Necessary Resources
by Lauren M. Barrash, LCSW
Healthcare today is a continuously changing and challenging industry. Being a social worker in healthcare is a constant, but rewarding, challenge. A patient will likely get a very different set of resources for the same issue, depending on which hospital, floor, shift, admission route, and social worker they are assigned. The goal of this column is to help put all resources in each of our hands to assist our patients better. I am honored to be asked by Wes and Molly to write the first article. I encourage each of you to e-mail them with ideas, challenges, resource requests, and resources you might use in your daily work. I do feel there are a handful of resources that are essential to helping our patients. Some are books, websites, organizations, or listservs. Many are now available online, so if a patient’s family is not in town, they can access these resources as well.
First is the Senior Guidance Directory. This book has listings of many local and national resources, which are beneficial to most patients. If your organization is a sponsor, they are given an allotment. If your organization does not advertise, they are available at Walgreens. You do have to go to the pharmacy and ask for one. However, last year they put it all online. You can find and search all the same resources, which are updated regularly, online at www.srguidance.org.
As you all probably know, New Lifestyles is the “Source for Seniors.” It provides information on senior resources and comprehensive, quality information on senior residences and care options. Thankfully, they have also put this resource online www.newlifestyles.com.
There are also some networking groups that serve to put resources in our hands. ESPN, (not the sports channel), Elder Service Providers’ Network, offers a monthly community resource networking forum for health and human service professionals who work with seniors and the disabled. Their meetings are every fourth Tuesday at the United Way. The other one is the Interagency Network. They provide health and human service organizations a unique opportunity for networking, problem solving, and education. Their meetings are the second Tuesday of every month. You can call Patricia Hall for more information about these groups at (713) 685-2771.
To stay up-to-date on Medicare, Medicaid, and other important insurance issues, I would recommend getting on Barbara McGinity’s listserv from the Better Business Bureau . She sends updates whenever one is necessary about upcoming health fairs, changes to the medication programs, etc. You can reach her at bmcginity@bbbhou.org, or call 713-341-6184.
The last resource I feel is essential for all medical social workers, (I am biased b/c I am the founder & President), is HAMSWA, Houston Area Medical Social Worker Association. We meet every other month to network with one another and share resources. We also send out resumes of social workers looking for medical positions, and post medical social work jobs. We also send out e-mails for any social worker needing help with a challenging case. With over 150 social workers, the problems are resolved in no time. Additionally, we do have at least two CEUs a year, which are per the members’ request. For more information, please e-mail me at lbarrash@criticalcaresystems.com.
In closing, I want to say the social workers in the medical field I have met in my career are some of the most resourceful, caring group of people I have ever met. We should call on one another for help; there is no better resource than your colleagues. I also want to stress submitting to Wright Abshire, Attorneys any requests for resources that they could help us find. Additionally, check back monthly for more social work resources.
