In this fascinating book, leading international experts in gerontology and social work examine the conditions of older people in their respective native lands--Australia, Canada, West Germany, Great Britain, Israel, Japan, the Netherlands, and Sweden. In response to the need for world-wide sharing of information and research on one of the most dramatic developments of the twentieth century in the United States and throughout the western world--the aging of the populations--these professionals offer an international dimension and cross-cultural knowledge to social gerontology and gerontological social work. Emphasis is placed on the social service delivery system in each country together with an analysis of social work roles and activities. The informative articles include demographic notes, the socioeconomic characteristics of older people in each country, and the author’s forecast of trends, issues, and future directions. These timely reviews of what has worked elsewhere may spark greater creativity among educators and practitioners in social work and gerontology in finding alternative solutions to the many problems professionals face as advocates and service providers for older adults. Social work practitioners and educators examine social services for seniors in eight different industrialized countries. Each chapter--focusing on a different country--features: a review of the social service delivery system, providing information about its historical evolution and current organization a look at home care programs, as well as community based and institutionally based services a review of service availability and accesibility with consideration of how social services are coordinated with health care and other human services special attention is given to social work roles within the social service system, including an examination of direct service and planning/management roles a consideration of the importance and usefulness of social work in service provision for each country a brief analysis of current trends and furture directions for gerontological social work and social services for the elderly. The cross-national perspectives will highlight global trends in the industrial world and illuminate distinctions among countries, based upon a particular historical, political, and cultural context. Gerontological Social Work provides a wider base for understanding and evaluating policies and programs in one’s own country. Each analysis suggests new and different ways of solving problems and providing services. Social work professionals worldwide will learn successful methods of enabling the elderly to maintain maximum self-sufficiency and participate actively in society, thus insuring improved quality of life.

Inspire the next generation of gerontological social workers The growing number of people over the age of 65 in the United States has increased the demand for social workers who are trained to work with the elderly—a demand that’s in danger of not being met. Fostering Social Work Gerontology Competence presents innovative techniques and strategies to help educators infuse aging content into their graduate and undergraduate curriculums in an effort to produce a new generation of social work practitioners who are up to the task of working with an older population. Recent surveys show that there has been a decline in the number of aging specialties and courses offered by schools of social work. Fostering Social Work Gerontology Competence offers a renewed focus on the promotion of gerontological social work education, presenting papers that grew out of the first National Gerontological Social Work Conference (NGSWC), held in 2003. This unique book is invaluable to anyone who educates future social workers, leads staff training sessions, and/or teaches continuing education courses on aging. Leading gerontologists examine teaching research, community collaboration, and social work competencies, while focusing on special populations and issues including end-of-life care, elder abuse, grief counseling, cultural diversity, cultural competence, and the effects of spirituality and social support on the well being of the elderly. Fostering Social Work Gerontology Competence examines: curricular and organizational change developing intergenerational projects involving older persons in the educational process uniting field practice with theory strategies to promote student interest identifying geriatric competencies intergenerational service learning developing an aging prepared community emerging trends in aging and health care end-of-life care and death education environmental issues affecting elder abuse victims mental health services for older persons in rural communities kinship care and much more Fostering Social Work Gerontology Competence is a vital resource for social work educators and practitioners, gerontology educators and practitioners, and students.

Learn the skills you need to work with geriatric populations in rural areas! Gerontological Social Work in Rural Towns and Communities provides a range of intervention and community skills aimed precisely at the needs of rural elders. This book fills a gap in the literature by focusing on the specific practice concerns for social workers assisting older adults in rural areas, including the aging experience, social worker skills, professional functions, working with special populations, and health and long-term care concerns. This valuable resource will benefit social workers, gerontologists, allied health professionals in rural areas, health and human services administrators and managers. Gerontological Social Work in Rural Towns and Communities explores the challenges social workers need to overcome when working with the elder community in rural areas. This book’s significance to social workers will only increase as more adults choose to live and grow old away from the cities. Experts in the field suggest strategies to overcome barriers in planning and providing services such as: a longer distance for the elderly to travel to use social service centers a narrower range of available services in the local area increased poverty levels for the elderly a stronger dependency by elderly on family rather than public assistance This book is divided into five sections: Rurality and Aging—introduces the concept of rurality and examines the demographics of aging from a rural perspective Practice Dimensions of Social Work with Rural Elders—includes clinical practice models, intervention and advocacy techniques, program planning, and marketing approaches Special Populations—gives attention to four special population groups: indigenous elders, African-American older adults, elderly Latinos, and disabled elders Special Issues Pertaining to Rural Elders—covers five essential issues for rural gerontological social workers: health promotion, older workers and retirement preparation, aging in place, specialized housing, and ethical practice Training and Policy Recommendations—future training and education recommendations for social workers are explored, as well as service capacity building, the aging network, and the future of long-term care While a variety of theoretical perspectives are explored in Gerontological Social Work in Rural Towns and Communities, the book’s empowerment orientation and strengths-based approach will enhance your abilities to improve quality of life for elderly individuals in rural communities. Each chapter contains a comprehensive review of the literature on the subject it addresses, and several chapters include tables and graphs to further establish their revealing empirical findings. An appendix provides additional sources to turn to for more information.

What are the challenges facing gerontological social workers—today and in the near future? This book gives you an essential overview of the role, status, and potential of gerontological social work in aging societies around the world. Drawing on the expertise of leaders in the field, it identifies key policy and practice issues and suggests directions for the future. Here you’ll find important perspectives on home health care, mental health, elder abuse, older workers’ issues, and death and dying, as well as an examination of the policy and practice issues of utmost concern to social workers dealing with the elderly. With Gerontological Social Work Practice: Issues, Challenges, and Potential you’ll explore: the differences between real situations and what demographics lead one to expect the need for social workers to focus on economic, political, and social issues in order to promote positive change the long-term care insurance issues facing elderly Japanese citizens a Canadian perspective on social work practice with aging people practice techniques to use with aging African Americans strengths-based and empowerment-oriented ways to work with frail elderly the impact of multiculturalism on social policy and much more!

"This book has a forward-thinking orientation that reflects the reality of aging with older adults throughout the aging life course... Dr. Youdin integrates an advanced clinical social work practice with in-depth knowledge of evidence-based practice as well asd geriatric medicine, psychiatry and gerontology." -- The Lamp Written by an expert in gerontological social work and curriculum development, this book provides a wealth of clinical information for social workers and other health care professionals who counsel older adults. It describes a strengths-based, empowerment approach to treatment that integrates theory, technique, advocacy, and social policy, and encompasses the tenets of human rights. The book's content has been tested in the classroom setting for a three-year period with advanced social work undergraduate and graduate students. The book examines various theories of aging including a contrast between the strengths-based person-in-environment theory and the pathologically based medical model of psychological problems. It advocates truly engaging with the older client during the assessment phase, and discusses a variety of intervention modalities. The psychological construct of stigma regarding aging is examined, along with the major psychopathological problems common to older adults. The book also considers Alzheimer's disease and dementia, medical problems of older adults and co-occurring psychological problems, substance abuse, older adult sexuality, elder abuse, and the vulnerabilities of gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender older adults. Additionally, the book addresses mental health issues pertaining to residential settings and the aspects of death and dying that give older people concern. Extensive case studies, learning objectives, and discussion questions are featured in each chapter. The book also includes an instructor packet, PowerPoint slides, and an interactive PDF. Key Features: Provides a wealth of classroom-tested clinical information Espouses a strengths-based approach to treatment that integrates theory, technique, advocacy, and social justice Consistent with social work mandates for a human rights focus Presents extensive case studies, learning objectives, and discussion questions in each chapter Includes an instructors packet, PowerPoint slides, and interactive PDF

s your gerontological social work program as comprehensive—and as well attended—as it could be? Advancing Gerontological Social Work Education will help you develop courses that effectively prepare social work students and practitioners to work with the ever-increasing older population. It clearly presents the rationale for geriatric/gerontological preparation and defines the current status of geriatric/gerontological education. With fascinating case studies, detailed curricula, and a review of the skills and knowledge competencies necessary for effective geriatric social work practice, this book also describes a variety of courses and teaching programs in detail—noting the problems that other educators have encountered and offering practical suggestions to help in replicating the programs in other institutions. This book is especially useful because it not only examines the issues surrounding—and need for—increased gerontological education for social workers, but because it follows this with specific, concrete descriptions of educational approaches and curricula. It provides you with both the framework and the specifics to develop your own gerontological social work education program at the graduate or undergraduate level. Helpful charts and tables make the information easy to access and understand. Advancing Gerontological Social Work Education is divided into three sections, each of which will increase your knowledge and understanding of this vital area of social work education. The first section examines: the historical development of gerontological social work education the CSWE/SAGE-SW Competencies Project the importance of interdisciplinary teamwork—and the educational basis for interdisciplinary team training, highlighting organizational context, team structure, team process, and team outcomes ways to increase students' interest in this vital area of social work In the second section of this well-referenced book, you will examine school-based initiatives, focusing on: the development and implementation of the John A. Hartford Foundation Geriatric Social Work Initiative the recruitment of students into geriatric social work—with an examination of a fellowship program the relationship between the aging population of the United States and the growing demand for geriatric social workers-and how that need can be met through graduate-level social work training developing a field training rotation model a doctoral fellowship program and its dissertation support, mentorship, and leadership development The third section of Advancing Gerontological Social Work Education features: an empirical study exploring the potential for a limited curriculum module to enhance MSW and BSW students' gerontological practice-related knowledge, attitudes, and interest an overview of the history and rationale of service learning in elder care a description of the varied service learning in elder care programs an experiential exercise that was used successfully to assist graduate students in integrating and applying their knowledge about geriatric assessment the results of interviews with MSW students about the appropriateness of their preparation for medical social work with an aged population—conducted at the beginning, midpoint, and end of their field placements a report on incorporating intergenerational service learning into an undergraduate introductory gerontology course the use of the “family study,” which exposes teams of students for 20 weeks to a family that includes an older adult

A variety of programs are described in this volume illuminating innovative approaches to service delivery.

The third edition describes significant practice issues and challenges facing gerontological social workers, working with the fastest growing demographic cohort in North America. Insightful and creative practitioners provide current accounts and case examples from their work in a variety of settings. The material includes both micro and macro practice and offers a focus on advanced specialty practice while also providing an advanced generalist model. All the chapters have been rewritten and updated by adding related additional readings and websites. Six new chapters have been added on sensory impairment, HIV/AIDS, elder abuse, community-assisted living, rural elderly, retirement, and volunteerism. "Social Work Practice with the Elderly" offers an exciting collection of well-crafted readings and will be useful for any social work student at the undergraduate or graduate level. It will also be a valuable resource for those in other helping professions who work side by side with social workers in this field: nurses, physiotherapists, music and art therapists, psychologists, physicians, recreational therapists, speech and language therapists, and clergy.

This original collection explores how critical gerontology can make sense of old age inequalities to inform and improve social work research, policy and practice and empower older people. With examples of practice-facing research, this book engages with key debates on age-related human rights and social justice issues. The critical and conceptual focus will expand the horizons of those who work with older people, addressing the current challenges, issues and opportunities that they face.

The novel coronavirus and the resultant COVID-19 pandemic have disproportionately affected older adults in terms of the number of lives lost, concerns about safety of institutional and home and community-based care, the impact of isolation and seclusion, and the ability to participate and engage in meaningful and contributory activities. The pandemic has uncovered layers of ageism that are embedded in societies globally and challenges us all to address the pervasive individual, institutional, and structural biases that permit age-based discrimination. Within the interdisciplinary field of gerontology, social workers lead organizations, provide direct services and supports, facilitate community engagement and participation, and deliver therapeutic interventions among other roles and activities that facilitate positive outcomes for older adults and their families. In Gerontological Social Work and COVID-19: Calls for Change in Education, Practice, and Policy from International Voices, scholars, practice professionals, and other stakeholders reflect on the initial months of the pandemic. They articulate immediate needs the pandemic has created and uncovered, and further identify directions the field must go in to meet the moment and prepare for the future ahead. This book was originally published as a special issue of the Journal of Gerontological Social Work.