Long-term care insurance: a benefit for the future.

As the cost of long-term and custodial care threatens the resources of many elderly and disabled people, private industry and the government are investigating various ways of funding insurance to pay for such care.     

Bringing social worlds together: computers as catalysts for new interactions in health care organizations.

In this case study, computer systems are explored as catalysts for new interactions between departments in health care organizations. Hypotheses investigated changes in the extent to which members of different departments (1) exchange information and (2) understand each other's work following implementation of an integrated medical information system. Analyses showed that communication-based forms of involvement in implementation (communicating with systems personnel and trainers, communicating about new ways to use the system, and receiving support from supervisors for doing so) were overwhelmingly more important than either general participation or computer use in predicting increases in interdepartmental interaction. Changes in tasks and roles also led to new, informal, face-to-face contacts to support computer system use, as well as greater administrative control over the organization as a whole. In addition, results of interviews and observations over the two-year study period illustrate the importance of work group identification in predicting changes accompanying computerization.     

Third-party reimbursement for mental health care delivered by clinical social workers: The case for its expansion

Conclusion It is believed that the foregoing statistical material and accompanying discussion substantiate the claim that clinical social workers deliver an ever-increasing portion of mental health care in the United States as a whole and in Pennsylvania in particular.It has also been shown that reimbursement for this type of care is more realistic than current forms of reimbursement and can be effected without adding to the cost of insurance either to the insurers or to the insured.A publication of the Pennsylvania Society for Clinical Social Work, Inc., 4856 North Broad Street, Philadelphia, P. 19141. Prepared January 1976 by the Insurance Committee, Edward Horn and Joan Stern, Research Staff.     

The mental health review board: a new concept for difficult clients.

1. The Mental Health Review Board concept is a hospital systems approach to the difficult client. Board membership varies with each case and includes representation from all areas of the hospital. 2. The Review Board deals with clients who have exhausted the system, are threatening or abusive to staff, and noncompliant with treatment recommendations. 3. The Review Board contract is the "final offer" for treatment and is without input from the client. Terms of the contract are nonegotiable. Noncompliance results in discharge and referral elsewhere.     

The future of residential group care

The author addresses some of the tensions and strains that have affected the development of group care in the North American context. An argument is advanced for rethinking group care resources within a total continuum of child and family services.     

The future of financing for long-term care: the Own Your Future campaign

The purpose of this study was to examine the outreach effort and impact of a joint federal-state campaign, Own Your Future, promoting awareness and planning for long-term care (LTC) in the state of Washington. The study applied survey methodology to evaluate the extent of campaign dissemination, evidence of its impact on LTC planning behaviors, and barriers to purchasing private LTC insurance. A total of 3,198 survey responses from a randomly selected community sample and a Washington State employee sample (ages 51 to 71) were analyzed. Results indicated that the impact of the campaign was limited, both with respect to awareness of the campaign itself and to initiation of LTC planning behaviors. Quantitative data revealed a high prevalence of health-related problems (e.g., obesity, diabetes), inadequate knowledge of basic LTC-related information (e.g., cost, payers), and negative attitudes toward purchasing LTC insurance among respondents. Qualitative analyses suggested that respondents perceived significant problems related to affordability and accountability within the current LTC insurance industry. These possible barriers to the purchase of LTC insurance suggest targets to be addressed by policy makers seeking to find ways to offset the public costs of LTC.     

The politics of occupational health and safety: interviews with workers' health and safety representatives and company doctors

Cette étude examine les aspects de la production sociale des maladies professionnelles. Elle suggère que, définer les problèmes de maladies professionnelles principalement en termes d'agents toxiques à l'endroit du travail est mal à-propos. De plus, l'Etat et le régime médical ne peuvent être neutres dans leur médiation des conflits se rapportant aux conditions de santé et de sécurité professionnelles.
Se basant sur l'information obtenue auprès de représentants responsables de la santé et la sécurité des travailleurs, et de médecins de compagnies, en Ontario, l'étude met le point sur les obstacles auquels les travailleurs font face dans leur poursuite de ces questions. Ces obstacles relèvent du contrôle, par le capital, de la main-d'œuvre et de son évolution, de la manière dont l'Etat et le régime médical ont servi les intérêts des employeurs, et le peu d'importance, relatif, que les syndicats ont souvent accordéà la santé et la sécurité professionnelles.