Developing Structures for Accountability in a Hospital Social Work Department: An Empirical Approach

Abstract

The paper describes how a Hospital Social Work Department has attempted to provide some structures to meet the current challenges in health care of quality, access and cost. The use of a computerised patient information system is linked to the development of a management programme designed to generate priorities of service and to provide a framework for case review. The second part of the paper focuses on structures for determining the needs of key target populations and means of gaining access to social work services. The last section relates the question of cost effectiveness to time spent in direct and indirect service, patient need and access to community support. The paper argues that in order to develop effective structures for accountability in hospital Social Work Departments it is necessary to have sound empirical data on patient populations, problems encountered and service provided and illustrates this by reference to the above studies.