Social work external accrediting bodies are moving towards competency-based models that require educational providers to demonstrate that students meet specific competencies at graduation. It is ...expected that all social work students at accredited social work programs in Australia will have acquired specific graduate attributes and demonstrated the associated learning outcomes by the completion of their degree. The purpose of this study was to investigate the experiences and benefits of using an ePortfolio with Master of Social Work students (n = 43) to critically reflect on their own learning and demonstrate how they met the Australian Association of Social Work graduate attributes necessary for accreditation. The findings revealed that students' perceived level of readiness for practice and identity as a professional social worker increased with the successful completion of the ePortfolio. The study also identified barriers and enablers in implementing the ePortfolio as an assessment piece to document overall program learning outcomes. The conclusion discusses how ePortfolios are a viable assessment tool in the online and blended learning space that has benefit for both the student and the program in demonstrating learning outcomes and compliance with accreditation graduate standards.
IMPLICATIONS
Academic ePortfolios are an effective tool for student reflection and communication of competence of required graduate outcomes.
Student self-assessment of graduate attributes can strengthen professional identity and preparedness for professional practice.
The ePortfolios benefit students and social work educators by sharing the accreditation-obligated responsibility of ensuring that AASW graduate competencies are met.
COVID-19 has caused unprecedented impact on the lives of Australians, with significant influence on the mental health and well-being of adults. Initial estimates predict that there will be a decline ...in birth rates from 1.7 to 1.59 children per woman in Australia over the course of 2021. This study aimed to explore change in fertility intentions as a result of COVID-19 in Australian young adults. Sixty-seven adults (82% women) between the ages of 18-35 years participated in the online survey. The study collected socio-demographic data including relationship status, employment, education, income, and gender as well as three measures of wellbeing including hopelessness, anxiety, and coping. Results of the study indicated that employment status is a significant indicator of change in fertility intention. There was a strong effect for hopelessness, indicating that increased hope for the future is associated with a change in fertility intention. Anxiety and coping did not appear to significantly influence change. The results of this study indicate that the immediate impact of COVID-19 on wellbeing does not cause people to change fertility intention, however, hope for the future has a significant influence. Through the lens of the Theory of Planned Behavior, this may be because people evaluate the consequences of their actions based on predictions of the future, and therefore hope for the future most significantly impacts their attitudes toward having children. Future research should investigate how supporting the wellbeing of young adults can influence choice in fertility intention.
INTRODUCTION: Mothers are crucial to society, yet they may experience depression or other mental illnesses during pregnancy and after birth. Preventative programs to reduce postpartum mental illness ...lack a clear evidence base, and a strength-based approach focusing on well-being is generally not provided. This study aims to explore postpartum mothers’ self-care practices and well-being from the perspective of a strength-based approach. Rather than rely on a deficit approach and further problematize the experiences of postpartum women, this study aimed to identify the relationship and predictability of self-care with general well-being for postpartum mothers. METHODS: This study was a quantitative, cross-sectional survey design using an online survey with women aged 18 years and older who had given birth in Australia to a child between 6 weeks and 12 months ( N = 140) regarding their self-care practices and general well-being. RESULTS: A hierarchical multiple linear regression found a strong relationship between self-care behaviors and well-being during the first year of motherhood. Findings also revealed that significant confounding factors impacted the relationship between self-care and well-being with the number of complications experienced during pregnancy to postpartum and prior experiences of “baby blues.” DISCUSSION: Findings from the current study provide evidence of the importance of self-care, and a strength-based approach for enhancing self-care skills may assist in improving the well-being of postpartum mothers. Further research is needed to identify other interactions affecting the relationship and to investigate causality.
OBJECTIVE:
Perinatal anxiety is a prevalent mental health issue with implications for the well-being of women and their children. There is a scarcity of research that considers perinatal anxiety as a ...standalone mental health issue or explores the lived experiences of women with perinatal anxiety.
METHODS:
In-depth interviews were carried out with nine mothers who had a lived experience of perinatal anxiety. The women were recruited from South East Queensland, Australia, and were either pregnant and/or parenting a child under the age of five. Data from the interviews were analyzed through a process of thematic analysis to identify key themes in the lived experiences of anxious mothers. Critical feminist theory informed all the aspects of the study.
RESULTS:
Analysis of the data revealed four key themes: Good Motherhood, Warning Signs, Mental Health Literacy, and Strengths and Support, and seven subthemes: The Birthing Experience, Irritable Infants, Sleep, Breastfeeding, Social Isolation, Barriers to Help Seeking, and Social Roles. Anxiety was found to complicate the experience of motherhood, with the pressure to present as a “good mother” resulting in a reluctance to seek help. Experiences such as birthing, feeding, and sleeping were risk factors for triggering or exacerbating anxiety. Experiences of perinatal anxiety were further complicated by poor mental health literacy and inconsistencies in the care provided by health professionals. Anxious mothers expressed a need for holistic, multidisciplinary mental healthcare, with residential options during times of struggle or crisis.
CONCLUSION:
Findings reveal the complex context of motherhood and mental illness and identify barriers and opportunities for the multidisciplinary mental healthcare of anxious mothers. A holistic, multidisciplinary response to perinatal anxiety is recommended.
Abstract Transgender and gender non-conforming (TGNC) youth are the focus of media attention, policy and practice changes, and multidisciplinary research. Due to their disproportionate risk of ...self-harm, depression, and suicidality, family support of TGNC youth is a key focus. Despite growing community awareness, TGNC children, and their families, continue to navigate a complex myriad of challenges, including at an individual, family, community, and societal level. Parents are likely influenced by their child’s TGNC identity however little is known about how this parenting experience is perceived and navigated, with most research exploring the TGNC person’s perspective. Using qualitative photovoice methodology, this study explored the lived experience of raising a TGNC child from the parent perspective. Eight Australian parents of a TGNC young person aged between 10 and 18 years participated in an in-depth interview guided by their chosen photographs as the stimulus. Thematic analysis identified five key findings: 1. crossing the threshold: finding out and figuring it out; 2. changing and adapting; 3. same but different: attachment and family dynamic; 4. letting go and holding on; and 5. finding a path forward. Findings suggest complex psychosocial impacts on parenting. Recommendations include targeted support for parents that addresses grief, social isolation, career stress, and access to relevant information and services. Clinical social workers can play a vital role in supporting parents of TGNC children by providing trauma informed responses that recognise disenfranchised grief, acknowledge socioemotional impacts, and empower parents with appropriate resources to meet their needs, and those of their TGNC child.
Objectives
To systematically review the literature on measures social workers undertake to facilitate discharge planning for older people in a resource‐scarce environment.
Methods
Systematic search ...of electronic databases for peer‐reviewed articles published in English between January 1990 and August 2020. Articles on hospital discharge planning facilitated by social workers for older patients returning home from hospital admission were included. The Mixed Method Appraisal Tool (MMAT) was used to assess quality and risk of bias. The systematic literature review protocol has been registered with PROSPERO on 27 August 2021.
Results
Six studies from Canada and the United States met the eligibility criteria. The most common support measures employed by hospital social workers when discharge planning for older patients were assessment, education, care co‐ordination, liaison and engagement with families and providers, conflict resolution, counselling and postdischarge follow‐up. Barriers to effective discharge planning were medical complexity, lack of communication, time constraints, limited family support, availability of resources and patient safety. These studies were published between 1993 and 2014 and were not within the Australian context.
Conclusions
There are limited studies on Social Work discharge planning within the Australian context, particularly on how this important service has been impacted by recent aged care reforms. More research on the topic is necessary to fully understand how aged care reforms such as the National Prioritisation System for Home Care Packages have influenced hospital discharge planning and how social workers have adapted their practice to this challenge.
The social scientists and legal professionals who work in family law in Australia should be recognised for working tirelessly in a complex, overworked, and archaic system. A system that underserves ...their capacity to maintain integrity, expertise, and ethical diligence in the professions they are assigned. In this perspective piece, we acknowledge the innovative work being done within this system to strive to meet the best interests of the children they serve, whilst highlighting the fundamental flaws of an adversarial system that breeds acculturation across disciplines and disables the practitioners who operate within these systems from legitimately performing their duties and championing the human rights of children.
The COVID-19 pandemic precipitated a sudden shift in the delivery of social work education from a bricks-and-mortar space to Zoom classes using various synchronous and asynchronous technologies. ...Although there is a body of evidence around the effectiveness of online teaching in social work, there remain critical questions around how best to ensure student engagement within the online environment. Thus, the current study examined students' experience (n= 119) of transitioning to online learning during the COVID-19 pandemic and their perceived efficacy of teaching online compared to face-to-face teaching via a mixed-method online survey. Although most students preferred face-to-face learning, 60% reported that online learning met their expectations. Findings revealed a mix of preferences and experiences using Zoom technology as a substitution for face-to-face learning with positive aspects (e.g., convenience, development of technology skills, and interactive features) and negative aspects (e.g., social connectedness, anxiety, and technology issues). Social work educators must understand the complexities for students in transitioning to online learning and provide adequate support and resources to meet students' learning, technological and social needs.
