Social Work in Public Health最新文献

Public health crises intensify existing social inequalities and challenge conventional models of crisis communication. This study examines how social work, social marketing, and crisis communication are conceptually integrated in the public health literature to support equity-oriented and behavior-sensitive interventions during emergencies. Using a semi-systematic (narrative) qualitative review, the study synthesizes interdisciplinary scholarship published between 2014 and 2024, focusing on recurring challenges, adaptive strategies, and integrative mechanisms across these domains. The findings indicate that social workers play a central mediating role by addressing psychosocial vulnerabilities, advocating for marginalized populations, and translating institutional guidance into context-sensitive practice. Social marketing principles - particularly audience segmentation, message framing, and value exchange - are positioned as tools that enhance engagement and voluntary behavior change, but also introduce ethical tensions related to self-determination, conditionality, and power asymmetries. Digital communication platforms expand reach and trust-building capacity, yet simultaneously risk reinforcing exclusion through digital divides and misinformation. By synthesizing these patterns, the study highlights how interdisciplinary integration can strengthen crisis communication when guided by social work ethics and equity considerations. Aligned with Sustainable Development Goals 3, 10, and 17, the analysis contributes an analytically grounded perspective on inclusive and ethically informed crisis communication and identifies priorities for future empirical research in diverse and resource-constrained public health contexts.

This article calls attention to a gap in services to address the needs of birthing individuals diagnosed with perinatal mental health conditions (PMHs) in New York State (NYS). We analyzed secondary birth data and surveyed MSW programs in NYS. Results indicate a gap in the availability of masters-prepared social workers to provide care for pregnant persons and their partners. In a three-year period in Syracuse (2017-2019), nearly one-third (n = 1,684, 30.1%) of persons delivering a baby reported depression during pregnancy. Among prenatal patients who reported being "very depressed," 44.5% had no documented referral for treatment. Of the 21 MSW programs in NYS, we found only two (9.5%) have specific coursework on PMH conditions. We recommend that MSW curricula be enhanced to reflect the perinatal mental health needs of birthing individuals and their families.

Many people enter addiction treatment through the criminal justice system, which has an important role in oversight, accountability, and adherence to addiction treatment. While urine drug tests (UDT) are valuable tools in addiction treatment, they are easily misinterpreted which can result in tragic legal and social consequences. Practical solutions are needed to enhance the integrity of UDT in the criminal justice system and to ensure that the twin goals of individual rehabilitation and community safety are achieved. Clinicians should remain within the scope of their training, involve the appropriate professionals, understand the limitations, and be aware of the most common areas of misinterpretation of UDT. Proper objective assessment of the data by a qualified professional is essential to avoid serious consequences to due process. Furthermore, there are no current statistics on the total numbers of people receiving UDT in the criminal justice system, resulting in a paucity of data and research on UDT and its effectiveness in addiction treatment. Due to the time needed to update and educate court professionals, practical solutions offer a bridge to solving the most common issues facing this vulnerable population. Updated guidance is needed to enhance the integrity of UDT in the criminal legal system.

Safe, accessible, and affordable student housing is vital for student success, influencing academic achievement, mental health, and community stability. Many urban colleges rely on substandard facilities that often fail low-income, first-generation, and minority students. This commentary argues that student housing should function as both a preventive health strategy and a means of promoting social justice. By examining mixed-use redevelopment models at Florida A&M University and Howard University, the paper demonstrates how design and collaboration-including social work advocacy-can create inclusive, health-promoting environments. Utilizing the Social Determinants of Health and Social Ecological Model frameworks, this discussion calls for interdisciplinary partnerships as essential strategies to advance equity and well-being in higher education.

The current scientific knowledge of Fibromyalgia is too focused on deficits. Therefore, the prognosis of Fibromyalgia is grim. This Commentary provides the lived experience of a person navigating the healing process with Fibromyalgia. With no remedy to fix the condition, those with the diagnosis must find better ways to live with it. This Commentary provides 4 helpful tips: 1) Utilize the research; 2) Get to a safe space; 3) Balance the mental and physical aspects, and; 4) Look for unexpected insights of the diagnosis. While this lived experience is not generalizable, it illustrates the need for dissemination of novel understandings of Fibromyalgia.

Despite ongoing debates about what is causing our changing climate, we know this change is real. Extreme weather events are occurring at a larger never-before-seen scale and with more frequency. The impact of extreme weather events has resulted in devastating health consequences: physical illnesses, mental health problems, displacement and in the most dire of situations the loss of human life. Further, some communities are disproportionately affected by climate change and experience heightened vulnerability. This article presents the legal determinants of health (LDOH) framework as an optimal strategy to advance climate justice and collective wellbeing. It does so through an equity lens. The LDOH framework supports the United Nations' 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, comprised of 17 Sustainable Development Goals that advance human rights and prosperity for all, and significantly influences global-to-local health and equity. Viewing health as a human right requires expanding beyond social determinants of health as a site for intervention and toward structural intervention, specifically LDOH. LDOH refer to macrolevel factors, including laws, policies, institutional practices and governance processes that structure the social determinants of health. The power of leveraging LDOH for climate justice and collective wellbeing is addressed through a discussion of multiple case examples. In conclusion, social workers are identified as critically important in climate justice advocacy for public health and collective wellbeing.

An estimated 1.6 million American youth are experiencing houselessness in the United States. Of these, 20-40% are lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender. However, limited attention has been given to the preventive and primary healthcare experiences of homeless gay and bisexual young men, despite documentation of their elevated health risks. This is a qualitative study based on semi-structured interviews of 30 homeless gay and bisexual young adult men in New York City to examine their experience with the healthcare system. Three themes emerged from content analysis of the interview data. First, all participants exhibited misunderstandings about what constitutes routine preventive healthcare. Second, only those receiving HIV-related care reported experiencing continuous, high-quality care. Third, bisexual men expressed concerns about clinician's lack of understanding about the divergence between identity and actual sexual behavior. This study adds to the growing literature as it unearthed nuances in the healthcare system as experienced by homeless gay and bisexual young men in New York City. More research is warranted to explore healthcare providers' assessment of bisexuality among young adult men experiencing houselessness. A comparative assessment is needed to understand the perception and expectations of gay and bisexual young men experiencing homelessness regarding primary healthcare to that of medical recommendations.

This commentary reframes cannabis prohibition as both a public health crisis and a social justice imperative, arguing that neutrality is not an option for social work. Despite the expansion of legalization across the United States, the racialized harms of prohibition persist, disproportionately affecting Black and Brown communities through arrests, stigma, and structural barriers. Within the profession, cannabis has historically been constructed almost exclusively as a harmful substance, leaving its therapeutic potential, equity implications, and policy consequences largely unaddressed. These silences perpetuate stigma in practice and risk reproducing systemic inequities. Drawing on public health, legal, and social work literature, this commentary emphasizes the ethical mandate - grounded in dignity, justice, and integrity - that compels social workers to engage in this work. It outlines implications for education, practice, and policy, including curriculum reform, stigma reduction, harm reduction, continuing education, policy advocacy, and intersectional practice. By engaging cannabis justice directly, social work can advance health equity and fulfill its ethical commitments in an evolving policy landscape.

This study aims to develop a social work model for managing cases of abandoned infants in Turkey, addressing inconsistencies in hospital practices. Designed as a qualitative and phenomenological study, in-depth interviews were conducted with ten social workers working in the Medical Social Services units of hospitals affiliated with the Ministry of Health. These participants represented the seven geographical regions of Turkey (2 from Central Anatolia, 2 from the Black Sea Region, 1 from the Marmara Region, 2 from the Mediterranean Region, 1 from the Aegean Region, 1 from the Eastern Anatolia Region, and 1 from the Southeastern Anatolia Region). Data were collected through semi-structured interviews lasting between 45 and 75 minutes and analyzed using Maxqda. The findings indicate that while social workers act professionally in practice, they experience a lack of specific training in the case management of abandoned infants. Differences were identified in hospital procedures related to infant handover, revealing the need for standardized practices. The study also highlights the importance of early identification of at-risk mothers during pregnancy and the implementation of preventive, multidisciplinary interventions that prioritize the best interests of both mother and child. The proposed model aims to support family unity by addressing the social, emotional, and economic needs of the mother and promotes a holistic care approach that prioritizes maternal and infant health and well-being. It recommends the close monitoring of at-risk mothers through Family Health Centers or similar institutions, and the enhancement of social and psychological support services during pregnancy and postpartum. Furthermore, supervision and in-service training programs should be expanded to reduce professional burnout among social workers. At the policy level, the employment of social workers in Family Health Centers to provide close psychosocial support during and after pregnancy is proposed. Additionally, strengthening legal responsibilities of biological fathers and increasing employment and vocational training opportunities to promote mothers' economic independence are recommended. This social work model not only seeks to streamline the intervention process for abandoned infants but also aims to contribute to the development of preventive and protective social policies that address structural causes.

There is a maternal health crisis in the US, the country with the highest rates of maternal deaths. This crisis disproportionately affects Black women, whose maternal death rate is three times higher than for white or Hispanic women. Black women are dying, and these deaths are preventable. Solutions are needed to address this maternal health crisis, which is not only a Black women's issue but also a Black fathers' issue. Black fathers are profoundly impacted by the death and sickness that Black women experience as a result of pregnancy-related complications. Yet we know too little about Black fathers' experiences and roles in maternal health. The voice of Black fathers is largely silenced in maternal health and maternal health spaces. A knowledge gap results from this silencing, limiting opportunities to develop interventions to involve Black fathers. Thus, there remains a need to amplify the vital, necessary voice of Black fathers in maternal health. Involving Black fathers in the pregnancy period and in maternal health in a meaningful way can support Black mothers and optimize their health outcomes. Relevant theoretical frameworks can be used to give voice to Black fathers, to better understand how they are involved in the pregnancy period and how they want to be involved. The voice of Black fathers is necessary. This conceptual paper will describe a relevant theoretical framework that can be utilized to give, de-silence, and amplify the voice of Black fathers in maternal health, in order to better engage Black fathers as partners in maternal health. This conceptual paper will 1) provide a historical overview of relevant theory and key concepts, 2) describe the theory as a way to give voice and amplify the voice of Black fathers in maternal health, and 3) explain how the theoretical framework can be used to frame future research on the subject of Black fathers in maternal health.