Doctors’ Remarks Criticised

Press, Volume CVIII, Issue 31754, 10 August 1968, Page 22

Doctors’ Remarks Criticised

Hospital social work* era do a considerable amount of work in the community, according to the senior medical social worker for the North Canterbury Hospital Board (Mr M. R. McGregor).

He said this week that a statement by a group of Canterbury general practitioners in the latest issue of the “New Zealand Medical Journal” showed a lack of understanding of the role and function of hospital social workers.

The doctors said the job of hospital social workers was to empty hospital beds and often a conflict with the patient’s interests was seen. Mr McGregor said he objected to this statement, as did the medical superin-tendent-in-chief (Dr L. M. Berry). “In our hospitals it is only the medical staff who discharge patients and the social worker will, if required, arrange for the patient outside the high-cost acute bed area, even if it takes a little time,” Dr Berry said. “Let us be the last to suggest that the use of social workers in association with general practitioners is other than a good thing,” he said. “Our social workers spend much of their time assisting practitioners on request. All their efforts are directed towards the patients’ best interests, often to the extent of holding discharge until suitable housing can be arranged. “We certainly do not employ them simply to empty beds; such a suggestion is a reflection on the social workers’ professional status and indicates a lack of knowledge and appreciation on the part of the writers of the article of what is going on around them.” Social workers did work with general practitioners, Mr McGregor said, most cases being elderly, frail and sick people referred because of the need for accommodation. A total of 344 had been referred last year and 44 per

cent of these had been admitted to hospital for investigation. Others had been given additional domiciliary help. The aim of social workers was to develop a relationship which would enable the patient and family to meet and deal with social problems and personal anxieties arising from the patient's illness. "The article gives the impression that social workers are not working in the interests of the patients,” Mr McGregor said. “We have a code of ethics similar to the medical profession, and we work in the interests of the patient This revolves around the skill of the social workers and the numbers

available, rather than the setting.” Frequently considerable distance in travelling and time were involved in working with family and patients in reassuring people and persuading patients to accept accommodation.

For younger chronic outpatients, group counselling was provided, and social problems were discussed with patients in conjunction with doctors.

Mr McGregor said it could not be denied that there was an urgent need for more social workers to work in the community. But one group of general practitioners actually employed a social worker who was incorporated in his

department’s in-service training programme. He expressed interest in the proposal that social workers should be involved in group practice. In England it had been found that patients had been able to get help in this way, when otherwise they would have gone without.

There it was felt that the need for social workers was along more general lines rather than in the setting of hospitals, courts, and child care centres.

But in England it was less certain that the family doctor’s surgery was the most appropriate base for a social worker working along these lines.