Gerontological Supervision: A Social Work Perspective in Case Management and Direct Care

The growing population of aging Americans is bringing with it thousands of new workers into agencies serving the elderly each year. Now, the need for supervisors to administer and train staff in programs for older persons is increasing as well. This is a practical, "how-to" guide for the supervision of case managers, personal care providers, and interns working in community services and long-term care of ill or disabled older persons. This updated edition expands its focus by offering the latest, up-to-date ideas and proven "practice wisdom" for handling many of the field’s most common problems.

Filled with direct and composite case examples, this useful guide looks at concerns central to the changing field of practice. Part one gives an overview of the social work perspective. Parts two and three consider practice and administrative issues. Supervision of interns is covered in part four, and part five expands the scope of original edition by discussing the similarities and differences between home care and long-term care settings. Chapters include coverage of:

• dual emphasis on person and environment
• treatment with dignity and respect
• stages of helping, learning, and teaching
• negotiating the balance between dependence and independence
• styles of learning and teaching
• tuning in and anticipatory empathy
• assessment, case planning, on-going work, and termination
• empowerment, mediation, and advocacy
• the supervisor as "middle management"
• staff development
• the supervisory conference and recording requirements
• evaluation in group supervision
• home care
• residential care

Gerontological Supervision is an invaluable resource for supervisors with or without MSWs and RNs, as well as case managers, personal care providers, interns, and educators and students in social work.

Ann Burack Weiss, Frances Coyle Brennan