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Although social work, as a profession, has increasingly emphasized the importance of evidence-based practice (EBP), social work students do not consistently learn to infuse EBP as a process in their daily practice, contributing to low EBP uptake in the field. Communicating evidence to clients is an ethical imperative for informed consent and a precondition for shared decision-making; however, students are not adequately trained to talk to clients about research evidence as part of intervention planning and contracting. This article describes the development of a competency framework for communicating research evidence within the therapeutic relationship, in support of a teaching and learning innovation aimed at cultivating holistic competence in Master of Social Work students as they learn about and perform EBP. The competency framework draws on models and practices from social work, medicine, nursing, psychology, and related disciplines. The development of competencies in the communicative process within EBP is part of an evolving pedagogical approach that may serve to enhance EBP education in social work.

This study adds to a small body of Canadian literature investigating the ways that newcomer women experience, and are impacted by, intimate partner violence (IPV). The study involved qualitative interviews with 15 newcomer women who migrated to Saskatchewan, Canada, from 12 different countries. These findings provide insight into participants' complex lived experiences and illustrate how women's status as newcomers intersected with their experiences of IPV. As well as abuse related to language ability and immigration status, participants in our study described their experiences of physical; sexual; emotional; psychological; economic; and legal abuse; as well as coercive control; isolation; surveillance, stalking, and harassment while in the relationship and after separation; challenges with shared parenting; and the imposition of patriarchal values. Perpetrators of IPV maintained control by intentionally isolating survivors, and participants were also isolated due to their status as a newcomer and their limited English-language ability and social connections. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This qualitative study adds to research on the experiences of professionals who support newcomer women who have experienced intimate partner violence (IPV). Findings from seven focus groups with 32 service providers from newcomer-serving and domestic violence agencies in Saskatchewan, Canada, include newcomer survivors' experiences of isolation, the impact of IPV on newcomer children, and challenges and opportunities for supporting newcomer women who have experienced IPV. Service providers described gaps in existing services and the need for additional services; they also described ways of working effectively with newcomer women survivors of IPV and their children. Professionals indicated the importance of a trauma-and-violence-informed, survivor-centered approach and highlighted the need for compassion, empathy, and patience when working with newcomer women who have experienced IPV. This article includes recommendations for service providers, including IPV shelters and services and newcomer-serving agencies, to improve service to newcomer survivors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AbstractThis qualitative study sought to explore the experiences of public health professionals in Canada who were targets of harassment, abuse, and threatening behavior during the COVID-19 pandemic. Public health professionals from across Canada who held responsibility for public health measures in their respective jurisdictions participated in in-depth interviews. Using constructivist grounded theory and constant comparative analysis a cycle of violence was identified. Results revealed that as infections and deaths due to COVID-19 began to rise across the globe, participants engaged in efforts to educate the public through mainstream media and social media. While education efforts were generally positively received at the onset of the pandemic, as collective frustration with public health restrictions rose and misinformation began to proliferate, social media fueled outrage and polarization, and public anger began to focus on public health officials. Harassment, abuse, and threats on social media were followed by threats delivered through telephone and paper mail, and finally direct physical threats and confrontation—which were then glorified and amplified on social media. As reported by others, harassment and abuse were particularly virulent for public health professionals who were women or visible minority individuals. We conclude that the pattern of abuse identified in this study is reminiscent of the cycle of violence previously identified with respect to those who become radicalized on social media. These findings serve as a poignant example from which to develop guidelines for all professionals and researchers at risk of online abuse both in the health sector and beyond. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Since the pandemic, more Canadians have reported poorer mental health. A vital group experiencing a high level of stressors consists of health care providers (HCPs) caring for COVID-19 patients, carrying out public health responses, or working with vulnerable populations. The mental health of HCPs is negatively affected by the pandemic, not only at work but also at home and in the community. Intersecting stressors at multiple levels contribute to HCPs' experiences of fatigue, insomnia, anxiety, depression, and posttraumatic stress symptoms., Objective: The aim of this qualitative study was to explore the pandemic stressors experienced by HCPs at work, at home, and in the community before participating in the Pandemic Acceptance and Commitment to Empowerment Response (PACER) online intervention., Methods: Informed by a social ecological approach, we used a qualitative reflective approach to engage 74 HCPs in diverse roles. Data were collected during the first 2 waves of the COVID-19 pandemic (June 2020 to February 2021) in Canada., Results: Informed by a social ecological framework, 5 overarching themes were identified in our thematic analysis: (1) personal level stressors that highlight HCPs' identities and responsibilities beyond the workplace; (2) interpersonal level stressors from disrupted social relationships; (3) organizational stressors that contributed to unsettled workplaces and moral distress; (4) community and societal stressors attributed to vicarious trauma and emotional labor; and (5) the multilevel and cumulative impacts of COVID-19 stressors on HCPs' health., Conclusions: COVID-19 is not merely a communicable disease but also a social and political phenomenon that intensifies the effects of social inequities. Current understanding of pandemic stressors affecting HCPs is largely partial in nature. Although workplace stressors of HCPs are real and intense, they need to be explored and understood in the context of stressors that exist in other domains of HCPs' lives such as family and community to ensure these experiences are not being silenced by the "hero" discourses or overshadowed by professional demands., (©Christa Sato, Anita Adumattah, Maria Krisel Abulencia, Peter Dennis Garcellano, Alan Tai-Wai Li, Kenneth Fung, Maurice Kwong-Lai Poon, Mandana Vahabi, Josephine Pui-Hing Wong. Originally published in JMIR Formative Research (https://formative.jmir.org), 22.03.2022.)