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Death may be the only certainty in life, but for palliative care patients and their carers, it is anything but. How long is there left? Will a hospice bed be available? What new loss (big or small), will tomorrow bring? Research suggests that the poor management of uncertainty in palliative care can significantly impact patient outcomes as well as the experience of bereaved families. Social workers cannot mitigate this uncertainty, but they can support individuals to recognise and engage with it. Often, this can create tensions with their personal instinct to remove distress, as well as their professional drive to 'fix things'. By overcoming these challenges and embracing their ability to find ways forward 'in the midst of the messy stuff', they model a constructive mode of behaviour that patients and other multidisciplinary professionals can then mirror. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Advanced welfare states are under pressure to customize services, promptly enough to prevent a cascade of harms. With these goals, the Netherlands in 2015 decentralized social care services to municipalities, and within municipalities to neighborhood teams in continuing contact with clients. The overall results have been disappointing. But the experience of Utrecht, the Netherlands' fourth-largest city, has been strikingly different. By using hard-to-resolve cases to signal conflicts in rules, obstructive jurisdictional boundaries, and the shortcomings of private service providers, Utrecht is learning to customize and speed delivery of social care through incremental steps. This article explains how Utrecht's success addresses apparently intractable limits to the adaptability of the rule-bound welfare state, such as the problem of low-level discretion or street-level bureaucracy and the division of services into silos, in the process bridging, and perhaps effacing, the gap between the Habermasian life world and the system world of formal rules. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: In Western welfare states, public and non-profit service organizations are increasingly looking for ways to combine the efforts and expertise of professionals and volunteers to provide support and services to vulnerable target groups. However, little is known about how professionals and volunteers collaborate to provide these social services and support. The aim of this qualitative study is to analyze how professionals support volunteers in a befriending project, where volunteers provide support to people after they are released from prison. Therefore, we interviewed social workers (n = 4) and volunteers (n = 13). Findings: Our results show that professionals provide tailor-made support to volunteers through different interventions: they share their knowledge and expertise, provide emotional support, and advise and coach the volunteers. Furthermore, in complex cases, professionals intervene to access appropriate social support and realize the rights of those involved. Applications: Our findings provide a comprehensive perspective on how complementarity is constructed in the daily practice of collaboration between volunteers and professionals. Although professional interventions and support are necessary to address the needs of vulnerable people, volunteers offer a wider range of support than professionals alone can provide. Consequently, close collaboration between volunteers and professionals can result in a valuable response to the needs of people who have recently left prison. However, when a client's situation becomes complex and volunteers lack the skills, experience, and status to deal with it, professionals are advised to take over. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Burnout has become an increasingly prevalent condition, especially affecting professionals in direct contact with clients. Human service workers (HSWs) have quite emotionally taxing jobs supporting vulnerable groups. In developing a close relationship with the communities they work with, it could be possible that community-related variables have an impact on HSWs' burnout. We aim to analyze the prevalence of burnout in a sample of HSWs from Portugal and the role of community resilience as a predictor of their burnout, as well as explore if their subjective well-being and community attachment could explain the relationship between community resilience and burnout, during the COVID-19 pandemic. Data were collected through an online questionnaire between August 2020 and January 2021 (N = 598). Findings: Results indicate that HSWs presented medium to low levels of burnout, although 8.9% presented high levels. Those who reported lower levels of burnout perceived higher community resilience and had much higher well-being and community attachment. Findings point to community resilience having a significant direct effect on burnout and also an indirect effect, which was explained by subjective well-being and community attachment. Applications: Results seem to suggest that this sample's low-medium levels of burnout could be linked to the benefit of experiencing high community attachment and working in communities with high resilience, which consequently impacted their well-being and burnout. This highlights the crucial role of the work context in professionals' mental health, showing that a broader context needs to be considered in professional mental health promotion programs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: There is limited literature of the usage of Theatre of the Oppressed within Social work practice. In this study, a group of youth offenders (n = 9) and three social workers known to a Social Service Agency participated in a 9-week Theatre of the Oppressed workshop, consisting of activities aimed to raise critical consciousness. The workshop eventually culminated in a Forum Theatre performance, put up to an invited audience (n = 17). Data was collected throughout the workshop and performance and analyzed using an arts-based method. A focus group discussion was also held with the youths and the social workers separately at the end of the program. Findings: Data revealed that the Theatre of the Oppressed games and activities built solidarity among the youths, although the cultural subgroups of the youths played a part. There was also a general increase of awareness and understanding of power and privilege, and an ownership of the issues that they were experiencing. While the youths felt empowered by the process of designing the script and sharing their stories, the actual medium of performing in front of a group and the power differential with the audience members was seen to have created a negative experience for them. Applications: This study provides an idea of the impacts of Theatre of the Oppressed within group work settings, for marginalized youth offenders. Through the carefully curated activities, social workers may be able to tap on Boal's techniques as a way to build rapport, raise critical consciousness, and empower these youths. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Migration has always constituted a meeting point of opportunity, risk, and vulnerability. Concerns surrounding the sex trafficking of women have caused moral panic since the mid-1800s and led to social workers' preventive initiatives and interventions in Europe and the United States. This article explores a historical moment in which Henrietta Szold, who headed the Social Welfare Department in Mandatory Palestine in 1934, decided to send social workers to the Jaffa and Haifa ports to welcome young, single immigrant women from Germany in the light of rumours of the moral dangers they faced upon entering the country. This feminist historical study of social work employed qualitative analysis of archival texts to investigate the professional decision-making processes involved in sending a social worker to the Jaffa port and the results of the decisions that were made. Findings: The findings trace the course of events that took place in 1934 using three categories: the rumours, their investigation, and the results and implications of the investigations. The findings point to intersections of nationalism, gender, and professionalism in social work. Applications: This article contributes to the evolving knowledge on moral panic in social work and reveals the historical practice used in social work policy and interventions in facing moral panic regarding young women immigrants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Results of our previous research indicated that older adults believe that there's a lack of sufficient social support from informal sources available to them in difficult situations they face. In follow-up research, we found that older adults defined limitation in their self-sufficiency in daily activities to be the most significant difficult situation for them. This paper disseminates the results of the research seeking to answer the research question: According to older adults, can family be a source of social support in a difficult situation of limitation of self-sufficiency in daily activities? Social support theory is the used theoretical basis. Using the method of qualitative content analysis we analysed 23 semi-structured interviews with older adults. Findings: We found that if two conditions, that is, geographic proximity to individual family members and the quality of relationships with family members, are ensured, family can function as one of the informal sources of social support according to older adults. In case that older adults prefer a formal source of social support, they consider their family as a source of social support only in an extreme situation of limited self-sufficiency. Applications: This study provides social workers with a better understanding of the difficult situations of older adults and what kind of social support older adults prefer. This study also provides an argumentation about the importance of gerontological social work. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: In a time of increased social division, overt bigotry, and pervasive structural violence, social workers have an opportunity to lead the helping professions in meaningful social transformation. Social work supervisors play a central role in developing and guiding ethical social work practice. Yet, little empirically driven scholarship exists providing supervisors with strategies for disrupting racism and bias in the practice of their supervisees. This exploratory qualitative study employs a grounded theory approach to unearth such strategies. Fifteen participants with social work supervisory experience, who identified as anti-racist, offered insights into in vivo approaches to disrupting racism in social work practice. Findings: The findings from this study emphasize the importance of a strong supervisory foundation, comprised of centering race and being in authentic relationship with staff. Further, strategies such as assessing the race consciousness of staff create the foundation to employ competencies for efficacious anti-racist supervision including taking space versus pausing, providing incremental pedagogical scaffolding, and leveraging a foundational supervisory skillset. Applications: These strategies represent tangible approaches social work supervisors might employ when engaging in anti-racist practice with their staff. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: In response to the so-called "refugee crisis," the Catalan regional government set up experimental services for children migrating without guardians, with the explicit aim of safeguarding their rights. With their continued arrival, however, overcrowding in the facilities and the youths' educational and life prospects have become topics of fierce debate. This article investigates whether young migrants can live in the educational centers that host them. Basing ourselves on the distinction between occupying and living in a place, we call into question the conditions of non-life that, from the educational perspective, the reception system offers migrant youth. A qualitative study was undertaken to gather and triangulate the views of the young migrants (n = 42), and that of their social educators (n = 15), and of the management of the reception centers (n = 2). Findings: Despite efforts to put in place policies affording quality attention, a series of contradictions cause the system to favor the homogenization of outcomes rather than adequately acknowledging and addressing the youths' individual needs. This added to the lack of resources mobilized, has yielded the result that the system that supposedly provides protection for minors, rather than being a lived-in place, has become a classical example of a non-occupied space. Applications: Providing a habitable place depends on the pedagogical commitment of social educators and managers to offering these children the chance to build emotional ties with the center, so that it may become a proper place in the world despite the bureaucratic and structural hurdles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: This study focuses on the narratives of participants of a long-term expert-by-experience training programme for people with a history of crime about their past, and how they use their life experience in their work as experts by experience. The research data was collected during interviews of respondents with a history of crime (N=19). The interviews were analysed using a narrative identity framework, and the data further examined in light of various studies focused on a desistance from crime. Findings: The transformation process from service user or client to expert by experience provided people with a history of crime with a chance to come to terms with their past, and to and gain a sense of closure. Expertise by experience gave their difficult life experiences a new meaning, and thus promoted their overall rehabilitation and offered them opportunities through which they could gain the appreciation and acceptance of other people. The new relationships presented to them as experts by experience also paved the way to a new kind of self-concept that strengthened the desister's self-confidence and optimistic outlook on the future. Applications: This study offers perspectives on how people with a history of crime can re-enter society. Through their survival stories and their journey to become experts by experience, desisters can earn the acceptance and approval of others and gain a more positive perception of themselves. The new identities of people with a history of crime are dependent on society's approval as they continue to desist from crime and re-enter mainstream society. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study is focused on the reentry/resettlement problems that are faced by ex-prisoners in the Czech Republic (CR). Findings are based on semi-structured interviews with 26 ex-prisoners and 30 social workers who provide social services in prisons and after the release. Based on the data, which were coded inductively employing qualitative content analysis, several post-prison issues emerged: (1) material deprivation and insecurity regarding housing, subsistence, and stable employment; (2) debts and enforcement proceedings; (3) prisonisation effect; (4) health issues; (5) relationships with family and significant others; (6) drug abuse; (7) meaningful leisure time. Particularly, more attention was given to housing, subsistence, stable employment, and debts and enforcement proceedings because, compared to other countries, these issues have their specifics in the CR. Findings, interpreted through the optics of intersectionality, suggest that the Czech social policies regarding ex-prisoners are focused on a one or selection of factors, instead on the complex interplay of them, as well as not properly targeted and delivered in the right time. To improve the situation, the better system of social services financing that would address the ex-prisoners' complex needs must be implemented along with the housing first policy and more accessible personal bankruptcy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This article explored Licensed Clinical Social Workers (LCSWs) beliefs, attitudes, and knowledge of Complementary and Alternative Interventions (CAI). Method: We utilized a cross-sectional online survey among a sample of 193 LCSWs. Results: Approximately 60% of LCSWs assessed for and utilized CAI professionally, and 90% personally utilized CAI. LCSWs had moderately positive beliefs, neutral attitudes, and high baseline knowledge of CAI. Age and years of practice were the only significant correlates, and the only significant predictor for assessment and utilization of CAI was positive attitudes. Discussion: As the largest group of mental health providers, we found that it is vital for LCSWs to have a solid understanding of CAI to provide effective and safe services to the clients they serve. It is hoped that the results of this study will serve as a starting point for future research on CAI among social workers, with the goal of enhancing client-centered practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The aim of this scoping review is to systematically scope the literature on social work, the COVID-19 pandemic, and health policy. The research question guiding the scoping review is: What are the policy issues emerging during the COVID-19 pandemic that are of importance for social workers working in health and mental health? Method: Scoping review methodology following Arksey and O'Malley's five-stage framework. Results: A final sample of 191 articles were included in the scoping review. The five themes identified are: (a) strengthening social work's capacity to address structural issues in practice, (b) gaps in social work education, (c) need for new and updated standards and guidelines, (d) need for professional clarity and professional supports, and (e) inadequate government response. Conclusions: By strengthening uptake of the policy-practice framework, social work practitioners concurrently address immediate client issues and address upstream factors perpetuating inequities emerging during the pandemic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Many young orphans in Zimbabwe grow up in residential care facilities, but according to governmental policies and literature in this field, these children should be transitioned to extended families to ensure optimal development. Thus, semi-structured interviews was conducted with a social worker, two residential care administrators and five extended families; whereas the participating orphans were asked to draw and narrate their lives in RCC and their extended families. This article provides empirically derived insights to the inner experiences of the transition processes of five young orphans and their extended family members, two residential care administrators, and one social worker. The theoretical approach taken to analyze the data consisted of the inductive data analysis. Findings: Although transitioning to a family is deemed ideal for orphans it was apparent in this study that most of the orphans found their new family life challenging and stressful. Several themes emerged from the data, namely financial constraints hindering the transition experiences in families; lack of training of family members on how to support orphans in their families, as well as emotional and cognitive challenges faced by orphaned children. Application: The insights of this study can be used to improve the transition experiences of young orphans, especially in Zimbabwe. Future practical and policy changes are also suggested. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Efforts to assess the risk of criminal legal system involvement among people with serious mental illness (SMI) often rely on strategies that locate the risk at the individual level. The present study examines environmental factors that contribute to criminal legal involvement for people with SMI in mental health treatment settings. Thirty-one people with serious mental illness and prior criminal legal involvement were interviewed in this qualitative study. Interviews focused on factors that contributed to and protected against criminal legal involvement. The research team engaged in inductive thematic analysis of interview data. Findings: Findings reveal that understanding of physical, social, and treatment environments is critical to risk assessment with this population. In highlighting the role of the environment, we offer findings that may lead to improved strategies for service delivery with this population. Complicating contemporary approaches to risk assessment, our findings suggest that mental health treatment systems that serve individuals with serious mental illness should engage in meaningful consideration of environmental factors. Applications: Identification of protective and risk factors in clients' physical, social, and treatment environments is critical for social work practice with individuals who have a history of criminal legal involvement and serious mental illness. Treatment settings can create opportunities for the development of protective factors by integrating wrap-around services, treatment services that follow an empowerment-participation strengths model, and post-incarceration services with clients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Ever since the pandemic first broke out in 2020, there has been a swift shift from offline to online mode of education. The present study is aimed at examining the online learning experience among a sample of social work students in India (n = 202) in order to understand the crucial factors that can help improve their learning experience and so that they become effective social workers in the future. Findings: The results have highlighted several independent factors such as the mode of connecting to the internet, number of hours of online classes per day, type of field work, rural/urban location of the students, and hours of sleep, among other variables, that are significantly associated with important indicators of the online learning experience of students. Applications: The results point to the urgent need to reduce the number of hours of online classes, educate students on the importance of sleep, improve internet accessibility along affordability of learning tools such as laptops, especially for those residing in rural areas, and promote classroom discussion during online classes, so as to improve the online learning experience of social work students in India and to produce effective social work practitioners. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary : This article examines the role of social workers involved in a pilot home care project undertaken to attend to the social needs of people at the end of their lives and their carers. Mixed methods approach and evidence-based, constructivist, and comprehensive evaluation were chosen to achieve this aim. Analyses are based on 235 responses from a survey addressed to professionals working in the project, 22 in-depth interviews with a selected group of these professionals, and 114 semi-structured interviews with the sick people and their caregivers. The analysis of the data has considered the theoretical development and professional experience systematized in the Spanish and international literature on social work in end-of-life care. Findings : The results highlight the relevance that professionals, patients, and carers attribute to social care at the end of life and to the role, skills, and qualities of social workers. Their contribution has been valued in terms of the management of services and supports (speed, availability, kindness, sensitivity), the establishment of teamwork (coordination, facilitation), and the recognition of the basic principles of the care process (individualization, respect for privacy, confidentiality). Applications : Findings demonstrate that social work is a profession well placed to help in the recognition of people's dignity at the end of life, in the exercise of their self-determination, and in the humanization of the care process. Some challenges facing consolidation of this professional practice are also indicated within a framework constrained by a predominantly biomedical culture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: This article concerns interpreter-mediated Mental Health Act (MHA) (1983) assessments where either a signed or spoken language interpreter is required. It reports data from 132 Approved Mental Health Professionals (AMHPs) in England who have direct experience of such circumstances addressing expertise, training, readiness, and potential influences on the outcome when interpreters are involved. Quantitative data were collected by means of an online survey analyzed descriptively with additional open-ended qualitative responses analyzed thematically. Findings: More interpreter-mediated MHA assessments were reported as occurring in hospital than in community settings. Although AMHPs were confident in their expertise, nearly two-thirds felt they were less effective when an interpreter was involved. The vast majority had received only minimal training on how to work with an interpreter. Recording of language and interpreter use in the assessment was revealed as inconsistent. Most AMHPs thought incorrectly that interpreters were subject to mandatory registration with assured minimum standards of qualification and expertise. Practical problems associated with the timeliness of access to interpreters and complexities of using telephone interpreters instead of face to face were raised. AMHPs expressed a wish for more training and guidance including expectations of the interpreter role. Applications: Consistent standards of formal recording of interpreter use as part of annual monitoring of the MHA are required to understand any potential inequities of outcome resulting from language mediation. Joint training with interpreters is desirable with more specific guidance and resources for working AMHPs and interpreters to promote best practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Accumulating evidence indicates the multifaceted nature of social support. Although support seekers may receive help, they may also encounter upsetting responses. It remains unclear how seeking and receiving social support, when differentiated, are associated with individuals' strengths and well-being. This study collected survey data from 357 adults recruited from the southeastern United States. We classified participants using the factors of support seeking and support received into four groups: Interconnected (high on support seeking and receiving), Tended (low on support seeking, high on support receiving), Rebuffed (high on support seeking, low on support receiving), and Isolated (low on support seeking and receiving). We then examined the differences among groups. Findings: The study found significant differences among the four groups in measures of regulatory strengths, meaning-making strengths, interpersonal strengths, and perceived well-being. In general, the Interconnected group scored highest among the four groups, followed by the Tended group, the Rebuffed group, and lastly, the Isolated group. Applications: The finding that the Rebuffed group did not score significantly lower than the Isolated group underscores the importance of support seeking. Individuals may benefit from the support seeking process even though they do not obtain the support needed. Social work practitioners should facilitate and optimize their clients' support seeking, including removing clients' barriers to support seeking and addressing clients' negative experiences in the support seeking process. Social work researchers should measure multiple aspects of social support, including support received and support seeking. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Gangs are commonly presented in research as an attractive alternative for those who feel excluded and unrecognized in "ordinary" society. Gang life is volatile, however, and violence (open or suppressed) is more or less omnipresent. Exiting a gang seems to be motivated by both thoughts of a better life and disappointment in the gang's failure to meet hopes and expectations. Findings: From an analysis of former gang members exit processes, this article investigates what about gang life was stressful and motivated participants dropout, how they coped with tensions, and elaborates how social work could use this tension productively to support people exiting gangs. The data consist primary of interviews with 20 former gang members and 42 professionals. Organizational theory was used in combination with theories on liminality and identity reformation to understand how tensions occurred in gang life, how they were managed, and what caused exit. Applications: Social workers may help members exit from gangs by supporting and strengthening their motivations to leave, stimulating their self-reflection, and reminding them of their past transformative. Most important, gang members should be helped to recognize the positive urges that drew them towards gangs and refocus those wishes for community to general society. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Queer has existed in academia since the late twentieth century and has developed into a prominent theoretical orientation and subject of academic inquiry. Although queer theory originates within critical spheres of the humanities, social work has tepidly adopted it and subsequently domesticated it. This paper considers what might be dangerous about a tamed, academic queerness. Equally, what might be exciting for social work about a combative and wholly unknowable version of queer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is significant literature on the existence and adverse effects of social isolation and depression among the elderly, exacerbated by the recent COVID-19 pandemic. A literature review indicates no studies of how the Medicare home health benefit addresses social isolation and depression, including no studies of home care social workers' perceptions of the nature and consequences of Medicare coverage. This article summarizes an initial, exploratory study to address the literature gap, based on interviews of a convenience sample of 44 home care social workers from 5 different home health agencies in the New York City metropolitan area between November 1, 2021 and May 31, 2022. Six themes emerged from the study. Social workers believe: (1) extensive social isolation and depression exist among Medicare home health beneficiaries; (2) Medicare home health policy provides no systematic measure to detect or monitor social isolation and a limited measure for depression among the homebound elderly; (3) Medicare home health policy provides no coverage to treat either depression or social isolation; (4) effective interventions are available to prevent and treat depression and social isolation. Social workers also believe that: (5) the lack of social isolation and depression coverage results in additional mental and physical health conditions; (6) lack of social isolation and depression coverage exacerbates existing mental and physical health conditions. Policymakers are urged to modify the Medicare home health benefit to improve detection and monitoring of social isolation and depression as well as coverage of appropriate evidence-based preventative and treatment interventions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Support and Aid to Families Electronically (SAFE) pilot program was developed through a community–university partnership to support parents of elementary students in Ontario, while providing stable practicums for social work students in the midst of COVID-19 restrictions. Purpose: The aim of the current study was to examine the feasibility of the SAFE pilot program as a mental health support to families by examining three feasibility objectives: demand, acceptably, and implementation. Method: Qualitative data from interviews, focus groups, and qualitative surveys involving service users, social work students, referring school board and university professionals (n = 37) were examined. Results: Demand for SAFE extended beyond the pandemic. A high-level of acceptance of SAFE was identified. Areas of success and considerations for implementation are outlined. Discussion: This study provides practice guidance on implementing this unique program, with potential to address gaps in service provision and the ongoing crisis in field education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Text-based vignettes are widely used within qualitative social work research yet there is little guidance on how to construct and integrate them into the research process. This article discusses the uses, benefits and limitations of written vignettes as part of semi-structured interviews and focus groups with social workers and related professionals. It provides clear guidelines on how to design a vignette. This includes the choice of scenario, characteristics of the protagonist, type of vignette, research setting, length, vignettes in semi-structured interviews and pre-testing. Text-based vignettes have been successfully used in social work research on six continents in a variety of research contexts including single context, comparative, cross-sectional, longitudinal and replication studies. Written vignettes are a useful tool to elicit (professional) values, attitudes and decision-making processes in a time efficient manner that produces focused, in-depth knowledge without the need to use real practice examples that could potentially include sensitive data or breach confidentiality. Vignettes have been used to explore a wide range of topics including but not limited to adult safeguarding, care planning, child protection and multi-agency working together. There is some debate whether vignette responses mirror real-life actions. The value of vignette data goes beyond documenting real-world decision-making. It can uncover tacit social work knowledge and unquestioned beliefs to show how they interplay in decision-making. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Mindfulness and cognitive training interventions are promising models to address impacts (e.g., anxiety and stress) of cognitive impairment among older adults. Combining strategies may yield better outcomes than models offered in isolation. However, there are numerous uncertainties about these interventions, potential for combination, and implementation. Social workers are well placed to offer these interventions. Findings: From an initial search of 3,538 records, 13 studies were included in the final review. Mindfulness studies focused on stress reduction or cognitive behavioral therapy. Cognitive training studies applied stimulation or activity approaches. Results indicate that the field is still emerging, as most studies were pilot or feasibility trials. A combination of mindfulness-based stress reduction and brain training activities may offer the most promising model for older adults with cognitive impairment, based on outcome assessments and other factors. A common limitation among the reports was detailed on engaging older adults with cognitive challenges in the design and implementation of these interventions. Applications: This realist review deepens the understanding of how, why, for whom, and in what circumstances a combination of mindfulness and cognitive training could be most successful for social workers to address intersecting cognitive and aging needs of older adults. Building evidence on combining mindfulness-based stress reduction and brain training activities among older adults with cognitive impairment could yield promising results, and this review identifies implementation considerations. The review also found a need for psychometric scale development on the benefits of brain training activities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: The field of social work has seen increased recognition across many sectors in recent years. Evolving racial, political, and medical paradigms and the COVID-19 pandemic have shown the importance of a person-centered approach to health and mental health. One such area of practice is neurology, specifically work with people with Parkinson's disease (PD), which is the second most common neurodegenerative disease, currently impacting more than 10 million people worldwide. While social workers have long played key roles in multidisciplinary teams in PD care settings, research and literature offering assessment and evidence in this area remain limited. This research study used a mixed-methods approach with additional in-depth qualitative interviews conducted with 11 social workers. This article presents findings from the 11 interviewees who are presently working with people with PD using thematic analysis. Findings: Themes emerging were an in-depth detailed role of the social worker, the importance of strong relationships working with people with PD and their families, multidisciplinary teams, and the community. Institutional challenges were highlighted concerning supporting social work positions and encouraging social work intervention from the beginning of diagnosis to the end stages of the disease. COVID-19 proved very challenging for social workers, multidisciplinary teams, and families, and yet positive practices were identified as well. Applications: The impact of this study reinforces the essential role specialized PD social workers play in multidisciplinary PD teams and recognition needed to increase their role through early intervention reflected in increasing social work positions in neurology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Unpaid carers were profoundly impacted by the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic and public health responses. In the UK, in March 2020, people identified as clinically extremely vulnerable and their household members were advised to "shield" for an initial 12-week period, which meant minimizing all contacts from outside the household and not leaving the house at all, unless in an emergency. In a modified form, shielding guidance remained in place until August 2020 and was reinstituted from December 2020 until April 1, 2021. This article, reporting on qualitative interviews with 47 unpaid carers in Wales, thematically analyzed using a coding framework, explores the experiences of unpaid carers affected by this shielding guidance and their wider implications for social work with unpaid carers in the future. Findings: Participants in our study described ways in which their caring role expanded, due to the need to provide additional practical and emotional support for loved ones who were shielding, and who lost access to other avenues of support. Some also described their caring role as becoming more involved and complex due to the declining health or self-care capacity of the person cared-for as a direct consequence of shielding restrictions. Alongside the increase in their caring responsibilities, carers reported losing access to important avenues of support for their own well-being. Applications: We draw on ecological systems theory to highlight the importance during care planning and management of exploring the carer's mesosystem to identify and optimize sustaining forces, and of attending to the microsystem involving the carer and person cared-for. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: When elderly patients are admitted to a hospital, they may require support from medical social workers during hospitalization. This study examined the association between patient characteristics and support provided by medical social workers in applications for social welfare benefits during hospitalization. We conducted a retrospective observational study of patients aged 65 years or older between October 2018 and September 2021 who had involvement by a medical social worker during their hospitalization at a tertiary care hospital in Japan. We evaluated associations between background factors and support in applying for social welfare benefits by medical social workers using logistic regression analysis. Findings: Among 485 eligible patients, 79 (16.3%) received support from a medical social worker in an application for social welfare benefits. Early elderly age (65–74 years) and living alone were independently associated with receiving support from medical social workers (adjusted odds ratio [OR] 1.98, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.16–3.37, P =.012; 3.86, 95% CI 2.26–6.62, P <.001, respectively), regardless of sex, activities of daily living before admission, and presence of a regular doctor. Application: The findings suggest that early elderly individuals who live alone may not be able to utilize the available welfare benefits and not have adequate support from family members when admitted to a tertiary care hospital, even if they have adequate activities of daily living and a regular doctor. Early intervention to improve social vulnerability may be required for early elderly individuals who live alone. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: The present U.S.-based study adds to the ongoing discourse on the ethical use of digital technology in social work practice, made more urgent by the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Following the achievement of Human Subjects approval, we obtained a stratified, random sample of 150 institutions of higher education with Council on Social Work Education-accredited undergraduate and graduate social work programs. Prior to COVID-19, we administered a 61-item, Likert-scale survey to social work program directors via email, who then communicated this information to student listservs. A total of 430 social work student responses were retained for analysis. The survey instrument included items related to the students' social media use, their attitudes toward social media, and their knowledge of social media's impact on society. Rao-Scott chi-square tests for independence were used to ascertain statistical relationships between U.S. social work students' responses to the survey item, social media should be used as a treatment modality, and student demographic variables that include: Age, program level, course format, and social media use. Findings: Statistically significant relationships were determined to exist between social work students' endorsement of social media as a treatment modality and: (1) Age and (2) program level. Conversely, no significant relationships were found regarding (1) course format and (2) social media use. Applications: Implications for social work professional education are discussed. Recommendations for future social work research are provided: (1) A national replication study; (2) qualitative studies; (3) a comparative study with social work educators and practitioners; (3) a global study; and (4) ongoing evaluation of direct practice methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Social workers have had a pivotal role in handling the challenges faced by people dealing with the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Supporting clients who have undergone traumatic experiences during a global pandemic may increase the risk of experiencing secondary traumatic stress. This study examined two protective factors that may be key in the association between stress and social workers' secondary traumatic stress: Psychological capital (internal protective factor) and satisfaction with supervision (external factor). The study sample included 104 Israeli social workers who worked in their profession during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic. A regression-based path analysis was conducted to test the moderation model with the PROCESS software. Findings: Self-efficacy significantly moderated the association between perceived stress and intrusion; increasing self-efficacy decreases perceived stress's effect on intrusion. Although no significant moderating effect was found for the existence of supervision, the interaction between perceived stress and satisfaction with supervision was significant in predicting secondary trauma. Applications: Social workers' unions must work to improve the quality of supervision and raise awareness of the importance of supervision in general and particularly during times of crisis. Manageable workloads, a reasonable balance between work and home, and verbal and financial encouragement to seek professional psychological assistance would all be to the advantage of social workers at risk for secondary trauma. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: The rise in anti-Asian hate since the COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the challenges that Asian Americans in the United States (U.S.) experience with xenophobia, racism, and the "model-minority stereotype." The model-minority stereotype is a misleading myth that has been pervasively attached to the Asian American identity and experiences. Thus, it can serve as a useful framework to understand experiences in the current anti-Asian hate climate. In this exploratory qualitative study, the investigators interviewed Asian American social workers (N = 17), highlighting their perspectives and experiences during the anti-Asian hate climate, with attention paid to how the model minority stereotype was contextualized among participants. Findings: The resounding tone underlying participants' model-minority stereotype-related discussions was the need to counter the model minority stereotype. Notably, the model-minority stereotype was contextualized differently for participants and three themes were identified: (1) limbo between model minority and perpetual foreigner status; (2) impacts on the social worker role and in the organizational setting; and (3) impacts on advocacy work. Applications: Study findings suggest a need for continued support and opportunities to unlearn and relearn the purpose of the model-minority stereotype and its broad sweep and attacks on various health dimensions (physically, psychologically, socially, and spiritually) across Asian Americans ethnic groups. Countering the model-minority stereotype can play a pivotal role in transforming the narratives surrounding Asian American's identity and experiences in the U.S., in addition to organizational culture and dynamics to support Asian Americans social workers practice and advocacy work across practice levels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Drawing on historical constructions of Indigenous peoples, this paper analyses the continued impact of settler discourses of Indigenous families, parenting, and children on child welfare policy in Canada today. Findings: In this work, two provincial children's Advocate reports on the deaths of Indigenous children in care, Tina Fontaine and Alex Gervais, are critically assessed in order to explore the processes through which these colonial constructions operate to create adverse outcomes for Indigenous people. Through this analysis, a number of contemporary colonial narratives are made visible, including the belief that Indigenous parents are inherently incapable of caring for their children, and the gendered construction of Indigenous men and boys as criminal and deviant and Indigenous girls as sexually exploitable. Application: These findings suggest that greater critical reflection is needed when working with Indigenous peoples, including greater awareness of the ongoing impact of settler colonialism and the necessity of engaging in anti-colonial work. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Community service-learning (CSL) has been referred to as a "pedagogy for citizenship," as it enhances ethical behavior and social responsibility among student participants. It represents a pedagogical and philosophical approach that promotes experiential learning by incorporating intentional course-based lessons with service in the community. Despite the numerous studies outlining the benefits of CSL initiatives, there is a dearth of research on how CSL courses can impact students already in the "helping professions." More specifically, there is very little research on the benefits of CSL in social work field education courses. For this study, the researchers found that developing a CSL practicum led to a substantive shift in professional understanding for the students who participated in a CSL learning opportunity. Although the traditional and CSL groups began their practicum experiences believing the primary role of a social worker was to build and maintain healthy relationships with service users, the CSL group saw their primary role switch from a "micro practice" to a "macro practice" worker. CSL offers social work education additional unique opportunities to support the development of student's social work core values, knowledge, and skills. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Disability communities engaged with social work recognize how critical feminist inquiry and disability justice principles often overlap to promote anti-ableist theorizing, research, practice, and education. Both the feminist scholarship and the disability justice movement center the voices and perspectives of those most excluded, reflecting the intersectional experiences of disability communities in social work. In this brief, we draw on significant events, such as the impact of climate change and criminal legal systems on disabled people, to map connections between critical feminisms, disability justice principles, and social work values. In re-imagining disability justice as a form of critical feminism, we highlight parallels in their guiding principles and explore how their multi-issue frameworks interrogate the same systems of power and oppression. Through this re-envisioning, we build upon the knowledge offered by intersectional disability communities that center interdependence as practices of survival and resistance. The authors suggest that social workers engaged with principles of disability justice and critical feminisms would do well to consider interdependence, collective care, and mutual aid as pathways toward inclusive and anti-ableist professional praxis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Social work praxis has long been in conversation with feminist praxis and has more recently been informed by an anticolonial feminist praxis that aims to center theorizing, activism, and service delivery around individuals and communities considered "most marginalized." While this "most marginalized" class may be deemed newly worthy social service consumers this framing reinforces extant settler colonial hierarchies of power and oppression by constituting new classes of "deserving" and "undeserving" social service recipients. This article explores how the feminist organizing, scholarship, and activism of the past decade—specifically around the #MeToo movement and trans-exclusionary radical feminism (TERF) wars—have impacted social work praxis and laid bare the dualistic binds of a post-structuralism that has been consumed and recast within neoliberalism as demobilized identity politics. By examining these limitations, questions are raised regarding next steps for a social work praxis concerned with justice, transformation, and liberation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is significant literature about the Medicare Outcome and Information Assessment (OASIS). A new OASIS Version E, effective January 2023, makes significant changes in assessing patient mental health. However, a literature review indicates no studies of the anticipated effectiveness of the OASIS-E on improving psychosocial care of Medicare home health beneficiaries. This article summarizes an initial, exploratory study to address the literature gap, based on interviews of a convenience sample of 36 home care social workers from 5 different home health agencies in the New York City metropolitan area between August 1, 2022, and November 30, 2022. Four themes emerged from the study, namely that social workers believe the OASIS-E revisions: are an improvement over prior OASIS versions; are cumbersome and do not require administration by a social worker; do not impose specific guidance requirements on using new measures scoring results in making care decisions; and do not address coverage of specific interventions that address patients with significant mental health issues. Policymakers are urged to modify the OASIS-E guidance manual to require use of new mental health assessment scores in care planning and to expand coverage of evidence-based treatment interventions for patients with significant assessed mental health conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Bibliometric analysis has been widely adopted to measure individual productivity and discipline development. This study aims to advance the application of this method in the social work discipline. Method: Using the knowledge mapping technique in CiteSpace 5.8.R3, this study performed a co-word analysis of 1,007 first-authored articles published from 2000 to 2022 by 60 scholars who are listed among the top 2% most-cited scholars on social work and are holding doctoral degrees in the same field. Results: The cluster analysis identified seven main research hotspots and burst detection results revealed four groups of research frontiers, including spiritual and cultural needs, children's wellbeing, social work practices and development, and social work research, with bullying and peer victimization, particularly among African-American adolescents and youth in Chicago's southside, continuing to attract much research interest. Discussion: This study examines how individual works contribute to the conceptual structure and scientific evolution of social work. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This study explored the conceptual framework and procedures of course design and then optimal evaluation tools for blended learning in social work education in the Chinese context. Method: Fifteen courses of five social work programs in Hong Kong are used to create a blueprint for blended learning in the social work curriculum in the Hong Kong Chinese context. Videos, virtual tours, online games, and an e-forum are components of the course design while pre-test and post-test multiple measurements are used for course evaluation. Parameters are provided for the blended learning blueprint and framework that integrate face-to-face instruction and virtual learning elements. Results: A prominent conceptual framework and important protocols in social work higher education in China is introduced. Discussion: The results of this study contribute to current understanding of the applicability and pedagogical aspects of blended learning in social work in the Chinese context, especially in the post-pandemic era. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: An interview study was conducted with persons receiving home care services and personal assistance in Sweden (13 individuals, 25 interviews) with the aim to analyze their experiences of managing personal and intimate care. The analytical approach was guided by phenomenologically informed research and Erving Goffman's theoretical work on self-presentation and social life as it differs in frontstage and backstage settings. Findings: A reflected approach to the complex challenges associated with becoming and being a person in need of personal and intimate care was revealed. This involved continuous adaptations and attuning to organizational and relational conditions of formal home care. Being a recipient of personal and intimate care does not mean being passive. It entails relating to and sustaining the care relation, where even choosing to accept suboptimal conditions is an act of agency. The recipients' private homes were hybridized, transformed both into a waiting room, with the recipient on standby and into a workplace. The homes thus partly lost their character as a backstage realm where one could avoid the gaze of others. This also led to a hybridization of the personal sphere, in the form of marginal scope for true privacy, necessitating strategies for protecting one's own space. Applications: It is important both to acknowledge the intrusive nature of personal and intimate care, which results in extensive hybridization of the home and personal sphere and to recognize care recipients' agency in the relationship that care establishes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Although the literature is rich in contributions analyzing the role of social workers in sports, there remains a lack of empirical research with respect to how these workers can be determinant in the development of inclusion outcomes in sports-driven interventions targeting socially vulnerable youth. The investigation analyzes the case of a sports-based program run by an Italian non-profit organization (NGO) from an ecological system perspective. Data from interviews and focus groups with youth involved in the program (21), parents (15), sport coaches (9), and the social workers of the NGO (15) were triangulated with the aim of exploring how social workers promoted inclusion through sport. Data were analyzed in a top–down thematic analysis. Findings: Social workers promoted many social inclusion outcomes: (1) they linked sport clubs with the youth excluded from the sport system, thus sustaining access to sport; (2) they emotionally supported youth and their families in the program, fostering the relational dimension of social inclusion; (3) they formed alliances between the diverse systems of youth life, enhancing youth capacity to overcome their personal challenges in sports; and (4) they encouraged the integration of people coming from different socio-economic backgrounds within the sport context. Applications: The case informs the practice of social workers in sport-driven interventions providing insights around the tasks they should achieve to promote social inclusion, including (1) recruitment of youth excluded from the sport system and linkage with sport clubs, (2) sport bureaucracy support, and (3) dialogue with diverse youth life systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary : Stress in social work is frequently experienced by practitioners and is attributed to a range of work-related factors. This study explored the manifestation of burnout, perceived social support, and work-life balance in 73 social workers in two cities in south India. A cross-sectional quantitative design was used. Data were collected based on survey methodology and three standardized instruments were administered to assess the manifestation of our key variables. Multiple regression analysis was used to identify the predictors of burnout. Findings : Results indicated high levels of burnout and low levels of social support and work-life balance in respondents. No significant differences were seen in the key variables of the study based on selected sociodemographic factors. Both social support and work-life balance were extracted as significant predictors of burnout. Application : We suggest that issues related to burnout and compassion fatigue are key aspects that need to be incorporated within the social work curriculum in educational programs in India. A focus on maintaining a healthy work-life balance, and the importance of self-care in maintaining good health and wellbeing are key elements that need to be emphasized. We make use of the literature to offer suggestive measures that can be taken to enhance the provision of social support, maintain better work-life balance and reduce the incidence of burnout in social work practitioners. This will in the long run bode well for the mental health and wellbeing of the professionals besides ensuring better quality of service provision to the community that they work with. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: The COVID-19 pandemic has dramatically changed the possibilities for people to interact and communicate. This article examines Swedish social workers' experiences of the extent to which the COVID-19 pandemic has affected the use of digital tools in their work, and whether this use has affected the social worker–client relationship and their stress levels. The article draws on a web survey (N = 541) via a quantitative analysis of responses and a qualitative analysis of answers to an open-ended question. Findings: Most respondents agreed on experiencing increased use of digital tools in the relationship with the clients, increased skills in using digital tools, and a more positive view of digital tools in the social worker–client relationship. However, experiences on whether stress levels had increased and the relationship with the clients worsened, were divided. Age correlates positively with increased stress levels, and social workers working with social assistance, as well as women, are more likely to agree on that the relationship with the clients has worsened. Responses from open-ended questions highlight a rapid shift where social workers have gained a more positive view of digital tools, that video meetings can increase efficiency and flexibility, but also work environment problems. Applications: This article contributes with useful insights into how the use of digital tools during the COVID-19 pandemic has changed and affected stress and the social worker–client relationship. It can support discussions on the future implementation of digital tools in social work after the pandemic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Two fast-track child and family social work training programs have been established in England — Step Up to Social Work and Frontline. Trainees' financial support is far higher than for mainstream social work degrees. One of the reasons claimed for setting up these programs is addressing retention, although critics (of Frontline) predicted graduates would not stay in social work. A 4-year study assessed retention and reasons for leaving social work. Attrition rates from statutory social work were calculated from responses (n = 2543) to annual surveys, plus looking up non-respondents in the professional register. Interviews were conducted with fast-track graduates (n = 80) and employers (n = 29). Findings: The overall rate of social work graduates not in statutory social work at 18 months post-qualification was 12% for fast-track programs, and Higher Education Statistics Agency survey data show attrition at 15 months post-qualification as 18% for all social work routes. Frontline's original national recruitment approach was less successful for retention than Step Up to Social Work's regional approach. Perceived local authority support and intrinsic job satisfaction were associated with attrition in longitudinal bivariate analysis. Fast-track graduates leaving statutory social work typically moved to work in social care (including policy roles), health, or education. Applications: Early-career attrition appears to be somewhat lower from fast-track programs than from all social work graduates. Longer-term comparison is not yet possible. In promoting retention, employers should be aware of the importance of staff perceptions of the local authority as supportive, and of their intrinsic job satisfaction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Although Latinx families comprise the largest growing population in the United States, research has not examined how the lack of social inclusion (e.g., multidimensional term comprising economic, political, and cultural dimensions, among others) influences the lives of low-income Latina mothers. Social inclusion, which is a term born as a counterpart to social exclusion, has been overlooked as an alternative construct that allows the development of personal agency. Contrary to social exclusion paradigms which often focus on deficits, social inclusion focuses on recognizing inherit strengths among vulnerable families. The first purpose of this research is to explore social inclusion (a strength perspective) as a much-needed alternative to social exclusion (deficit view). The second is to describe the experiences of low social inclusion among low-income urban Latina mothers via two interviews, a focus group, recollection of artifacts from participants, and reflective journaling, which were documented within a context of a feminist action research intervention. Participants consisted of 12 low-income Latina mothers (N = 12) who participated in a financial literacy intervention. Findings: Via thematic analysis, findings confirmed two new dimensions of low social inclusion not found in traditional literature: low language and technological inclusion. Applications: Recommendations for social work practitioners and future research include developing culturally relevant interventions among minoritized communities and families, for instance, by promoting bilingual curricula and implementing technology in current interventions, which can have significant positive effects on the social inclusion of vulnerable communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Summary : This article reviews the existing literature on power within a social work context and extends the analysis to broader sociological understandings through which to rethink the ways in which social work professionals understand and work with power within everyday practice. • Findings: The review argues that prevailing dichotomies, which feature so centrally in theoretical conceptualisations of power, offering binary positions of power as 'good or bad', 'positive or negative' and 'productive or limiting' are limiting in themselves. It is argued that power must also be recognised as a construct which operates in a synchronous way; whereby it can impact in limiting and productive ways at the same time. • Applications : To support this position, the Power-informed Practice (PiP) framework, which recognises power at the individual, professional and structural levels is offered. The utility of the framework in providing a clearer understanding of power is then presented in relation to working with children who have experienced abuse. As a tool, the framework enables social workers to structure their analysis of power within all areas of contemporary social work practice, in order to promote and support processes of empowerment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article is designed to open a conversation about the place of spirituality in social work, highlight possible ethical issues, and question whether spirituality, as defined by social work and popular culture, is an immutable part of human development. Additionally, the role of social work in conducting spiritual assessments and interventions is specifically challenged, along with examples of how the misuse of spirituality can harm clients. The article also suggests that the profession would benefit from adopting an evidence-based concept of spirituality and establishing accountability standards. Findings : Until more is known about spirituality, social workers may want to consider: (1) placing a moratorium on using and developing spiritual assessment instruments until the concept can be accurately defined; (2) omitting words linked to religious symbols such as soul, anointing, blessing, etc. in social work practice; (3) conducting spiritual screenings rather than complete spiritual assessments, and (4) referring clients with spiritual questions or wanting spiritual support to experts known not to blame or harm clients and trained in the specific area of concerns expressed by the person. Applications. The time has come for social work to establish ethics, accountability, and limitations on the practice of spirituality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Afghan refugees experienced a surge of crisis in August 2021 after the U.S. troops withdrew operations in Afghanistan, leaving them exposed to the harms of the Taliban regime. Sudden evacuation led to family separation and uncertainty. Furthermore, the trauma of leaving loved ones behind and resettling into a new country of which this group had limited familiarity could have challenges in terms of integration. Through our brief practice note, we discuss the challenges faced by Afghan refugees resettling in the United States during these difficult times, along with implications for practitioners and service providers. We highlight strategies to ensure culturally responsive service provision for these refugees. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In social work, practitioners are often faced with situations in which they have to choose an intervention. A fundamental ethical principle of social work practice is to minimize the risk of adverse effects caused by social services. To adhere to this principle, practitioners must be aware of the possible positive and negative effects of potential services. There are hundreds of interventions currently in use in social work. Although there are a growing number of controlled trials on social work interventions, there are only a few interventions based on research that has the highest degree of certainty, making it difficult to know how and in what way these interventions can support a person in need of assistance. This article, based in part on the experience we gained training practitioners working in Swedish social services, presents a tentative model for assessing the best available evidence comparing interventions when scientific evidence is sparse. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Thinking aloud is presented as a qualitative research and practice tool that enhances critical reflection and learning when it is applied in supervisor–supervisee dyads. Aotearoa New Zealand's statutory child protection organisation, Oranga Tamariki (OT), has been openly criticised in reports damning ineffective social work practice regarding child and family assessments, cultural competency and critical practice. But what is really going on inside OT? Working alongside OT social workers, the authors explored ways to build critical reflection, resilience and well-being amongst supervisors and supervisees. Critical reflection was used as the methodological lens in this supervision study. The authors examine data collected from six supervisor–supervisee dyads participating in a thinking aloud process. Supervision recordings were analysed for reflective capacity, skills and current supervision practices in OT. Thinking aloud promoted a co-constructed space for supervisors and supervisees to critically reflect on their relationship together and their practice discussions in supervision. Using thematic analysis, four themes were generated from the thinking aloud discussions: the supervision agenda; supervisor skills; supervisory relationship and thinking aloud in supervision. These themes highlighted the significance of thinking aloud in providing deeper analysis and feedback on the quality of supervision and the skills used in the session. Reflective supervision is fundamental towards critical reflection and ethical social work practice. Within child protection services, it is crucial that social workers maintain a practice focus in robust decision-making effecting children and qualitative research supports this practice. Thinking aloud provides the basis for supervisors and supervisees to develop their skills together and ensure critical and accountable practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study describes insights shared by Indigenous Elders in British Columbia, Canada, who were asked about kinship care practices involving Indigenous children. It arises from a community-guided research study that set out to explore how child welfare organizations that work with Indigenous children and families can develop kinship care practices that honor traditional Indigenous values, beliefs, and practices around kinship care. In-person interviews took place with eight Elders in the fall of 2022. Thematic analysis revealed three themes: (a) kinship care as a traditional practice, (b) kinship care and current child welfare systems, and (c) creating kinship care practices that uphold traditional Indigenous values, beliefs, and practices. This article discusses these themes and their sub-themes and offers suggestions for child welfare organizations, policy-makers, and practitioners. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]