ผลการปฏิบัติงานสังคมสงเคราะห์ในโรงพยาบาล ที่มีต่อการบำบัดรักษา / วิไลวัจส์ กฤษณะภูติ = The effect of social work practices in general hospital on medical treatment /Wilaiwat Grisanaputi.
The purposes of this thesis are to identify and to analyse problems, needs and attitudes of the clients; to study a social worker’s treatment role, to find out the attitudes of the staff in the hospital toward social work and to study the effect of social work practices in the hospital on medical treatment. The data used in the thesis are collected from two primary sources : clients asking for help from the Department of Social Work in Khon Kaen Hospital and the Kalasin Hospital and members of the medical staff in both hospitals. There are 114 patient respondents from each hospital and 180 respondents from the latter group. Questionnaires filled by more than 80 percent of the personnel in both hospitals provided useful information showing their attitudes toward the characteristics of social work in the two hospitals. In addition, the writer interviewed a social worker concerning her daily practice in Khon Kaen Hospital. It has been found in this study that the clients of Khon Kaen Hospital are facing more economic, social and emotional problems than the patients in Kalasin Hospital. Having obtained certain social services from social worker, the problems among the patients in Khon Kaen Hospital have been reduced substantially compared to their counterparts in Kalasin Hospital. It is proved that social work practices in the hospital could be of great help in reducing the clients’ problems. In Khon Kaen Hospital, the medical staff’s attitudes toward the existing social work practices is quite favorable. They said that more than 90 percent of the problems which resulted from insufficient medical treatment were being handled effectively by their social workers. They also welcome an increase in the numbers of social workers to help in their work. The medical staff at Kalasin Hospital where social services are not made available also expressed the same opinion and attitudes. In conclusion, the social worker could help reduce or even eliminate most of the client’s economic, social and emotional problems. The clients in Khon Kaen Hospital cooperate more with the medical staff than their counterparts in Kalasin Hospital. This gives direct evidence to prove that any hospital will substantially benefit from having employed one or more social workers as a helping hand for its medical staff. The writer recommends that the number of social workers in Khon Kaen Hospital be expanded and social services be established in Kalasin Hospital.
