) amended its Rules and Regulations for Immunization and Testing for Healthcare Workers. This amendment included mandatory influenza vaccinations for all health care workers, students, volunteers, and trainees who have direct patient contact within a health care facility. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the impact of the regulation of mandating influenza vaccination for health care workers in Rhode Island on influenza incidence, hospitalizations, and deaths of residents of long-term care facilities (LTCF). Surveillance data for influenza incidence, hospitalizations, and deaths among residents of LTCF pre and post the policy implementation are analyzed and results presented. Policy and practice implications for public health nursing are discussed.


CJEM ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 22 (6) ◽  
pp. 844-856 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kiran L. Grant ◽  
Daniel Dongjoo Lee ◽  
Ivy Cheng ◽  
G. Ross Baker

ABSTRACTBackgroundIn Canada, there were over 60,000 long-term care facility patient transfers to emergency departments (EDs) in 2014, with up to a quarter of them being potentially preventable. Each preventable transfer exposes the patient to transport- and hospital-related complications, contributes to ED crowding, and adds significant costs to the health care system. There have been many proposed and studied interventions aimed at alleviating the issue, but few attempts to assess and evaluate different interventions across institutions.MethodsA systematic search of MEDLINE, CINAHL, and EMBASE for studies describing the impact of interventions aimed at reducing preventable transfers from long-term care facilities to EDs on ED transfer rate. Two independent reviewers screened the studies for inclusion and completed a quality assessment. A tabular and narrative synthesis was then completed. This study adhered to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis Extension for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR) guidelines.ResultsA total of 26 studies were included (Cohen's k = 0.68). One was of low quality (Cohen's k = 0.58). Studies were summarized into five themes based on intervention type: Telemedicine, Outreach Teams, Interdisciplinary Care, Integrated Approaches, and Other. Effective interventions reported reductions in ED transfer rates post intervention ranging from 10 to 70%. Interdisciplinary health care teams staffed within long-term care facilities were the most effective interventions.ConclusionThere are several promising interventions that have successfully reduced the number of preventable transfers from long-term care facilities to EDs in a variety of health care settings. Widespread implementation of these interventions has the potential to reduce ED crowding in Canada.


2021 ◽  
pp. 146801732110103
Author(s):  
Susanny J Beltran ◽  
Vivian J Miller ◽  
Tyrone Hamler

Summary Involvement in the political process in the United States is critical for social work professionals, as social policies dictate funding and programming in social work practice. Yet, there is little to no focus given to the regulation writing process in the social work literature in the United States. This article contributes to the scant body of knowledge that addresses the regulatory process from a social work perspective. A brief overview of the regulation writing process is provided, followed by a case study using the regulations for the U.S. Older Americans Act Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program to illustrate the process. Findings A total of 85 comments, submitted to the Federal Register docket, were analyzed using content analysis. Findings reveal that comment submissions varied greatly in terms of length, source, and input. Notably, findings indicate low participation from the social work profession. Application The open comment period of the regulation writing process offers a free, but effortful, window of opportunity for social workers to engage in post-legislative advocacy. There is a need to support the involvement of the social work profession in the regulation writing process, through practice and training enhancements.


2019 ◽  
Vol 0 (2019) ◽  
pp. 143
Author(s):  
Maartje J. Van der Aa ◽  
Aggie T. G. Paulus ◽  
Saskia Klosse ◽  
Silvia M. A. A. Evers ◽  
Johannes A. M. Maarse

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 18-18
Author(s):  
Yi Cai ◽  
Jing Wang ◽  
Bei Wu

Abstract The impact of the COVID-19 infection on older residents and the direct frontline workers in long-term care (LTC) facilities in Wuhan, China deserves close attention. The fatality rate for older residents infected by the COVID-19 is among the highest in China Viral outbreaks are likely to occur in LTC facilities due to group-living arrangements, lack of precautionary measures, and older residents’ vulnerability to diseases. In this study, we aimed to explore different stakeholders’ experiences and challenges in the midst of the spread of the virus in LTC facilities. We conducted telephone interviews with four groups from two LTC facilities and two hospitals: twelve older residents (Four suspected cases and two infected), ten family members, four direct frontline workers (two infected), two nursing home managers, and four health care professionals working in the two hospitals that infected older residents were transferred to. We found that the gap in the transition of care quality between LTC facilities and local hospitals was widened during the COVID-19 outbreak. LTC facilities were slow to take precautionary measures and underprepared to handle the crisis after the infections occurred. The wellbeing of older residents was significantly impacted during the transition, particularly for those with dementia. Health care professionals in local hospitals were under tremendous stress providing treatments for older residents while ensuring their safety. There is an urgent need to improve transitional care and the capacity in preventing and handling this type of crisis for older residents in LTC.


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