The Impact of Healthcare IT on Social Work: Enhancing Client Care and Collaboration

The integration of modern technology into our daily lives has touched almost every aspect of it, including how social work is conducted.

The leaps and bounds it has taken over the past few decades have allowed social work professionals to offer more effective and efficient services to clients, and the ability to quickly cater to a client’s growing evolving needs has never been greater.

Adapting to the ever-changing social landscape technology creates and that individuals, families and communities engage within is a vital part of the social work profession. The impact of this healthcare IT on social work is far-reaching – not only has technology changed the social interactions an individual has with other important people in their lives, but it has changed the way a social worker and a client interact. 

Below we look at four ways these changes have benefited and enhanced the social work profession. 

Improved client access to services

Telehealth and other health-based phone apps have allowed high-quality social work access to many clients and individuals in need. 

Before the wide-scale use of these services, gaining access to social workers could be difficult for certain individuals. Those who could not afford the cost of in-appointment social work assistance, those who lived in remote areas where travel was significant, and handicapped individuals who had to deal with physical, financial and logistical burdens would often not be able to seek the help required.

By providing easier access to social workers through technological means, those who were previously unable to attend in-person meetings to receive the help they needed were suddenly able to get support with the touch of a button, and the sheer volume of individuals and families social workers could work with instantly expanded exponentially. Studies into telehealth and other phone-based support programs called out convenience, timely access to care, time savings, and a greater likelihood of clients attending an appointment, which are other benefits these technologies have provided to social work.

Enhanced case management 

Case management is an incredibly important part of social work, but it has historically taken significant time and energy for social workers to manage. Technology, however, has streamlined this previously manual-heavy administrative work, while reducing the time and energy required to complete it and revolutionizing case management processes. Technology has helped with multiple outputs including;

• Data organization: organizing client information clearly and efficiently is important, and client management systems such as Apricot and Casebook have allowed social workers to do this in the most effective manner possible. 
• Scheduling: systems can be used to schedule appointments and organize calendars and reminders to reduce the risk of missed appointments and to help maximize a social worker’s day. 
• Trend identification: more sophisticated data analytics programs can help identify trends and patterns in client behavior and outcomes, giving social workers the ability to preempt possible breakdowns and even proactively work to avoid them. 
• Program evaluation: tools such as SAS and SPSS assist in evaluating the effectiveness of certain social work programs, so time can be focused on initiatives that are working. 
• Electronic Health Records (EHRs): EHRs have streamlined the sharing of client information among all relevant healthcare providers, meaning there is greater efficiency due to a reduction in manual paperwork, quicker outcomes for patients as information can be accessed almost immediately by any of their healthcare team, and better coordination between social workers and other providers of care which results in better client outcomes. 

Training and professional development

In addition to providing benefits to social workers and their clients, technology has also made it easier than ever to enter the profession. 

Online educational options provide access to those who live in remote areas or those who need to continue to work while studying access to quality education at bachelor’s and master’s levels without having to leave their home.  Whether through a university that offers blended learning environments or a completely online social work program, there are more options than ever to become qualified. 

Encouraging new students to take up social work is critical to the continuing success of social work profession. Online opportunities also promote the ability for existing professionals to practice continuous learning, to ensure they stay ahead of the latest developments in the field and can integrate new technologies into their practice effectively. 

Greater access to online learning can help new and existing social work professionals. Photo by Stephanie Hau on Unsplash.

Crisis response tools

Crisis intervention is a part of social work that addresses and manages immediate concerns a client is facing. Although the particular model used to address a crisis may vary from one professional to another, all methods will contain some form of assessing safety and lethality, problem identification, and developing an action plan once the immediate concerns relating to the crisis have subsided. 

Technology such as immediate access to a client’s medical history, how this type of situation has been handled effectively in the past, and any other relevant medical data can be beneficial when working through a crisis. When using crisis intervention, social workers need to assess the suitability of particular technologies to the situation while ensuring they do so with the sensitivity and care the situation requires.