Since the beginning of the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, more than 2 million military-connected children experienced separation from a parent due to a military deployment. The purpose of this study was to identify and build upon the tools and techniques used by social workers when providing services to military children during a parental deployment. Bowen’s family systems theory provided the conceptual framework for this study. Family systems theory relies on the belief that military families are interdependent of one another and to fully understand what may be happening with military youth; social workers must look at and understand the entire family system. The questions that guided this study were designed to explore the tools and techniques social workers use to help military children understand deployment, reduce the adverse effects they may experience, and assist them to become more resilient during a parental military deployment. Data collection consisted of a focus group of 7 social workers providing services to military youth. Overall, participants noted a positive impact with current resources that are available for military youth and families during all phases of deployment. The lack of funding for additional resources were noted as limitations to effective practice with military youth during a deployment. The study has the potential to contribute to social change and improve services provided to military children and their families by increasing understanding of the emotional well-being and resiliency of military youth who experience parental deployments. The military can use the information from this study to provide more culturally competent support programs to military families during every stage of deployment.

Black expectant mothers are more likely to die from pregnancy-related complications than white expectant mothers. While researchers have long documented this disparity, the gap persists. The purpose of this literature review is to describe the white-black disparity in maternal mortality and morbidity, identify racism and discrimination across multiple ecological systems as a primary driver of this disparity, and suggest implications of this for social work practice. This review presents basic statistics and means of data collection regarding this disparity, acknowledges known risk factors for pregnancy-related deaths, and identifies the association between racism and discrimination in healthcare settings and this white-black disparity. A bioecological framework will be used to further analyze the implications of racism on multiple ecological systems. The conclusion presents existing interventions and provides recommendations for social workers regarding this healthcare disparity.

Case management is a mechanism for coordinating a service delivery system in order to meet client needs more effectively. Despite the popularity of case management in elderly long-term care, the effectiveness of case management programs cannot be determined until practice models have been identified. This study uses statistical regression analyses to determine the effects on case management practice of combinations of variables at the client pathway and organizational levels Results indicate that only 25% of the organizations serving the elderly in New Orleans, Louisiana provide case management services. Monitoring of the client's progress is the most frequent case management function. Three variables are important in predicting patterns of case management activity: the organization's primary service, the worker's professional affiliation, and the worker's educational level. The findings establish a preliminary case management practice model based on combinations of organizational and worker variables. The implications for social work education are discussed / acase@tulane.edu

This is an exploratory study intended to determine whether certain physicians in primary practice utilize the services of social workers and social agencies. An attempt is made to find out how much primary care physicians know about the role and functions of medical social workers, and whether and for what services they refer patients to medical social workers. The information obtained may be useful in promoting better working relationships between the two professions.

Hospital social work during the COVID-19 pandemic / Healthcare social workers have been on the front lines of the response to COVID-19 since its early days. With an upsurge of social isolation, unemployment, and grief and loss, social workers are being met with new challenges and are required to adapt to new and heightened demands of their roles – while also navigating their own fears and anxieties during the pandemic. While social workers attempt to manage increasing caseloads of complex patient needs, they must navigate the constrained context of their workplace and the changes in patient care. This study used qualitative methods to capture the lived experiences of healthcare social workers amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. Specifically, I used qualitative interviewing to explore the reflections of nine hospital social workers in Hamilton, Ontario regarding their experiences of wellness and wellbeing throughout the pandemic. My research identified three key themes: 1) lack of professional agency and power 2) moral injury, and 3) respect and care – organizational and among colleagues. In the discussion section I reflect on the implications of these findings for the practice of social work during and beyond pandemic times. / Thesis / Master of Social Work (MSW) / Healthcare social workers have been on the front lines of the response to COVID-19 since its early days. With an upsurge of social isolation, unemployment, and grief and loss, social workers are being met with new challenges and are required to adapt to new and heightened demands of their roles – while also navigating their own fears and anxieties during the pandemic. While social workers attempt to manage increasing caseloads of complex patient needs, they must navigate the constrained context of their workplace and the changes in patient care. This study used qualitative methods to capture the lived experiences of healthcare social workers amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. Specifically, I used qualitative interviewing to explore the reflections of nine hospital social workers in Hamilton, Ontario regarding their experiences of wellness and wellbeing throughout the pandemic. My research identified three key themes: 1) lack of professional agency and power 2) moral injury, and 3) respect and care – organizational and among colleagues. In the discussion section I reflect on the implications of these findings for the practice of social work during and beyond pandemic times.

<p>This qualitative case study looks at a partnership between the Aboriginal Health Centre and Living Rock Ministries. I explore what makes for a humanizing partnership between two communities when one has historically been oppressed, and the other has historically held positions of dominance within the same context. It is crucial to this study that we understand the colonial culture and the ongoing collective trauma experienced by Aboriginal peoples. This will shape our understanding of the challenges faced in partnership between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal peoples today. Healing and resistance are vital to the decolonization process that Aboriginal communities are focused on. Paulo Freire (1970) describes a false consciousness which both the oppressed and the oppressors internalize. Here I identify this consciousness as the colonial reality. I argue that dominant institutions, specifically the Christian church, are in serious need of critical reflection upon their roles in reproducing the colonial culture. Critical reflection is required in order to take action and experience liberation from the unjust social order which is largely reproduced through white hegemony and Eurocentric dominance. Both the Aboriginal Health Centre and Living Rock Ministries explain that they value and pursue individual and collective healing. Their partnership is characterized by equality, authentic dialogue, reciprocity, trust and love. Humanizing relationship can only be realized through an authentic collective commitment to critical reflection and action. This thesis explores how the partnership between the Aboriginal Health Centre and Living Rock Ministries became what it is today, and suggests some principles which have the potential to foster humanizing relationships in other contexts. III</p> / Master of Social Work (MSW)

<p>This thesis examines the challenges of addressing elder abuse within a First Nation Context. The paper suggests that issues of systemic and internalized racism, lack of personal/communal privacy and resistance to professional intervention need to be given consideration from an individual, familial, community and governmental perspective. The values behind these different perspectives are intertwined and their complexity hinders easy resolution. While no definite conclusions are drawn, the paper highlights the issues that must be considered prior to planning interventions for elder abuse in a First Nations community context.</p> / Master of Social Work (MSW)

<p>Surrogacy is an emerging phenomenon in Canada, facilitated by societal changes and advances in reproductive technologies. Although surrogacy offers individuals an alternative form of family creation, it is rife with issues of inequality and social injustice based on gender, class, age, sexuality and geographical location. These social justice issues are evident in surrogacy discourses, which have influenced public perception on surrogacy and particularly in relation to women and their role as mothers. This exploratory research will examine these discourses and their representations of women and motherhood through a critical discourse analysis combined with a theoretical framework drawing upon post-structural feminist, social constructionist and social justice theories.</p> <p>Surrogacy discourses have been influenced by patriarchal notions of women and motherhood which evolved during time from focusing on issues of paternity, to women’s rights, to children’s bests interests and finally to family interests. Although the rhetoric surrounding surrogacy has changed, the discourses have always contained oppressive norms concerning women and their bodies. With the rise of global markets and capitalism, these oppressive discourses have taken on global implications for families involved in surrogacy arrangements. These implications beckon the attention of the field of social work on various individual, institutional, structural and global levels through program development, research and advocacy. This research will highlight these implications and will explore recommendations for the social work field in the hopes of providing avenues for social workers to act as agents of social change.</p> / Master of Social Work (MSW)

<p>Kinship Care is a relatively new, organized concept and increasingly popular alternative to foster care in the Ontario child welfare system. The field is currently developing policies and practices in terms of how kinship care can be standardized and implemented to provide more permanency to children identified to be in need of protection. However, with the child welfare system operating within a larger system, there is a danger that the emergence of kinship care may re-produce the inequalities of women and their caring work. Similar to the foster care system, kin caregivers are mainly women yet the critical difference is these women are closely tied as kin to their external families who have reached out to them along with the child welfare agency with the expectation they provide care for kin children who cannot remain in the birth parent's home.</p> <p>This study has attempted to accurately examine and depict the experiences of 4 female kin caregivers in order to listen to their voices and gain a better understanding of their struggles in maintaining the autonomy and integrity of their extended families. The participants offer poignant examples in their stories of their strong maternal duty and commitment to care and how quickly the organizational structure can take advantage of their socially constructed place in the larger society.</p> <p>The interviews highlighted the fact that by way of societal expectations, the child welfare system in Ontario has inadvertently placed them in the centre of a panopticon, itself becoming the surveyor of these female kin caregivers. Due to the kin caregiver's gender and the social construction of maternal blame, the system intrudes to monitor how they parent their own kin. This in tum creates a perception or appearance that kin caregivers are less able to care and does not reflect a high social value.</p> <p>The findings highlight several implications for social work policy and practice and raises questions about the need to change some of the current practices of how we view kin caregivers. Furthermore, if there is to be a gaze upon kin caregivers due to bureaucratic obligations, the gaze must be a reciprocal one---one that identifies and sees injustices to kin caregivers with intent for resolution without judgment.</p> / Master of Social Work (MSW)

<p> The purpose of this thesis project was to write a grant proposal to secure funding for a mindfulness meditation training program for adults diagnosed with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) at Venice Family Clinic in Venice, California. A literature review was conducted to examine topics related to ADHD including the unique and challenging experiences of adults with ADHD. The purpose of the proposed program was to increase knowledge in participants about ADHD, improve their mindfulness skills, reduce their ADHD symptoms, and improve their perceived well-being. The Ralphs M. Parsons Foundation was chosen for the proposed grant funding. The actual submission or funding or this grant proposal was not a requirement for the successful completion of the project.</p>