For National Social Work Month, Community Hospice & Palliative Care is proud to showcase our social workers and highlight their integral role in end-of-life care.
Regina Y. Walls, LCSW, ACHP-SW, has been a Social Worker with Community Hospice & Palliative Care for over 11 years. She left the business world after experiencing Community Hospice firsthand.
For Regina, what makes social work essential in end-of-life care is the social worker's role in balancing life and death. "Social Workers play an integral role in all aspects of life - helping patients, clients, families and a wide range of institutions function in a manner that fosters access, equity and self-awareness-at minimum."
Regina reflects on the challenges a social worker faces while working with patients, "Oftentimes, I encounter patients who are not only dying from a terminal illness but they are in a much bigger fight. A Fight to live while coming to terms with dying. The fight often consists of securing adequate resources for daily living such as suitable housing and basic resources."
As a social worker, Regina plays an instrumental role in helping Community Hospice & Palliative Care Patients secure basic needs such as food, supplies, clothing and safety. Social Workers must also rely on their five senses and reasoning to decipher a patient's needs. According to Regina, "It requires listening and responding to what is important to the patient. When a patient is whole, that is when He/She can begin to focus end-of-life planning, dying with dignity and the emotions associated with the tasks."
Regina appreciates how Community Hospice & Palliative Care provides social workers with tangible tools they need to be successful: resource tools, trainings, team concept and evaluations. "Community Hospice & Palliative Care empowers Social Workers to use their Education, Best Practices and Intuition to meet the needs of the patients and their families. Social Workers are encouraged to be an Advocate for the patients while working alongside others on the Interdisciplinary Team."
We're thankful for Regina Walls and the entire Psychosocial Department at Community Hospice & Palliative Care.