Illustrating the value of social work: results of an open pilot trial of the psychosocial acuity scale in a large urban pediatric hospital

ABSTRACT

While Electronic Medical Records (EMRs) are an important mechanism used to document patient information and service provision, most interfaces prioritize collection of information required for medical billing purposes, rather than complexities of behavioral and social service needs. An emphasis on encounter data renders it challenging for social workers (SWs) to communicate statistically compelling explanations of contributions to team-based care and overall value to the health system. This paper reports outcomes of feasibility, acceptability, and appropriateness of integrating a validated psychosocial acuity metric into standardized social work (SW) documentation at a large, pediatric quaternary hospital in the northeastern United States. Approximately 20% (N = 42) of departmental SWs participated in an open pilot trial wherein participants were first trained in scale administration, utilized it for a circumscribed period following training, and evaluated implementation outcomes. Across five unique practice settings, results showed that the metric was feasible, acceptable and appropriate for use; 78% of participants were in favor of integrating it into the EMR interface as a required component of SW documentation. Assessing psychosocial acuity in every documented patient encounter facilitates intermittent review of psychosocial acuity at individual, setting, and programmatic levels and opportunities to evaluate how SW interventions address psychosocial acuity.

KEYWORDS:

• electronic medical records
• psychosocial acuity
• Health Care
• Pediatrics Social Work

Acknowledgments

We are grateful to the Social Work Department at Boston Children’s Hospital for championing social work research in service of patient care, members of the Care Coordination Committee for their dedication to this study, and to Ms. Stacey Klett for her guidance in training and administration of the Psychosocial Acuity Scale.

Correction Statement

This article has been republished with minor changes. These changes do not impact the academic content of the article.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Fordham University Graduate School of Social Service - Faculty Research Development Fund [N/A].