Social Workers in Senior Care: Your Strongest Advocates and Problem Solvers

Social work is a profession devoted to helping vulnerable people and communities work through challenges they face in everyday life.

For Kelly Malski and Deniseshla (Denise) Walton, two of a dozen social workers at Care Resources serving adults 55 years and older, a big part of their role is advocacy through a holistic lens.

They consider social and emotional needs, not just the medical diagnosis, to coordinate appropriate care and access to services, while respecting the choices of those they serve.

“We are on the front lines a lot when it comes to participants and families,” Malski said. “We are their strongest advocates. We can refer, offer and suggest things, but self-determination is always at the forefront.”

Working for a Program of All-inclusive Care for the Elderly, or PACE, means their ultimate goal is to keep participants “in their home in the community healthy and happy for as long as possible,” Malski added, helping prevent nursing home placement.

“In many ways, we help participants manage their lives,” Walton said. “At Care Resources, we coordinate all services a participant in our program needs to maintain their independence wherever they are living.”

They say they don’t always know what each day will bring because of the wide range of needs they may be navigating at once for multiple participants, who are often on a very limited income. Social workers can help arrange everything from access to food, clothes and household essentials, to financial support, legal aid, advance care planning and even ensure people land in the correct place after a hospital discharge.

“We’ve had people who are moving somewhere and literally have nothing, so we help locate items for them – whatever they need,” Malski said. “But there are also folks on the other end of things. I currently have a gentleman on my caseload who just wants a buddy, so I have been trying to locate resources for someone who can be a companion for him.”

There are many different settings where a social worker might be in senior care or other industries, but their role remains focused on bridging gaps in needs by connecting people to community resources. They’re excellent problem solvers and communicators, often coordinating with several family members, participants, health care professionals and community agencies at once.

Because there are a lot of different factors at play Walton said, “you have to really listen” as a social worker, “hear everything, be able to read between the lines and analyze” to properly assess the situation and determine the best course of action.

While social work is a broad field, both Malski and Walton were drawn to the profession as a pathway to help people. That sentiment is in line with this year’s theme for Social Work Month, “Compassion + Action,” which commemorates the “tremendous empathy and caring capacity that social workers have as they help people in whatever setting and specialty they choose.”

Malski and Walton find supporting older adults to be particularly rewarding. Not only do they enjoy being around the older generation and learning from their wisdom, but participants are often in a place in life where their needs are rapidly changing, so there are a lot of ways social workers can help them as they age.

If you think your loved one could benefit from a social worker, their doctor should be able to make a referral. It may be appropriate to bring in a social worker to support a senior if the individual is facing complex medical needs, emotional challenges or safety concerns, or if a caregiver is overwhelmed and needs support.

A community-based program like Care Resources, which includes access to social workers as well as physicians, dietitians, home healthcare aides and more, may also be able to help. To learn more, West Michigan residents can call 800.610.6299 or visit careresources.org.