About this resource
First contacts in hospital are often brief and important. This prompt sheet covers introducing the social work role, the reason for referral, the patient's own priorities, home and supports, practical concerns such as money, housing and caring roles, safety screening and agreed next steps.
Purpose
To support warm, efficient and thorough first contacts.
Who it is for
Primary profession: Social workers. Also relevant for allied health and multidisciplinary teams.
Client or participant group: Hospital social workers.
Practice setting: Acute and subacute hospital wards.
Suggested uses
- First contacts on wards
- New hospital social workers
- Student placements
- Supervision
Instructions for practitioners
- Explain the social work role in plain language.
- Ask about the patient's priorities first.
- Screen for safety according to hospital procedures.
- Document and communicate with the team.
Accessibility considerations
Use interpreters. Consider hearing, vision and cognition.
Scope and limitations
A prompt sheet. Follow hospital procedures, including mandatory screening.
Research basis
Biopsychosocial and ecological models describe how health, relationships and wider systems interact in a person's life. Case management practice standards describe assessment, planning, coordination, review and planned exits with the person at the centre.
- Bronfenbrenner, U. (1979). The Ecology of Human Development: Experiments by Nature and Design. Harvard University Press. https://doi.org/10.4159/9780674028845
- Case Management Society of Australia and New Zealand. (2013). National standards of practice for case management (3rd ed.). https://www.cmsa.org.au/
- Engel, G. L. (1977). The Need for a New Medical Model: A Challenge for Biomedicine. Science, 196(4286), 129–136. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.847460
What is included
A 2-page printable A4 PDF, including a practitioner notes page with the research basis (version 1.0).
Originality
Original Practitioner Plus content: wording, activity structure, layout and icons were created for this resource. No third-party worksheets, illustrations or text were reproduced.
