Social workers coordination in primary healthcare for patients with complex needs: A scoping review

Abstract

Introduction Care coordination has been part of social work for some time. It has been recognized as contributing to care coordination for long-term care for the elderly and mental health but less is known about their contribution in primary care with patients with complex health and social needs. As social workers are increasingly present in primary healthcare, this scoping review aims to provide a synthesis of social workers’ coordination activities for patients with complex needs in primary healthcare. Methods CINAHL, Medline, Scopus, SocioIndex, Social Work Abstracts, and ProQuest databases were searched, from 2004 to 2020 for peer-reviewed literature. A thematic analysis using deductive and inductive approaches was used to conduct this scoping review. Results Eighteen studies on 11 different care coordination interventions were included. The care coordination activities have been classified into four categories: 1) activities that target the patient, family, and caregivers; 2) activities that target health and social care professionals and services; 3) activities that link the patient and family with health and social professionals and services; and 4) cross-cutting activities that support and enhance other activity. Discussion A variety of care coordination interventions conducted by social workers were identified, all of which included related but different activities. Still, the common aim is to reduce fragmentation of care. Social workers, because of their disciplinary skills characterized by linkages to nonmedical services, can make a significant contribution to the coordination of care in primary health care, in collaboration with nurses.