Social Work’s Commitment and Leadership to Address Social Determinants of Health and Integrate Social Care into Health Care

Abstract

In light of ongoing transformations in health care policy, pressing questions have emerged concerning how to integrate social care into clinical care and what workforce and physical/digital infrastructure will be required for this integration. In response to these questions, the National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM) 2019 Consensus Study Report on Integrating Social Care into the Delivery of Health Care: Moving Upstream to Improve the Nation’s Health has challenged health and human sector leaders to systematically consider ways to integrate social care into health care delivery. Taking social work as a key profession for driving the integration of social care into health care delivery, the following article (1) outlines key components of the NASEM report and (2) articulates the necessary future steps that health and human sector leaders must take across administrative, educational, technological, and workforce arenas in order to sustainably integrate social care and health care sectors.