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Though social employees have an elevated threat of an infection with COVID-19, no earlier research have investigated the virus’s influence on practitioners.
An article within the February 2023 problem of the journal Well being
& Social Work addresses this hole in analysis. Within the article,
authors publish the outcomes of a examine that recognized associations between
stress, melancholy, and COVID-related components and explored the position of social
connectedness as a moderator for psychological well being amongst Ohio social employees. The
outcomes of the examine confirmed that amongst social employees with a optimistic COVID-19
prognosis, 70 p.c skilled average/excessive ranges of stress, and 37
p.c met the factors for medical depressive signs.
Outcomes from the a number of regression analyses confirmed that
perceived stress was positively related to a optimistic COVID-19 prognosis
for social employees, and melancholy was positively related to working with
a consumer with a optimistic COVID-19 prognosis. An interplay impact was additionally recognized
between social connectedness and social employees’ psychological well being.
These findings counsel that the supply of particular person or
organizational interventions that emphasize social connectedness might help to
shield social employees’ psychological well being.
The authors conclude:
Among the many many challenges introduced on by the COVID-19 pandemic, social employees have been tasked with quickly transitioning to a wholly new service supply format whereas offering medical providers within the midst of an unprecedented medical, behavioral, and psychological well being disaster. In regard to this environmental adversity, this examine signifies that social employees have been experiencing excessive ranges of stress and melancholy throughout theCOVID-19 period, and the outcomes additionally confirmed that social connectedness can mitigate some adverse psychological well being results related to COVID-19. These findings counsel that social connectedness improves social employees’ psychological well being within the pandemic setting, and it’s subsequently essential that social employees are screened with correct assessments for social connectedness, and that they’re supplied with applicable ranges of particular person and organizational help to strengthen their social connectedness when a necessity is recognized. Additionally it is urged {that a} longitudinal examine be carried out to generalize the relationships between psychological well being and social connectedness amongst social employees. Lastly, this examine was carried out within the prevaccine period, and future work ought to discover the consequences of vaccination and a discount in obligatory quarantines on the psychological well being standing of practising social employees.
Authors of the examine:
- Daejun Park, PhD, assistant professor, Division
of Social Work, School of Well being Sciences and Professions, Ohio College, Athens,
OH - Mingun Lee, PhD, affiliate professor, Division
of Social Work, School of Well being Sciences and Professions, Ohio College, Athens,
OH - Kara Osborne, MSW, social employee, Athens, OH
- Dane Minnick, PhD, assistant professor,
Division of Social Work, Ball State College, Muncie, IN
