Involvement of Social Workers in the Community Service Provision System for the Older People in Urban China

ABSTRACT

Using Guangdong Province as the focus for this research, this article explores the role and functions of social work services in the elderly care system, and then analyses the relationship between social work services and family care services in urban China. The research found that social workers are confronted with challenges when providing culturally sensitive services, indicating a need for them to further develop their capacity to interpret service items and service provision procedures for older adults and family members.

IMPLICATIONS

• In China, social workers should focus on the impact of filial piety on older adults who are clients of community service programs.

• At the initial stage of service provision, social workers may need to exert considerable effort to interpret service items and service provision procedures for older adults and family members.

• In Australia and other countries, where social workers often work with elderly Chinese immigrants and their families, familiarity with the concept of filial piety may be important.

本研究聚焦广东，探讨了社工服务在老年看护系统中的角色和功能，对中国城市中社工服务与家庭看护服务的关系做了分析。研究发现，社会工作者在提供文化敏感服务时会遇到挑战，这就需要他们进一步提高能力，将服务项目及程序翻译给老年人及其家庭成员。

KEYWORDS:

• Filial Piety
• Social Work
• Elderly Care Service
• China
• Community Service

Acknowledgement

The work described in this paper was supported by Humanities and Social Science Foundation of Ministry of Education of China (16JJD840011), Guangzhou 13th Five Year Plan in Philosophy and Social Science (2016GZQN05), and Talent Project of Guangzhou 13th Five Year Plan in Philosophy and Social Science (2017GZZK41).

Disclosure Statement

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

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by Talent Project of Guangzhou 13th Five Year Plan in Philosophy and Social Science [Grant Number: 2017GZZK41]; the City University of Hong Kong; Guangzhou 13th Five Year Plan in Philosophy and Social Science [Grant Number: 2016GZQN05].