Social work involvement in palliative care heart failure research: a review of recent literature

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: The aim of the review is to examine the findings of empirical studies of palliative care interventions for patients with heart failure in which a social worker was identified as a key member of the interprofessional clinical team. RECENT FINDINGS: Our systematic review of the empirical literature from January 2016 to August 2019 found five palliative care interventions with heart failure patients that cited involvement of a social worker as a key team member. The reviewed studies highlighted social workers' roles in the areas of psychosocial assessments and support, advance care planning, and patient-medical team communication. SUMMARY: Palliative social workers possess the knowledge and skills to provide expertise in psychological, social, and cultural care within palliative care domains of practice. Given this primary and critical role, more studies that include the assessment of outcomes linked to the social worker's role should be pursued. Our review unearthed several important studies that highlight the role of the palliative social workers in heart failure models of care.