ABSTRACTThis study examined the nature of literature reviews published in Australian Social Work between 2007 and 2017. An audit was conducted to determine the number of reviews; types of reviews (systematic, meta-analysis, metasynthesis, scoping, narrative, conceptual, critical); and elements that were commonly reported (based on items drawn from the PRISMA checklist) including quality appraisal. A total of 21 reviews were identified. Results showed the overall number of reviews published remained relatively consistent across the decade. In relation to review types, systematic and scoping reviews appeared with greater frequency in more recent years. Most reviews reported significant proportions of the elements consistent with the type of review undertaken, although a minority did not report the search strategies and only one review included a quality appraisal. In conclusion, the reviews published over the last decade provide a strong foundation upon which further advances in the diversity and quality of reviews can be built.IMPLICATIONSLiterature reviews are an indispensable tool for accessing knowledge to inform social work practice.This first audit of literature reviews in Australian Social Work found a growing sophistication in the reviews published over the past decade.Continued improvements in the design, conduct, and reporting of literature reviews will be an invaluable resource in equipping the profession to respond successfully to the growing complexity of demands placed on social work practice in the 21st century.

This Handbook published in 2017 is an impressive collection of international authors who demonstrate interest and scholarship in what is often a controversial topic in social work. The editor, Beth Crisp, has drawn together 40 chapters that cover regional perspectives (e.g., Australia, Korea, Northern Ireland, and Malta); religious and spiritual traditions (such as Buddhism, Celtic spirituality, Gnosticism, Daoism), and faith-based service provision (including Catholic service, the Salvation Army, South Asian gurus, the Church of Sweden).

ABSTRACTOver the past 20 years, human trafficking (“trafficking”) has generated much public attention throughout the world. The problem has received growing media coverage and increased anti-trafficking activism. Additionally countries have created new policies, laws, and enforcement mechanisms to tackle the problem. This micro level study examined the lived experiences of 22 health and allied health workers situated within St Vincent’s Health Australia’s Melbourne facility, and reports on their identification, assessment, treatment, and outreach to trafficked persons. The results indicated that trafficked persons were predominantly invisible within the health setting. When practitioners did suspect trafficking, they considered themselves as lacking the professional skills and knowledge, or the clear organisational policy or procedures to confidently identify and manage the complex health needs of the suspected trafficked persons. The findings contribute to St Vincent’s Health Australia’s goal of formulating contextually appropriate policy and practices that will assist in the identification of and response to the health needs of trafficked persons.IMPLICATIONSThe health needs of trafficked persons are multiple and interrelated and require health care providers and systems to be skilled in the identification, intervention, and treatment of trafficked persons.Education and training of health professionals is the cornerstone of the identification, intervention, and treatment of trafficked persons.Social workers’ specific focus on person-in-environment may be an important contribution to the identification and treatment of trafficked persons.

A desire to improve the social and human condition is common ground in the search for new knowledge, irrespective of world-views. Starting from this premise, Wastell and White cast a critical, prob...

Reading a textbook of social work practice has rarely been as enjoyable as my experience with this edited collection, which brings personal stories and narrative methods together in 16 accessible a...

ABSTRACTWith sector constraints and higher education economic imperatives increasingly impacting the provision of social work field education, university programs lack an understanding of the factors that enable or prohibit field educators’ capacity to provide placements. Despite the significance of field education in the curriculum, it remains unclear what the experiences and motivations of field educators are to provide universities with student placements. This research addresses this gap through surveying 101 field educators that attended statewide Victorian field education training. Results indicated that although field educators recognised the benefits of supervising students, workload relief, additional training, and further student placement preparation by the university were emphasised as the primary factors that would enable them to respond positively to placement requests. Payments for placements did not necessarily ameliorate these issues nor guarantee the provision of more placements. The implications of these findings for universities and the field are discussed.

ABSTRACTNatural disaster impacts on populations already experiencing significant health, income, and social disadvantage, are both more intense and longer lasting than for the general population. The intersection of social isolation and poverty for some groups often results in significant risks during the immediate crisis of a disaster and ongoing challenges for recovery. This article reports on qualitative research examining natural disaster preparedness with five “at-risk” populations in regional Australia. The research was undertaken as part of a project sponsored by a regional organisation of local councils in New South Wales to map and understand spatial and social factors shaping natural disaster risks and responses. Seventeen focus groups were held with 111 participants; older people, people with disabilities, families with children under five, low-income households, and people from culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) backgrounds. Findings illuminated participant experiences of the intersection between sociogeographic disadvantage with social isolation in the context of natural disaster preparation and response.IMPLICATIONSSocial isolation—or the intersection of social and geographic disadvantage—appears to be a complex contributor to vulnerability in disaster preparation and response.Disaster risk needs to be assessed as part of social work support for vulnerable people.