Socio-Demographic Predictors Of Medical Social Workers’ Awareness Of Their Roles Beyond Advocacy In Healthcare Institutions In Lagos State, Nigeria
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.65680/jahs.v4i1.9147Keywords:
Assessment, Medical Social Worker, Counselling, Care coordination, Care mamagementAbstract
Medical Social Work is essential in healthcare delivery especially in the management of social and mental aspects of health, encouraging social integration, and improving societal well-being. The study investigated the socio-demographic predictors of the awareness of the roles of medical social workers beyond advocacy in Lagos State, Nigeria. The study used a cross-sectional, descriptive survey design with 205 participants, including patients and medical staff from the chosen healthcare facilities. Data were gathered using a structured questionnaire with a reliability coefficient of 0.816 and a stratified sampling technique. The data was analyzed using an inferential statistical method (multiple regression analysis). The findings of the study indicated no significant relative influence of age, gender, level of education, and years of practice of the social workers on the efficiency of their skills (R =.076, R2 = .006, f(4,201) = 0.293; P = .882), while 6.5% of the total variance in social workers’ roles awareness beyond advocacy is accounted for by age, gender, level of education, and years of practice in the selected healthcare institutions in Lagos State. It is therefore, concluded that age, gender, education level, and years of practice often turn out to be poor predictors of awareness of medical social workers’ roles (beyond advocacy) because awareness in this context is shaped more by structural, professional, and informational factors than by personal background characteristics.
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