History VA Social Work

SOCIAL WORK IN THE DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS

Veterans Bureau General Order dated June 16, 1926, established the social work program in the Veterans Bureau, outlining its organization and functions. The first year staffing consisted of fourteen social workers who were placed in psychiatric hospitals and twenty-two placed in regional offices throughout the country.

Early social work involvement was centered exclusively on the psychiatric and tuberculosis patients. The Services small but efficient program was directed by Mrs. Irene Grant Dalymple from 1926 to 1946, a pioneer in providing social work in medical settings. Her foresight was instrumental in incorporating the social work program in the VA rather than having social services contracted by an outside organization, as had been the practice following World War I.

From this modest beginning, social work has evolved into a professional service with treatment responsibilities in all patient care areas, helping patients and families to achieve their highest level of adjustment/coping in society, promoting vocational and psychosocial rehabilitation. Social workers develop and implement treatment approaches which address individual social problems and work with acute/chronic medical conditions, dying patients, and bereaved families. VA social workers are responsible for ensuring continuity of care through the admission, evaluation, treatment, and follow-up processes. This includes coordinating discharge planning and providing case management services based on the patients clinical and community health and social services resources. Over the years, Social Work staff has addressed the needs of distinct veteran populations, i.e., the homeless, the aged, HIV/AIDS patients, spinal cord injury, Ex-POWs, Viet Nam and Persian Gulf veterans and their families, etc.

Social Work coordinates the Community Residential Care (CRC) Program, the oldest and most cost-effective  of VA's extended care programs(Psychological Reports, 2000, 86, 21-24). CRC provides basic room and board, and limited personal care and supervision to veterans who do not require nursing home or hospital care, but are not able to live independently and may have not family to provide the needed care. The veteran handles the cost of the placement, which is often paid from VA Pension or Social Security payments.   These veterans are being provided supervision and a level of care appropriate to their needs without which they would require readmission or would be among our homeless population.

The Department of Veterans Affairs is affiliated with over 100 Graduate Schools of Social Work, and operates the largest and most comprehensive clinical training program for social work students - training 600-700 students per year (VA Office of Academic Affairs, 2/7/02). As a leader in this area, VA has a major impact on health care social work curriculum, establishing and applying standards for social work clinical practice, and expanding the roles and functions of the clinical social worker in interdisciplinary team practicing health care service delivery.

Health Care in general continues to change as it adjusts to factors both internal and external to the system. The VA Health Care System is going through a similar metamorphosis as are its different disciplines and professions. As health care moves from a traditional inpatient model to a primary care out patient based model, Social Work continues to play a pivotal role in the delivery of service. The present thrust is such that broad community planning, coordination, and integration of services are becoming a reality on federal, state, county and local levels. Decentralization, accessibility, relevancy, continuity, and effectiveness of service delivery are health care systems that continue to be perfected. Social Work, because of its leadership, flexibility, and commitment to "Putting Veterans First", continues to thrive as a profession in the current health care environment.

VA Social Work Mission, Vision and Values

MISSION: The mission of VA Social Work is to eliminate psychosocial complications as significant barriers to healthcare interventions for veterans and families. This is accomplished by developing and maintaining integrated, quality programs in patient care, research, education and prevention.

VISION: In return for the investment of veterans ’trust and institutional support, VA Social Work will provide the foremost leadership in the psychosocial care of veterans and their families.

VALUES: VA social workers are committed to the psychosocial welfare of veterans and their families. We offer social work staff as our greatest resource. This is our commitment:

To place at the center of our concern the dignity and worth of the individual.

To incorporate into practice an understanding of the veteran within his or her family and sociocultural environment.

To value and respect the distinctive role and expertise of each member of the multidisciplinary team.

To identify gaps in services/resources and to advocate for systems changes that are responsive to veterans’ changing needs.

To create within the discipline a learning environment that fosters new knowledge, enhances clinical social work practice and promotes administrative excellence.

To be ethical in fulfilling our responsibilities.

To be conscientious stewards of institutional and community resources essential to our mission.