Development and validation of a measure of supervisory best practices in gerontological social work

Agency-based supervision is essential to skilled practice and staff retention, directly impacting the quality of services. The Supervisory Leaders in Aging (SLA) program was designed to strengthen supervision of the aging services workforce. SLA was implemented in four states and trained 134 social work supervisors. The purpose of this study was to develop a novel, comprehensive, and practice-informed measure of supervisory best-practices in gerontological social services. The primary outcome for the SLA program was the Practice Inventory for Supervision in Aging Services (PISAS), which evaluated the frequency of recent use of best practices as identified by the project team and vetted by instructors and an interdisciplinary advisory board. Reliability and confirmatory factor analyses were conducted to examine its psychometric properties. Findings demonstrated the scale had good internal consistency reliability (ɑ = 0.88). Confirmatory factor analyses indicated a three-factor solution, 1) Gerontological Social Work Skills, 2) Program Development Skills, and 3) Supervision and Leadership Skills, accounting for 72% of the variability in the 27 items. Gerontological Social Work Skills captured best practices regarding mental health in late life, heightening awareness of elder abuse, and working with families. Program Development Skills captured assessment, measuring outcomes, and translating evidence into practice. Supervision and Leadership Skills captured individual supervision, group supervision and leadership in interdisciplinary practice. Results indicated that PISAS is a reliable and valid measure of use of best practices in gerontological social work supervision. Further implications and limitations of this measure in assessing outcomes of gerontological education and training programs are discussed.

Responses to COVID-19 in Major Social Work Journals: A Systematic Review of Empirical Studies, Comments, and Editorials

Purpose: The main objective of this study was to provide a comprehensive overview of the latest studies on COVID-19related social work issues. Method: This systematic review aimed to collect, review, and synthesize all COVID-19related papers published in 43 major social work journals, a year after the first known case was reported. Results: The final sample ( n = 256) consisted of 85 research articles and 171 in other formats. All the studies involved a total of 46,195 research participants. The majority of papers (75.4%) could be accessed freely online. Service users including families, students, older adults, caregivers, refugees, patients, health care workers, etc. were either researched or discussed. Discussion: Gerontological social work was one of the fields that received ample attention. Papers published in the Journal of Gerontological Social Work yielded the highest number of citations. Academics and social workers came up with innovative ways of practicing and researching during the pandemic.

Living arrangements and intergenerational support among older Chinese: Does the gender of the co-resident adult children make a difference?

This study examines the effect of living arrangements on intergenerational support for older Chinese, using a nationally representative survey data of 9713 respondents (mean age = 70.18 years). The results of a generalised ordered logit and logit model showed that older adults living with a daughter received better instrumental and emotional support than those living with a son. The associations between residing with a daughter and the provision of intergenerational support varied between urban- and rural-dwelling older adults. The findings suggest that attention should be given to the gender perspective in gerontological social work practices and family support policies.

Health disparities among older women in India during the COVID-19 pandemic

PurposeOlder women in India continually experience disparities in health. The legally enforced lockdown in India has impacted both physical and psychosocial well-being of the populace. Amid the restrictions on mobility during the lockdown, older adults are presented with challenges such as impaired access to healthcare services, nonavailability of attendants and prolonged social isolation. Due to these challenges, disparities related to gender and age may considerably widen. The potential health threats may particularly afflict older women, who bear a disproportionate threat to illnesses, compared to their male counterparts.Design/methodology/approachThis commentary explores how health threats among older Indian women may have worsened during the lockdown. The authors also propose recommendations for expanding health and social care to older women in India.FindingsApproaches aimed at strengthening gerontological social work must be duly adopted, especially during the ongoing pandemic. Public institutions and development partners should utilize and if needed, overhaul existing resources and policies to adequately serve this marginalized group. Older women, especially those residing in unbearable circumstances, should be identified and brought under comprehensive care coverage within the social landscape.Originality/valueThis article proposes recommendations to foster gerontological social work among older Indian women.