The Alzheimer's Digest: What is Geriatric Social Work?

Social workers are in the business of helping people live their lives more effectively. They offer a wide variety of resources to the communities they serve, including help with relationships, family problems and functioning effectively in social environments. Geriatric social work is specifically geared toward senior citizen (people over the age of 65).

Geriatric social work helps senior citizens live healthier and more productive lives. Geriatric social workers help seniors understand and effectively utilize the various social services and programs that are available to them. The social workers also offer direct assistance, like providing family-support services and facilitating the coordination of medical care. Many geriatric social workers also offer counseling services, which often deal with end-of-life issues and other concerns common to senior citizens. Geriatric social work can help lower many of the risks associated with aging.

Geriatric social workers work in a wide variety of settings. Some work in nursing homes, retirement communities or hospitals, while others work inside of government agencies or in hospice programs. You may also find geriatric social workers employed by law firms, insurance companies, doctors, banks and even employee-assistance programs. Other geriatric social workers work for senior-citizen centers or adult daycare centers, and for various advocacy groups like the AARP and Gray Panthers. Still others--usually those with Master's of Social Work (MSWs) degrees--open private practices and do individual case management.

A social worker needs a bachelor's degree at minimum, but most of the higher-paying positions that are available require a Master's of Social Work (MSW.) Plus, every state in the United States regulates social work, and has licensing and certification laws for social workers. While these can vary from state to state, most require the social worker to pass a board examination given by the American Association of State Social Work. This allows the social worker to seek employment with certain agencies, and to use the title of Licensed Clinical Social Worker. Those who have obtained the MSW are also able to pursue additional certifications through the National Association of Social Workers.

While there are no official certifications specific to geriatric social workers, specialized training is beneficial and often required by their employers. For example, many choose to specialize in geriatrics while in college or take continuing-education classes to give them an edge in the field. In fact, since experts predict a shortage in geriatric social workers as baby boomers near retirement age, a 5-year, $5 million educational grant was renewed in 2007 for the Gerontological Society of America. This grant is intended to help fund the education of 99 social-work students who are focusing on geriatrics.

There are nearly 50,000 geriatric social workers in the United States. It's one of the fastest-growing career fields at the moment, probably due to technological and medical advances helping people live longer. Plus, as the baby-boomer generation reaches retirement age, the need for geriatric social workers is steadily rising. UCLA estimates that, by 2020, there will be 70,000 geriatric social workers needed for the growing senior-citizen population. Because of changing demographics and the booming older population, geriatric social work is one of the fastest-growing areas in social work.