Digital interventions in public health social work: A narrative synthesis
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.7146/qhc.157585Keywords:
digitalisation, information and communication technology, interventions, public health social work, review, social workAbstract
Background: The implementation of digital interventions may present social workers with a range of both opportunities and challenges in practice. Aim: This rapid review provides a narrative thematic synthesis of benefits and challenges of current digital interventions in public health social work. Methods: Articles were identified by conducting a systematic search in various bibliographic databases and included if they were related to public health social work, presented specific intervention utilising digital information and communication technology, and were peer reviewed primary studies. Results: The thematic analysis of the nine included articles identified three overall benefits, namely that the interventions can 1) make up for difficult or impossible physical co-presence, 2) provide access to information, and 3) be effective. Furthermore, three overall challenges were identified, namely 1) digital interventions can create a need to adjust, 2) limited accessibility, and 3) technical issues. Discussion and conclusion: The synthesis shows that digital public health social work interventions can be valuable additions to traditional non-digital social work practice, but that lack of skills and/or resources may challenge their implementation. Additionally, social workers’ caution towards these kinds of interventions calls for further research on the suitability of digital interventions in social work.
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Copyright (c) 2024 Maja Nordtug, Dagny Adriaenssen Johannessen, Ida Krag-Rønne Mannsåker, Gry Velvin, Aud Ragnhild Misund, Hanne Synnøve Skedsmo Nilsen, Amy Kristin Østertun Geirdal
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