This chapter demonstrates how social work ethics apply to ethical and legal decision making in forensic social work practice. It discusses the context of social work practice in legal systems. The chapter also details the basic structures of the United States (U.S.) civil and criminal legal systems. It lays the foundation for the criminal and civil court processes in the United States and introduces basic terminology and a description of associated activities and progression through these systems. The chapter focuses on providing an introductory, and overarching, picture of both civil and criminal law in the U.S. and introduces the roles social workers play in these systems. It focuses on the ETHICA model of ethical decision making as a resource and tool that can be used to help forensic social workers process difficult and complex situations across multiple systems.

This chapter explains the theoretical basis for motivational interviewing (MI). It reviews the empirical evidence for the use of MI with diverse populations in forensic settings. MI involves attention to the language of change, and is designed to strengthen personal motivation and commitment to a specific goal by eliciting and exploring the person’s own reasons for change within an atmosphere of acceptance and compassion. It is now internationally recognized as an evidence-based practice intervention for alcohol and drug problems. MI involves an underlying spirit made up of partnership, acceptance, compassion, and evocation. The chapter discusses four key processes involved in MI: engaging, focusing, evoking, and planning. It also describes five key communication microskills used throughout MI: asking open-ended questions, providing affirmations, offering summarizing statements, providing information and advice with permission, and reflective statements.

This chapter identifies how psychological frameworks can be integrated into a cohesive, multigenerational intervention to connect children with their incarcerated parents. It describes scenarios through which televisiting develops resiliency in children. The chapter delineates how geographic, financial, temporal, and intergenerational barriers can be reduced or removed via televisiting. It describes supportive televisiting services as an innovative, psychologist-directed, multidisciplinary program that connects children and teenagers with their incarcerated parents via secure, live, interactive video teleconferencing. The chapter also discusses the seven main pillars that make up the theoretical foundation of the televisiting program: child-focused; the attachment theory; trauma-informed care; resilience and strengths-based perspective; mental health challenges; the developmental, life-span, and intergenerational approach; and yellow flag not red flag policy.

This chapter introduces the theoretical basis for restorative justice (RJ). It assesses the empirical evidence for RJ programs, and explores the challenges and opportunities associated with applying core competencies. The chapter describes competencies of specific interest which include: engaging diversity and difference in practice, and engaging with individuals, families, groups, organizations, and communities. It also discusses skills essential to the success of RJ which include supporting processes that value the experiences of people associated with a crime or harm. The chapter suggests the importance of practical and context-specific knowledge and skills relevant when individuals, families, groups, organizations, and communities find themselves in conflict and require support. Programs that rely upon restorative principles have been used at a variety of points in the criminal justice process. The chapter discusses a practice, a family group conference, which was first developed in New Zealand involving social workers considerably.

This chapter discusses the concepts, underlying principles, benefits, and challenges of using “whole-family” approaches in social work. It articulates the theory and skills associated with family engagement as part of a human rights and social justice framework for social work practice in forensic settings. The chapter describes the ethical imperatives and evidence base supporting the use of family group decision making (FGDM) in regulatory settings. It engages whole families as partners in the use of FGDM in child protection and youth justice. The chapter also describes the theory, empirical support, and skills in use of FGDM, or family group conferencing (FGC). It concluded with an example of how alert forensic social workers must be to the potential for their best intentions to collide with the tenants of responsive practice and a quote from a child protection social worker who worked closely with the author on a pilot project using FGC.

This chapter presents ways in which forensic social workers respond flexibly, collaboratively, and effectively to situations of domestic violence. It describes ways to engage men who abuse in becoming better fathers and partners. The chapter examines how social workers can foster culturally respectful partnerships with and around families that safeguard all family members. Few services are available for men who abuse to learn how to become responsible parents, and evaluations of these programs are even more limited. Two exceptions are a Canadian program called Caring Dads and a North Carolina program called Strong Fathers. These responsible fatherhood programs seek to raise the men’s awareness of the deleterious impact of children’s exposure to domestic violence and to enhance the men’s skills in communicating and parenting.

This chapter emphasizes the importance of improving health literacy. It describes the incorporation of cultural competence standards in forensic social work practice perspectives. The chapter also explains how to promote engagement of informal support networks in promoting health and well-being among diverse groups. Disadvantaged racial and ethnic minorities in the United States have long been overrepresented in the criminal justice systems. The elimination of health care disparities and ensuring the health care delivery system is responsive to minority groups is a social justice issue. The roles and function of forensic social workers that provide services to persons with these cultural norms can be expanded using a broader ecological framework and the applied social care model to develop intervention strategies and care plans with incarceration persons. Identifying and incorporating culturally appropriate practice approaches are challenging, yet necessary undertakings for forensic social workers.

Substance abuse is a significant problem among persons who are homeless. This chapter explores the application of addiction recovery management (ARM) principles for developing practice skills in the recovery process among vulnerable populations. It examines demographic and social action factors that may impede or foster successful completion of this long-term recovery for persons who are experiencing home insecurity. The chapter offers insight for forensic social workers about how to engage diversity and differences in practice, as well as advance human rights and social, economic, and environmental justice. Analytic concepts in forensic social work can enhance the capacity of educators to prepare practitioners to be effective in closing the gap that exists for racial disparities in treatment approaches and programs. Critical race theory can be used to develop guiding principles for competency-based education and outcomes that address the gaps in existing systems of care.

This chapter describes how forensic social workers can develop their expert witness testimony skills. It explains how to advocate on behalf of vulnerable racial and ethnic populations generally underrepresented in American legal system, to increase advocacy from a human rights perspective. The chapter explores how to use expert testimony to highlight a range of social justice issues including human trafficking, death, and persecution. It introduces forensic social workers to integrating narrative methods with evidence-based trends that can best support any legal claim for hardship. Expert witness testimony comprises core mitigation components: client interviews; collateral interviewing; obtaining institutional records; identifying core themes of hardship that have directly impacted the individual or family; identifying intergenerational patterns of illness and/or systemic traumas that impact family; identifying environmental and country conditions; writing a report; and preparing for direct testimony and cross-examination.

This chapter aims to disseminate theoretical and practical knowledge of practice using an empowerment and feminist perspective specifically when working with marginalized and oppressed forensic populations and in forensic settings. Forensic social work focuses on both victims and offenders, and strives to integrate the skills and knowledge of empowerment and feminist theory and practice with principles of social justice and human rights. The chapter discusses empowerment and feminist theories and their relevance to practice with forensic populations. It highlights a case example of group work with women, who were sexually abused, that was first presented in the 1990s and told from a strengths-based approach, but could very much be considered both a feminist and empowerment process of working. The chapter also highlights applying an empowerment approach to working with female and male prisoners in London.

This chapter describes the life course pathways of cumulative health and justice disparities experienced by historical and emerging diverse groups, which is often found among forensic populations. It helps readers articulate a life course systems power analysis strategy for use with forensic populations and in forensic settings. The chapter demonstrates how a data-driven and evidence-based assessment and intervention plan can be used to address clinical and legal issues using case examples of an aging prison population. It uses older people in prison to illustrate the complex life course of health and social structural barriers and needs of incarcerated people who have histories of victimization and criminal convictions. Information about trauma and justice, especially related to the trauma of incarceration, which in itself is often a form of abuse, especially when frail elders are involved and they are at increased risk for victimization, medical neglect, and “resource” exploitation is presented.

This chapter defines restorative justice and discusses the various forms that this approach to wrongdoing and offending may take. It reveals the relevance of restorative interventions to social work practice. The chapter recognizes pioneers in the field of restorative justice with special emphasis on social work theorists. It describes the various forms of restorative justice from micro level victim-offender conferencing to community-level healing circles to macro level reparative justice. The chapter argues for greater social work involvement in shaping policies that include restorative justice options in situations of wrongdoing and social work involvement in facilitating victim–offender and anti bullying conferencing. The chapter also describes aspects of restorative justice that address competencies related to advocacy for human rights and issues of spirituality.

This chapter illustrates how factors outside of families affect lives of people within families. It examines the potential impact that two major issues—work-family conflict and mass incarceration—can have on the lives of family members. The chapter describes ways in which laws governing systems external to families, particularly work and criminal justice, can disrupt families in ways that may lead them to use social workers. It aims at providing necessary understanding of how social workers can help support such families, keeping in mind that family needs often develop from the social and economic context in which each family is situated. The chapter discusses the relevant ethical, legal, and policy issues facing work-family conflict and mass incarceration. It encourages social workers to look beyond the individual—to the systems in which individuals are situated, to better understand the behaviors, decisions, and mental health of individual clients.

This chapter aims to provide social workers with a historical and contemporary understanding of mass incarceration in the United States. The goal is to facilitate informed forensic social work practice and advocacy with individuals, families, and communities impacted by this destructive phenomenon. The chapter examines the prevalence of jails and prisons, as well as an overview of the people who inhabit them. It discusses the core roles and functions of forensic social work. Restorative justice is often hailed as a prevention, and/or intervention, in justice settings. High levels of suspensions have seen schools become feeders not for college, but for the juvenile, and adult criminal justice systems. This phenomenon has been titled the school to prison pipeline; its impact can be felt predominantly among poor students of color. Research has demonstrated the effectiveness of restorative justice in both juvenile justice and school settings.

This chapter discusses in detail the scope of the problem of child maltreatment, and current evidence-based assessment and interventions in the child welfare system. It covers the history of child protection legislation, and describes the foster care crisis in the United States, including the foster care to prison pipeline, the impact of parental incarceration, and current policies such as reforms in the juvenile jurisdiction system. Additionally, trauma-informed care and the juvenile jurisdiction system is examined in light of recent trends to more closely align systems of care with neuroscience research and best practices for serving children and adolescents. The chapter reviews the relevant theoretical and practical approaches, including the application of neuroscience research, trauma-informed care, father engagement, and addressing secondary trauma among child welfare professionals. It also presents a case study and challenges of working with incarcerated fathers who may have children in the child welfare system.

This chapter provides an orientation to the critical issues, history, trends, policies, programs, and intervention strategies of the juvenile justice system. It reviews the types, functions, and legal responsibilities of the various juvenile justice agencies and institutions. The chapter describes the case flow within the juvenile justice system. It also discusses systems of care in juvenile justice, and specialized assessment and treatment issues with adolescents, including sexually abusive youth. It explores the foundation and groundwork for the study of juvenile delinquency and juvenile justice system while delineating the legal definitions of juvenile status offenses and juvenile delinquency, examining the nine steps in the juvenile justice case-flow process. The chapter also gives attention to systems of care, the link between trauma and delinquency, as well as the assessment and treatment considerations for forensic social workers when addressing the specialized needs of juveniles in the justice system.

This chapter describes a forensic practice framework using a human rights and social justice systems approach. It articulates the definition and theme-based strategies that distinguish forensic social work from social work practice as usual. The chapter then proposes an integrated theoretical perspective that the authors refer to as a human rights and social justice systems (HR-SJS) approach. This approach helps to visualize forensic social work practice in any practice setting. The chapter also reviews the history of forensic social work using the United States as the case example to illustrate how a two-pronged approached to practice was integrated throughout this specialized arena of practice. A review of forensic social work history shows that well over 100 years ago, social workers understood that government, as author and institutor of policy, can and should be an arena for reform.

This chapter promotes understanding of the intersection of social work case level practice skills and social welfare programs and policy. It describes the social work advocacy process, and explores how social and political values impact accessibility to social welfare programs. It assists social workers in developing competence in policy practice and in case and policy advocacy. The chapter also helps social workers recognize when social welfare and economic policies are not fairly distributed, and to become skilled in taking action at the micro-, mezzo, and/or macro level. It discusses the interaction of direct practice with case advocacy to underscore the critical need to understand and interpret policy to achieve social justice. The chapter further highlights the importance of social workers engaging in case and policy advocacy to achieve a socially just outcome for any individual or group, especially those impacted by involvement in the criminal justice system.

This chapter enhances the understanding of the multifaceted challenges that individuals, especially older adults, seeking housing with a criminal background face. It reviews the ways in which individuals, especially older adults, can be vulnerable in terms of safety and security in their housing settings. Older adults may be particularly concerned about security and safety at home because their homes have been shown to be places where they can be victimized, either by telephone scams, door-to-door solicitation, bullying in age-congregate settings, and witnessing other crimes occurring in their residences. The chapter discusses ways in which forensic practitioners can support vulnerable populations, including older adults. It also discusses the complexities of affordable and safe housing using case examples and descriptions focusing on the older adult population. The chapter provides further recommendations on other areas of assessment and intervention that forensic social workers can conduct.

This chapter explains the paths and obstacles that immigrants face when they navigate the justice system in an attempt to stay in the United States. It provides an overview of what happens to an immigrant who seeks to enter the country “legally”, as well as the challenges for an immigrant who enters the country without authorization. The chapter also discusses paths to authorized immigration, including application for resident visas using the family- or merit-based immigration systems. It provides an insight into why 11.9 million immigrants have entered the United States without authorization rather than attempt legal means to immigrate. The chapter primarily focuses on those who either crossed the border without authorization or who remained here despite the expiration of their visas. It further explores how social workers can support immigrants who are involved in the immigration justice system.

This chapter examines the significance for vulnerable groups of social welfare policies and advocacy to meet basic human needs. It identifies key policies and programs established to meet needs of income, food, and shelter. The chapter encourages students to begin using research and statistical data to assess needs and adequacy of programs. It also identifies social work’s role and skills in addressing needs of vulnerable groups. The chapter focuses on the key role of social work professionals in establishing, maintaining, and improving programs needed to ensure a basic level of income for families with children (i.e., income security), access to adequate nutrition (i.e., food security), and access to adequate shelter (i.e., housing security). It also discusses the challenges faced by social workers who serve populations with the basic human needs, including offenders and victims of crime.

This chapter deals with interviewing techniques that have been empirically found to elicit the most detailed and accurate information when conducting a forensic interview. It describes three evidence-based best practices for forensic interviewing. The chapter also delineates the ways in which interviewer beliefs and expectations can bias the interview. It describes forensic interview as the first step in the investigation, when an allegation of child sexual abuse is referred to Child Protective Services. Although there are a number of forensic interviewing models, all consist of sequential phases or stages and include the following: rapport building, substantive phase, and closure. Forensic interviews should be video- or audio-recorded, so that a clear record of the interview is preserved. The chapter also discusses some of the main points in the NICHD protocol and the Michigan protocol for best practices.

This chapter describes how mental health and substance use interact with criminal justice involvement. It examines the common assessment and intervention strategies for co morbid mental health and substance abuse in forensic population and settings. The chapter gives a brief review of how substance use disorders co-occur with psychiatric disorders. The chapter describes prevalence of co-occurring disorders such as anxiety/depression, bipolar disorders, psychotic disorders, personality disorders, and posttraumatic stress disorder in general. It then discusses prevalence of psychiatric disorders in the prison/jail systems. The chapter also describes medication-assisted therapies for opioid use disorders and, treatment and aftercare services. It explores two of the most common types of treatments for those in the CJS, cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and 12-Step groups. The chapter further reviews two CBT programs, aggression replacement training and strategies for self-improvement and change.

This chapter discusses the history of forensic research atrocities. It promotes the use of National Association of Social Workers (NASW) Code of Ethics as a foundation for forensic research. The NASW Code of Ethics purports that social workers should promote and facilitate evaluation and research to contribute to the development of knowledge. This underscores both an ethical and a human rights obligation for the need for more prevention and intervention studies with incarcerated individuals. The chapter describes national and international responses to historic forensic research, and aims to build awareness of the need for new research to serve forensic populations and to increase familiarity with forensic research methodologies. The National Commission for the Protection of Human Subjects identifies three categories of research in prison settings: convenience research, prison-oriented research, and treatment-oriented research.

This chapter articulates a basic understanding of human rights and how they relate to social work. It describes some of the changes that are needed in social work practice in the United States in order to adhere to human rights principles. The chapter then addresses the implication of human rights for social workers. It offers some background on the concept of human rights, with emphasis on the relationship between human rights and social work and human rights and the law. The chapter further discussed the implication of human rights for social work education and social work practice, with a focus on building community. It discusses obstacles to social work practice from a human rights perspective, and concludes with a discussion on how social work needs to change to have consistency between discourse and action.

This chapter focuses on the role that Adult Protective Services (APS) and related service systems play in protecting vulnerable older adults and adults with disabilities from abuse, neglect, and exploitation. It articulates policy issues connected to elder justice. The chapter also explores human rights issues related to elder abuse, aging, and disabilities, particularly how to balance rights to self-determination and safety when working with abused, neglected, and exploited older adults. APS operate within a continuum of services that challenge social workers in their efforts to respond effectively to elder abuse. In addition to knowledge of aging, disabilities, the dynamics of family violence and care giving, and community resources and skills in capacity assessment, working in multidisciplinary teams, advocacy, and systems navigation, social workers need commitment to values of self-determination and empowerment to guide their work in this system.

This chapter describes the importance and need for interdisciplinary collaboration in forensic settings. It discusses how the evidence-based principles of risk, need, and responsivity (RNR) model can guide interdisciplinary collaboration with justice-involved individuals. The chapter highlights a treatment program for high-risk justice-involved males demonstrating interdisciplinary collaboration and specifically the role of the forensic social worker. Interdisciplinary collaboration is an essential core skill in evidence-based forensic social work practice. Interdisciplinary collaboration can be multidimensional, interactional, and developmental, and the following strategies have been identified as most important in achieving a best practice: preplanning, commitment, communication, strong leadership, understanding the cultures of collaborating agencies, and structural supports and adequate resources for collaboration.

This chapter helps forensic social workers (FSWs) understand how to incorporate research into their practices. It clarifies the terms associated with evidence-based practice (EBP), and demonstrates three different approaches that FSWs can use in their practice settings. The chapter focuses on clinical interventions within forensic settings. It provides a brief summary and overview of some of the intervention models used in forensic settings with established empirical support, along with a discussion of their strengths and limitations. The chapter highlights commonly used forensic intervention models such as risk-needs-responsivity models, motivational interviewing, trauma-informed care, trauma-focused cognitive behavioral therapy, schema-focused therapy, and dialectical behavioral therapy. It concludes with a case example to illustrate how to use EBP in order to ensure that FSWs are providing interventions that are the best combination of art and science.

This chapter aims to enhance understanding of the justice-involved veteran population including the extent of involvement, risk, and protective factors associated with offending, and the impact of criminal justice involvement on the veteran and the veteran’s family system. It discusses the targeted programs and services for justice-involved veterans, how social workers assist this population, and the specific skill set required for effective intervention. The chapter also deals with health and mental health of incarcerated veterans, causes and consequences of arrest among veterans, and the use of trauma-informed care models and other interventions designed to address trauma that are critical for addressing the complex needs of justice-involved veterans. It further discusses jail-diversion programs, and jail and prison-based programs and services.

This chapter describes how forensic social workers can use the knowledge and skills of intervention development to design or evaluate existing interventions with forensic populations or settings, and about funding for their cause. It articulates the language of program and proposal development to prepare forensic social workers to be the creators of programs needed for forensic populations. The chapter enables preparing forensic social workers to possess basic competencies for understanding the language and practice of program development and evaluation of forensic social work interventions. The chapter provides an overview of the different parts of the logic model and how it can be linked to program development and evaluation. It provides questions related to the common types of evaluation, which include a needs assessment and process, outcome, or efficiency evaluations. The chapter also reviews forensic intervention development using a human rights and social justice systems approach.

Working with justice-involved youth and employment-related services requires a wide range of social work and systems knowledge, skills, and expertise. This chapter enhances understanding of the role employment services play in forensic social work with youth. It presents relevant findings from recent research on employment services for justice-involved youth and their effects on recidivism. The chapter discusses the targeted programs and services for justice-involved youth, providing case examples and discussion of how social workers assist this population, and the skills required for effective intervention. It also provides a basic understanding for how employment services fit within the system. The chapter aims to connect research with real-life examples. It outlines two of the ways inequality and oppression impact juvenile justice and employment. The chapter also discusses two evidence-based employment intervention strategies that are available to justice-involved youth in New York.

This chapter discusses the complexity of the role of the school social worker. It describes how to respond collaboratively and effectively to the variety of issues presented within public schools. The chapter provides a brief history of social work services in schools. It addresses recent demographics and trends and the scope of the problems in this specialty area. Specific legal and ethical issues of concern in the practice of school social work, and issues of assessment, prevention, and intervention are also discussed. The chapter describes the types of services provided through social work in schools, ranging from traditional child study team work to reentry services for students returning from correctional and/or treatment facilities. The chapter further examines the origin and development of school social work services in the United States.

This chapter focuses on a snapshot of current immigration patterns and a profile of the US immigrant population. It discusses the impetus behind immigration. Immigration is not only a current national issue. Given the great diversity and myriad needs of the growing immigrant population, it is essential that social workers understand the legal and political as well as psychological and social issues surrounding immigration. Chain migration is a process of movement from immigrants’ homelands that builds on networks of familiar social relationships to construct neighborhoods or communities within the places of habitation, which reflect the cultural norms and societal expectations of the homelands. Social workers who work with immigrants need to understand the personal immigration history of their clients in order to best help them. At many schools of social work, students have learned to view immigrant issues through a human rights lens.

This chapter deals with major health care issues that social workers need to be familiar with in working with immigrants. It provides an introduction to the many complex, interconnected issues that social workers and their immigrant clients face as they navigate the US health care system in an attempt to obtain quality health care. The chapter focuses on some of the implications for social work practice that arise from public health issues and provides discussion questions and several case studies. Social workers can and should be vigilant in advocating for increased translator and interpreter services at their agency or medical setting, not just for the convenience of the patient, but for his or her safety and improved health. Social workers in the field of health care must actively address the issues of language, culture, and income/health insurance status as well as legal status when working with immigrants.

Each year, the United States (US) Department of Homeland Security removes hundreds of thousands of people from the US. Increasingly, the federal agency tasked with removing noncitizens has prioritized removal of those who have had contact with the criminal justice system. Those who are not citizens of the US may face additional consequences related to their immigration status, such as ineligibility to adjust their status to that of lawful permanent residents, inability to travel abroad, ineligibility for US. citizenship, mandatory detention in an immigration facility, or removal. The three primary sections of immigration law affecting noncitizens charged with crimes are grounds of inadmissibility, grounds of deportability and good moral character. Further complicating matters for noncitizens, immigration consequences may be triggered absent a final disposition of guilt in a criminal court. Civil practitioners are invaluable advocates to immigrants and refugees who encounter the criminal justice system.

Substance misuse, abuse, and substance use disorders constitute a major public health crisis in the United States. This places a tremendous strain on the nation’s healthcare system. Social workers are advocating for policy changes aimed at preventing and reducing the serious adverse consequences of substance abuse disorders. This chapter underscores the importance of addressing prevention and treatment with various population groups and includes the following three subsections: Practice, Research, and Policy for substance misuse, abuse, and addiction. The development of policies that support healthcare reform and treatment is vital for addressing the major public health crisis of substance use disorders. Social workers have played an important role throughout history in working with the complex problems of addictive disorders. The education and training of social workers and all healthcare professionals about the issues associated with addiction is critical to reducing stigma and providing competent and quality treatment services.

The lesbian, gay male, bisexual, transgender, queer and questioning (LGBTQ) population is a diverse community that has historically been brought together to cope with an oppressive society. As society has become more accepting, younger sexual and gender minorities may feel safe and more comfortable disclosing their sexual orientation and gender identity. In order to understand the lack of attention and the healthcare needs of this population, social workers first must understand the LGBTQ community. In collaboration with their clients, social workers can develop goals to increase coping and problem-solving skills to help address stressors. By affirming the identity, expressions, and behaviors of sexual and gender minorities as equal to heterosexuals, men, and women, social workers can employ the various practice methods of research, policy, advocacy, leadership, and direct practice to empower LGBTQ persons and help them achieve equity in healthcare.

Healthcare in the United States is more of a patchwork quilt than a system of care. It is complex, diverse, and rapidly changing. One of the few constants across all healthcare sectors is assessment. This chapter defines the purpose of assessment, briefly describes key concepts in the bio-psychosocial-spiritual (BPSS) assessment, identifies and describes visual assessment tools, and introduces a family technology assessment tool. It highlights the intersections between policy, research, and practice. The chapter serves as “headline news” to essential topics and augments our understanding of assessment in healthcare settings. Social workers are expected to include a spiritual assessment in the traditional biopsychosocial assessment. Technology assessments in healthcare and mental health continue to be an underutilized tool in providing state-of-the-art evaluations. The development of a technology ecomap provided an example of a visual technology assessment aimed at digital inclusion in family systems evaluation.

Social workers, both in the community and within the Veterans Administration (VA), provide a comprehensive range of services to a broad demographic of veterans. Service provision for veterans can address a wide range of issues including aging, homelessness, reintegration, sexual assault, physical and psychological war injuries, and substance abuse. Research-informed practice allows social workers to effectively address the special needs of veterans. This chapter discusses the landscape of social work practice with veterans and the interconnectedness of research, policy, and service delivery. It offers an introduction to working with veterans from a practice, policy, and research perspective. Social workers should have a working knowledge of military culture, the impact of deployment, subsequent redeployments, reintegration, and adjustment to civilian life. It is essential for social workers to have knowledge about the physical and psychological aspects of trauma, particularly war-related trauma.

Throughout history, social work has played a significant role in the changing healthcare delivery system. This chapter highlights the history of healthcare and social work, including the roles social workers are engaged with diverse populations. It underscores the unique contributions and challenges that social workers are involved with in practice, policy, and research. Social workers have advocated for human rights and social justice throughout history. Social workers can help to change the healthcare delivery system that embraces collaboration with the individuals, families, communities, and other disciplines to insure good health for all members of society. Social workers recognize the dignity and worth of all people as well as the influence of the environment on human life. The recognition of healthcare disparities that continue to exist in society is a major concern of social workers responding to the needs of vulnerable populations.

Over the past 10 years, the U.S. healthcare system has undergone substantial changes, impacted by the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (2010), and motivated by the need to improving healthcare quality and outcomes, while reducing costs. Healthcare delivery system changes have included integrating behavioral healthcare into primary care diverse populations groups, older adults. SAMHSA-HRSA Center for Integrated Health Solutions delineated a specific set of competences for Integrated Behavioral Health and Primary Care. These competencies are the following: interpersonal communication; collaboration and teamwork; screening and assessment; care planning and care coordination; intervention; cultural competence and adaptation; systems-oriented practice; practice-based learning and quality improvement strategies; and informatics. The need for integrated healthcare driven by the poor outcomes and high costs prevalent throughout the U.S. healthcare system has led to significant changes in service delivery, particularly in primary care settings.

Social work values and ethics continually guide policy, practice, and research in the healthcare field. Using the lens of social work values, this chapter begins with examining social work policies and government policies on healthcare. Identifying ethical challenges and dilemmas and applying a model of ethical decision making for practitioners will also be addressed. The chapter ends with the need for continued research on ethics to enhance social workers’ understanding of this important area. Social workers in the health field in the United States are often impacted by health issues of those around the world, such as the increasing number of immigrants and refugees that access healthcare and the concern that deadly new viruses such as Ebola and swine flu are only a plane ride away. Thus social workers need to have a global perspective in addressing health concerns.

Pregnancy begins with anticipation, uncertainty, and hope. This chapter reviews normal biopsychosocial developments during pregnancy and the neonatal period. It emphasizes the development of perinatal attachment. The chapter examines loss as a result of the death of a fetus or neonate as a form of disenfranchised grief and explicates perinatal losses such as infertility, assisted reproduction, abortion, adoption and learning of a fetal anomaly. It reviews typical maturational losses associated with customary pregnancy such as loss of the idealized child, loss of sleep and changes in the partner relationship. The chapter explains interventions including the five V’s and the model of miscarriage. It helps the reader understand the prenatal and postpartum attachment process as a frame for how loss is experienced during and soon after pregnancy. The chapter describes how biological changes in pregnancy impact attachment and the subsequent experience of loss.

Young adults self-reflect and try to find their place in the world as adults. This chapter examines young adulthood, which is defined as ages 30 to 45, and reviews experiences of grief as a result of both death and living losses. It takes up developmental themes of young adulthood (achieving intimacy and fulfilling career goals) and summarizes young adults’ common biological, psychological, social, and spiritual developmental changes. Successful achievement of young adult milestones is interrupted by risk factors including poverty and marginalization. Young adults’ deaths are considered an off-time loss, but deaths from suicide and drug overdose have made this experience more common in recent years. Some experience complicated grief as a result. Common living losses that derive from divorce and infertility also affect young adults. The chapter reviews the Gottman method couples therapy and complicated grief therapy, practice methods to help young adults.

Treatment outcome studies in the discipline of social work, psychology, and psychiatry have demonstrated the efficacy and effectiveness of differential psychotherapy approaches in addressing the psychological needs of individuals across the life span. Throughout the last four decades, scholar-practitioners have engaged in a professional quest to find evidence to support the efficacy of psychotherapy in ameliorating an array of clinical symptoms and levels of distress in identified patient or client populations. This chapter presents an overview of evidence-based practice with ethnically diverse clients. Predicated on an integrative understanding of evidence-based practice and cultural competency in mental health and clinical care settings, and on the importance of intersectionality as the guiding theoretical perspective for effective delivery of patient-centered services, it presents selected conceptual frameworks for the cultural adaptation of evidence-based treatments. The chapter highlights culturally adapted cognitive-behavioral therapy as an exemplar of evidence-based treatment for ethnic and racially diverse patient populations.