BACKGROUND: The SARS-Cov-2 (COVID-19) pandemic affected the delivery of health and social care services globally. However, little is known about how palliative care social work services were impacted. AIM: The aim of this study was to capture and analyse data from palliative care social workers who provided professional support in a range of settings across 21 countries during the COVID-19 pandemic. DESIGN: A cross-sectional survey-based design was used for this empirical study and this paper primarily focuses on the quantitative responses. SETTING/PARTICIPANTS: Participants, palliative care social workers, were drawn internationally via members of the EAPC Social Work Task Force and the World Hospice Palliative Care Social Work network. RESULTS: We received 362 survey responses from 21 countries. Most (79%) respondents worked with adults in in-patient units or hospitals. The number of referrals during COVID-19 increased more in non-European countries, compared to European countries. The full range of social work services could no longer be delivered, existing services changed and 65.3% of participants reported higher levels of pressure during the pandemic, which was linked to higher levels of staff absence and additional duties. For many respondents (40.8%), this included facilitating online communication between patients and their families. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings indicate that restrictions to limit the spread of COVID-19 resulted in adaptations to service delivery, increased pressure on staff and moral distress, like other health and social care professions. All members of the palliative team need support and supervision to ensure effective interdisciplinary working and team cohesion.

Department of Social Sciences PRIGO University Havířov Czech Republic

Department of Social Work University of Trnava Trnava Slovakia

Global Observatory of Palliative Care University of Navarra Pamplona Spain

Katholische Stiftungshochschule München München Germany

Queen's University Belfast and Ulster University Northern Ireland UK

Regional Home Care Program SAMOT Palermo Italy

School of Social Sciences Education and Social Work Queen's University Belfast Northern Ireland UK

Zobrazit více v PubMed

World Heath Organisation. Palliative care key facts, https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/palliative-care (2023, accessed 28 February 2023).

Cagle JG, Brandon RE.Social work in hospice care. In: Altilio T, Otis-Green S, Cagle JG. (eds) The Oxford textbook of palliative social work, 2nd ed.New York, Oxford University Press, 2022, pp.379–393.

United Nations Sustainable Development Group. Policy brief: COVID-19 and universal health coverage. 2020. https://unsdg.un.org/resources/policy-brief-covid-19-and-universal-health-coverage

Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). Policy responses to coronavirus (COVID-19): women at the core of the fight against COVID-19 crisis. 2020.https://www.oecd.org/coronavirus/policy-responses/women-at-the-core-of-the-fight-against-covid-19-crisis-553a8269/#section-d1e17

Rattner M.COVID-19: encountering never-before-known suffering. J Soc Work End Life Palliat Care 2021; 17(2/3): 104–107. PubMed

Santabárbara J, Bueno-Notivol J, Lipnicki DM, et al.Prevalence of anxiety in health care professionals during the COVID-19 pandemic: a rapid systematic review (on published articles in Medline) with meta-analysis. Prog Neuropsychopharmacol Biol Psychiatry 2021; 107: 1–15. DOI: 10.1016/j.pnpbp.2021.110244. PubMed DOI PMC

Dobríková P, Horniaková D, Firth P.The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on palliative care in inpatient hospices in Slovakia. Acta Missiologica 2022; 16(1): 29–40.

Wallace CL, Wladkowski SP, Gibson A, et al.Grief during the COVID-19 pandemic: considerations for palliative care providers. J Pain Symptom Manage 2020; 60(1): e70–e76. PubMed PMC

Fish EC, Lloyd A.Moral distress amongst palliative care doctors working during the COVID-19 pandemic: a narrative-focussed interview study. Palliat Med 2022; 36(6): 955–963. PubMed PMC

Hatzipashalis S, Greenwood L.Going against the grain. Aust Soc Work 2020; 73(4): 509–510.

Hanna JR, Rapa E, Dalton LJ, et al.Health and social care professionals’ experiences of providing end of life care during the COVID-19 pandemic: a qualitative study. Palliat Med 2021; 35(7): 1249–1257. PubMed PMC

Weaver MS, Rosenberg AR, Fry A, et al.Impact of the coronavirus pandemic on pediatric palliative care team structures, services, and care delivery. J Palliat Med 2021; 24(8): 1213–1220. PubMed PMC

Carver C.A social worker’s perspective on the goal of palliative care in the era of COVID-19. J Soc Work End Palliat Care 2021; 17(2/3): 127–131. PubMed

John S, Booth S, Venville A.Dying in hospital during COVID-19: isolation, despair, and moral distress. Aust Soc Work 2020; 73(4): 514–515.

Plunkett E, Broadbent A, Fien S, et al.Impact of COVID-19 social distancing on the quality of dying: a call for discretionary application of rules. J Soc Work End Life Palliat Care 2021; 17(2/3): 132–136. PubMed

Gergerich E, Mallonee J, Gherardi S, et al.Strengths and struggles for families involved in hospice care during the COVID-19 pandemic. J Soc Work End Palliat Care 2021; 17(2–3): 198–217. PubMed

Mayland CR, Hughes R, Lane S, et al.Are public health measures and individualised care compatible in the face of a pandemic? A national observational study of bereaved relatives’ experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic. Palliat Med 2021; 35: 1480–1491. PubMed

Sinding C, Cape S, Charles L, et al.When ‘being there’ is disallowed: disruptions to knowing and caring during COVID-19 visitor restrictions. J Soc Work End Palliat Care 2022; 18(1): 46–62. PubMed

Pearce C, Honey JR, Lovick R, et al.A silent epidemic of grief’: a survey of bereavement care provision in the UK and Ireland during the COVID-19 pandemic. BMJ Open 2021; 11(3): e046872. PubMed PMC

Stroebe M, Schut H.Bereavement in times of COVID-19: a review and theoretical framework. OMEGA - J Death Dying 2021; 82(3): 500–522. PubMed PMC

Brooks SK, Webster RK, Smith LE, et al.The psychological impact of quarantine and how to reduce it: rapid review of the evidence. Lancet 2020; 395(10227): 912–920. PubMed PMC

Bitschnau KW, Firth P, Wasner M.Social work in hospice and palliative care in Europe: findings from an EAPC survey. Palliat Support Care 2020; 18: 662–669. PubMed

Currin-McCulloch J, Chapman B, Carson C, et al.Hearts above water: palliative care during a pandemic. Soc Work Health Care 2021; 60(1): 93–105. PubMed

Oltmann C, Otis-Green S, Blackburn P, et al.International collaboration in the time of COVID-19: the World Hospice and Palliative Care Social Work Network. J Soc Work End Palliat Care 2021; 17(2/3): 137–145. PubMed

Chutiyami M, Cheong AMY, Salihu D, et al.COVID-19 pandemic and overall mental health of healthcare professionals globally: a meta-review of systematic reviews. Front Psychiatry 2021; 12: 804525. PubMed PMC

Eysenbach G.Improving the quality of Web surveys: the Checklist for Reporting Results of Internet E-Surveys (CHERRIES). J Med Internet Res 2004; 6(3): e34. PubMed PMC

Cadell S, Ashcroft R, Furtado J, et al.COVID-19 and social work in health care in Canada: What are the impacts? Soc Work Health Care 2022; 61: 218–242. PubMed

Boniol M, McIsaac M, Xu L, et al.Gender equity in the health workforce: Analysis of 104 countries. Health Workforce Working Paper No. 1, World Health Organization, 2019.

Altilio T, Laing N, et al.Social work in palliative care. In: Cherny N, Fallon M, Kaasa S. (eds) Oxford textbook of palliative medicine, 5 ed. Oxford: Oxford Academic, 2015: 164–169.

Alston M, Irons K, Adamson C, et al.Australian and New Zealand social workers adjusting to the COVID-19 pandemic. Br J Soc Work 2022; 52(4): 1859–1877.

Ashcroft R, Sur D, Greenblatt A, et al.The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on social workers at the frontline: a survey of Canadian social workers. Br J Soc Work 2022; 52(3): 1724–1746.

Mishna F, Milne E, Bogo M, et al.Responding to COVID-19: new trends in social workers’ use of information and communication technology. Clin Soc Work J 2021; 49: 484–494. PubMed PMC

Ritchey KC, Foy A, McArdel E, et al.Reinventing palliative care delivery in the era of COVID-19: how telemedicine can support end of life care. Am J Hosp Palliat Care 2020; 37(11): 992–997. PubMed PMC

Jonas DF, Drouin K, Greenman J, et al.The long shadow: collateral impact and finding resilience amidst a global pandemic pediatric palliative care social work during COVID-19. J Soc Work End Palliat Care 2021; 17(2–3): 218–236. PubMed

Wang H, Farokhnia F, Sanchuli N.The effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the mental health of workers and the associated social-economic aspects: a narrative review. Work 2023; 74: 31–45. PubMed

Ravalier J, McFadden P, Gillen P, et al.Working conditions and well-being in UK social care and social work during COVID-19. J Soc Work 2023; 23: 165–188. PubMed PMC