Throughout the Midwest and the southern United States, new groups of Hispanic/Latino and other immigrants are settling in large numbers. In many regions, very little infrastructure exists in social service, health care, and educational entities that would allow professionals to deliver much-needed services. Little data exist on the…

Needs assessment survey of 268 polio survivors explored incidence of postpolio syndrome and perceived need for and access to social and health care services. Large proportion of respondents reported experiencing postpolio syndrome. Most perceived that they had no access to knowledgeable physicians or social and health care services, and most were…

This study examines the demographic and physical and mental health characteristics of social work clients among cancer patients in Canada as compared with nonusers of social work services, and factors that affect use of social work services among cancer patients. On the basis of data from two cycles of the Canadian Community Health Survey, the…

The purpose of this study is to provide a profile of individuals with diabetes who receive services in adult day centers. This exploratory study uses an administrative data set (N = 280) from five programs in central Ohio to examine four areas: demographics, health and mental health, financial and social resources, and disenrollment status. Older…

Workplace violence is a serious and surprisingly understudied occupational hazard in social service settings. The authors of this study conducted an anonymous, Internet-based survey of Massachusetts social service agencies to estimate the incidence of physical assault and verbal threat of violence in social service agencies, understand how social…

This article reports the findings of a qualitative study on the contribution of foster home caregivers for people with serious mental illness. Traditionally, social workers have played a key role in the supervision of foster homes. Little is known about how the help caregivers provide is similar to, or different from, that provided by mental…

People with intellectual disabilities (ID) have experienced increasing levels of community participation since deinstitutionalization. This freedom has facilitated community inclusion, access to alcohol and drugs, and the potential for developing substance abuse (SA) disorders. People with ID, who are known to have high rates of co-occurring…

This study sought to identify the psychiatric, physical, and social services needs experienced by older adults with severe mental illness (SMI) and to examine factors influencing their experience of need and service provision adequacy. Seventy-five older adults with SMI were recruited from a community mental health center to participate in the…

This study measured levels of self-reported social need in a sample of 684 veterans seen in four primary care clinics of a large Veterans Affairs health care system, using the Social Needs Checklist, and calculated levels of social work staffing to meet these needs. Data were obtained on the presence and severity of 15 areas of social needs,…

The present study explored hospital community benefits and free care programs at seven hospitals in Nassau and Suffolk counties in Long Island, New York. There were two components to this project: (1) assessment of information regarding the availability of free care and (2) an analysis of the community benefits information filed with state…

Despite the vast literature on caregiver stress, few studies have explored how community services affect the stress process for spousal caregivers. The current study explores the differential effects of emotional and tangible support provided by family and friends and by formal services, and caregivers' perceptions of community services on spousal…

The purpose of this survey was to describe nursing home social services staff roles and perceptions related to end-of-life medical decision making for nursing home residents in endstage dementia. Using a self-designed questionnaire, 138 nursing home social services staff from across New York State answered questions about advance directives,…

People living with HIV/AIDS often need assistance in deciding whether or how to disclose their HIV status to others, and case managers are in a unique position to offer this assistance. The current study surveyed 223 case managers providing services to people living with HIV/AIDS in New York State. The survey was conducted anonymously, and case…

Although intimate partner violence (IPV) may occur throughout a woman's life course, there has been a paucity of research on the experiences of victimization among midlife and older women. This article examines both the prevalence of IPV among a sample of women ages 50 to 64 (N = 620), who were recruited at an emergency department and primary care…

Assesses the social and environmental problems of 132 patients seen in a primary care clinic at a university-affiliated Veterans Affairs (VA) medical center. Prevalent social problems included financial difficulties, personal stress, family problems, legal concerns, and employment concerns. Findings suggest a clear need for social work…