Social Work at The Queen’s Medical Center

Continuity of Care Planning

Social Workers help patients, families, and their loved ones navigate the discharge planning process as well as provide emotional support.  Our caring staff can assist in the adjustment to hospital admission, assess the possible role changes within a family and help explore the emotional and/or social responses to an illness diagnosis and the treatment plan. We also educate patients on Physician Orders for Life-Sustaining Treatment (POLST) and advance health care directives. Our goal is to empower patients and families to communicate with one another and members of their health care team to facilitate constructive decision making for overall wellness.

Discharge Coordination and Community Resources

The Social Work department coordinates discharge planning for patients, families, and their loved ones. Social workers can facilitate arrangements for nursing home or care home placement, facility transfers, outpatient home care, and community resources.

When a patient’s level of care has been lowered to less than acute, our care coordination team works with your team of physicians and nurses to help best support you and your family when it comes time to transition out of the hospital.  Home will always be the primary option to consider when looking at discharge.  Your team will assess your medical and psychosocial needs and plan for supports to address your individualized needs.  If home isn’t possible, we do have a first accepting policy.  This policy means that you will transition to the first facility that accepts you for further care and treatment.  This is necessary to preserve the acute care services of the hospital for other patients needing treatment.

Psychosocial Assessment

Upon being admitted, our Social Workers provide an initial screening and evaluation of high-risk patients and their families or loved ones. Patients will undergo a comprehensive psychosocial assessment, including assessing needs, emotional health, and psychosocial stressor, and existing supports. Social workers can administer brief interventions and counseling for newly diagnosed patients and their families or loved ones such as crisis intervention, Acute Stress Reaction, end of life, substance abuse, and adjustment to illness.

Specialty Service Areas

Our Social Workers have Master’s degree certified and licensed to practice in the state of Hawaii. The entire Social Work department staff collaborates to recommend the appropriate treatment intervention during the patient’s hospitalization. Specialty teams are available to provide services to patients and their families including: