Social Work: Possibilities for Practice in Residential Aged-care Facilities

ABSTRACT

There is a dearth of research exploring the unique contribution of social work in residential aged care, particularly in Australia. This scoping review addresses this gap by documenting the international literature on the role of social work. Ten peer-reviewed databases were utilised, resulting in 77 relevant articles. The results demonstrated that social work has a key role in aged-care facilities by contributing to an integrated, person-centred, and holistic model of service delivery.

IMPLICATIONS

• Contributing to the dignity, worth, wellbeing, and quality of life of all people who live in aged care requires a holistic and integrated model of care that involves the inclusion of social work.

• Australia falls behind other countries in providing holistic, person-centred, psychosocial support.

• More research is required to capture the contribution social work does make where services are provided.

KEYWORDS:

• Social Work and Residential Aged Care
• Psychosocial Support and Aged Care
• Quality of Life and Ageing

Acknowledgments

The research was made possible through Kickstart Funding through the QUT Faculty of Health, School of Public Health and Social Work.

Disclosure Statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).