Investigating and Improving the Training of Aging Services Personnel
Scharlach, Andrew, Jaimie Simon, and Teresa Dal Santo. Who Is Providing Social Services to Today's Older Adults? Implications of a Survey of Aging Services Personnel. Journal of Gerontological Social Work 38 (4): 5-17, 2002.

With the older adult population increasing at a rapid rate, predicted to reach 21% of the U.S. population by the year 2040, social workers trained in gerontology are in increasing demand. Yet little research has been conducted to determine the background and training of persons currently providing services to seniors. To address this information gap, the authors surveyed California aging services agencies. The study requested information about current workers, including gender, ethnicity, education, and training; educational requirements for current vacancies; and possible changes in public policy or social work programs that could help aging services providers meet future personnel needs.

Because research has shown that social workers with advanced training are more adept at assessment and case management, coordinating services, and dealing with issues surrounding elder abuse, the authors were particularly interested in determining the percentage of the workforce holding MSW degrees. They found the percentage to be low. Employees working in adult protective services or case management had the highest proportion of MSW degrees, at 42% and 36%, respectively. No more than 12% of workers employed in other aspects of aging services held MSW degrees. The authors found that these percentages reflected job requirements. Although 35% of vacant job openings in adult protective services and 50% of in case management required an MSW degree, no other job types in adult services required an advanced degree. In addition, note the authors, the vast majority of social workers, even those with an MSW degree, receive little training in aging. Only about 3% of the members of the National Association of Social Workers list aging as their primary field, and most social work programs offer few courses related to aging.

Not surprisingly, nearly three-quarters of the agencies surveyed cited a lack of qualified applicants and inadequate salaries as the greatest barriers to hiring highly trained social workers. Many respondents, 40%, also cited insufficient numbers of ethnic minority applicants as a hiring barrier, reflecting issues raised by the growing ethnic diversity of the older adult population.

Improving Training for Geriatric Social Workers
In order to increase the pool of social workers with MSWs and training in aging issues, social work programs need to increase gerontology course offerings and provide incentives for persons to pursue a career in geriatric social work. The authors discuss the Geriatric Social Work Initiative, sponsored by the John A. Hartford Foundation, as a model approach. The initiative's programs seek to improve curriculum, encourage social work faculty to concentrate in aging, and provide gerontology training for students. Another program, based at New York's Hunter College, offered scholarships to minority aging services workers to pursue MSW degrees while maintaining their current employment. Funding to replicate programs like these could be obtained, suggested several survey respondents, by creating government-sponsored training programs at social work schools modeled on current federally-funded child welfare training programs.