Analysis of Mental Health Workforce: Implications for Social Work Practice and Profession.

This analysis was undertaken to better understand what factors may contribute to the relative strength or weakness of the clinical social work professional workforce. We explored the relationship between social work workforce numbers and social work licensure laws/policies. We also examined relationships between population factors and mental health workforce, including examining ratios of other mental health professions nationwide. Additionally, we explored mental health workforce strengths as it relates to state mental health needs and utilization of mental health services. Our findings were consistent with past research with respect to proportion of overall mental health workforce across mental health professionals. We did not find a direct relationship between licensure laws/policies and state social work workforce numbers. However, we found some relationships between the ratio of social workers to the population and state health rank, as well as the overall mental health workforce availability in a state. In addition, a relationship was found between ratio of social workers to the population and adults with mental illness not receiving care. Given the results, the authors posit that these findings could be used to promote the social work discipline in targeted ways, such as promotion of the discipline in states where mental health needs are underserved or in states with lower health rankings. Factors to consider at the macro and micro levels, as well as interprofessional issues in training and work, are discussed. We believe the findings from this analysis can be used to inform policy and promote the discipline of social work.

Lessons learned from two peer-led mutual support groups.

This case report and analysis describe the formation of two peer-led mutual support groups conducted within the context of a Veterans Administration Medical Center. Based on our assessment of the success of one of these groups and the failure of the other, we offer several recommendations and suggestions to help promote this modality. More specifically, we hypothesize that such groups are more likely to be successful (1) if participants are transferred en masse from another group, (2) that, at least initially, housing the group in the same context as formal clinician-led groups or overlapping clinician-led and peer-led groups may help smooth the transition from authority-led treatment to a mutual peer support format, and finally, (3) that prior experiences in interpersonal process groups may promote the skills and cohesion to promote successful transition to mutual support.

Validating the use of two-item measures of pain beliefs and coping strategies for a veteran population.

UNLABELLED: Previous research has demonstrated that 2-item versions of subscales from the Chronic Pain Coping Inventory, Coping Strategy Questionnaire, and the Survey of Pain Attitudes appear adequately reliable and valid for use in studies with large sample sizes. It was suggested that use of the abbreviated scales might help to expand the testing and application of cognitive-behavioral models of pain to new settings and with new populations where assessment burden might be a key issue. This study explored the utility of these brief scales among veterans in a Veterans Affairs setting. Strong associations were found between the 2-item versions and their respective parent scales. In addition, the 2-item scales were found to be associated with other pain-related measures, supporting their predictive validity. The results of this study replicate previous findings and offer support for the use of the 2-item versions for both screening and research purposes in Veterans Affairs settings with a veteran population. PERSPECTIVE: This article presents the psychometric properties of brief versions of 3 commonly used pain coping and belief questionnaires in a unique population. These measures could be used clinically for initial screening purposes, as well as for treatment monitoring.

Solution-focused family therapy with three aggressive and oppositional-acting children: an N = 1 empirical study.

The efficacy of Solution-Focused Family Therapy (SFFT) for helping three families with aggressive and oppositional-acting children (aged 8-9) was examined. The N = 1 multiple-baseline design with three replications used validated measures, a treatment manual, and a treatment integrity measure. The interventions lasted from four to five sessions. SFFT appeared to be effective with the families at post-treatment and 3-month follow up.