Building Capacity Through Global Collaboration: The Value of the International Network of Social Wor

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INSWABI
Building Capacity Through Global Collaboration
The Value of the International Network of Social
Workers in ABI

• I. Social Work in Acquired Brain Injury The
  Canadian Context
• The Canadian Association of Social Workers
  defines social work as a profession Concerned
  with helping individuals, families, groups and
  communities to enhance their individual and
  collective well-being to help people develop
  their skills and their ability to use their own
  resources and those of the community to resolve
  problems. Social work is concerned with
  individual and personal problems but also with
  broader social issues such as poverty,
  unemployment and domestic violence.
• Social workers in Canada who work in the field of
  Acquired Brain Injury (ABI), typically work in a
  variety of public and privately funded
  agencies/organizations including acute and
  rehabilitation hospitals, community agencies, and
  private practice. Social workers often provide
  services as members of a multidisciplinary
  treatment team, with intervention being provided
  on an individual, couple, family or group basis.
  
• While duties performed by social workers vary
  depending on the settings in which they work,
  brain injury social workers are often assisting a
  culturally and geographically diverse patient
  population, and their family members, to navigate
  health and social service systems to access
  resources needed to optimize recovery process and
  cope with day-to-day impact of brain injury on
  emotional functioning, relationship dynamics and
  social role performance/participation.
• Intervention typically includes
• Assessment of client and family situation,
  psychosocial functioning and intervention needs
• Education regarding the sequelae of brain
  injury (especially behavioural and emotional
  changes)
• Supportive counselling and psychotherapy
  related to adjustment, loss, coping, future
  implications/planning, impact for family members,
  caregiver support role change, substance use,
  discharge planning, consent and capacity issues
• Resource counselling related to finances,
  housing, advocacy and referral, third party
  funding structures (motor vehicle insurance and
  workers compensation) and relevant legislation
• Challenges for social workers in carrying out
  this ABI-related service delivery
• Limited or no ABI related training for social
  workers at an undergraduate or post-graduate
  level on-the-job learning essential
• May lack peer support to address practice issues
  in working with people with ABI
• May not realise that local problems in the
  Canadian context are also confronted by peers in
  other countries
• May not have the resources or expertise at the
  local service level to develop resources, tools
  and modalities for practice in the field of ABI

Contributing Authors Karen Sasaki MSW, RSW,
Neuro Rehabilitation Program, Toronto
Rehabilitation Institute Jessica McCallum MSW,
RSW, Neuro Rehabilitation Program, Toronto
Rehabilitation Institute Karla Forgaard-Pullen,
MSW, RSW, Ross Memorial Hospital Mental Health
Services Grahame Simpson, PhD, NHMRC, Health
Professional Research Fellow, Rehabilitation
Studies Unit, University of Sydney Research Team
Leader/Social Worker, Brain Injury Rehabilitation
Unit, Liverpool Health Service NSW,
Australia Patti Simonson, Head of Social Work,
Royal Hospital for Neuro-disability INSWABI lead
for BISWG UK.
II. The International Network for Social Workers
in ABI (INSWABI) The International Network for
Social Workers in Acquired Brain Injury (INSWABI)
was launched in 2006 at the International
Conference for Social Workers in Health and
Mental Health held in Hong Kong. The mission of
INSWABI is Through international collaboration,
to advance the social work contribution to the
field of acquired brain injury (ABI), for the
benefit of people with ABI, their families,
significant others and broader support networks.
INSWABI currently has a membership of 70 social
workers across nine countries. INSWABI operates
through an e-mail network and website. In
contrast to international networks that are
largely driven by academics, the INSWABI members
are predominantly social work practitioners
working in the field of ABI. This means that the
agenda for INSWABI reflects current practice
issues or challenges members are finding at the
coal face. In the face of these challenges,
INSWABI provides a mechanism for both peer
consultation as well as a platform to implement
projects to address clinical issues through
international collaboration. Importantly,
INSWABI is underpinned by national social work
professional practice interest groups in the
United Kingdom (Brain Injury Social Work Group)
and Australia (Social Workers in Brain Injury)
that are affiliated with their respective
national social work organisations.

References Brain Injury Social Work
Group/INSWABI http//www.biswg.co.uk/default.ihtml
?step4pid26 Canadian Association of Social
Workers http//www.casw-acts.ca/

• IV. INSWABI and Canadian Social Work in ABI
• INSWABI provides an opportunity for Canadian
  social workers in brain injury to identify gaps
  in health and social service systems, advocate
  for change, share and disseminate information
  about social work best practice in ABI care,
  influence policy and practice related to resource
  allocation/usage to improve the social well-being
  of people with brain injury.
• In Toronto, a forerunner of this model of
  collaboration has been the Neuro Social Workers
  Interest Group which has been active for almost
  20 years, providing a forum for case
  consultation, resource sharing and networking.
• From the Canadian context, INSWABI can provide
  support and a focal point to
• Collaborate on research and publications
• Enhance resource and information sharing
• Provide opportunity for observership and job
  exchanges
• Reduce professional isolation
• Build ABI/social work-specific training
  opportunities and practice competencies
• Build awareness of social workers role in ABI
  care in Canada

Correspondence For more information or to
become an INSWABI member contact Karen
Sasaki Phone [phone] Ext.3087 Email
sasaki.karen_at_torontorehab.on.ca
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