Evening star., 1939-05-26
Social Work Leaders
Discuss Problems
OF Patients
Emotion and Psychology
Held VituI Factors
In Treatment

hIllolloIldl ana pSycnolOglcal
aspects as vital factors in the treat
ment and ultimate recovery of
patients handled under medical
social work programs were explained
by four District social work leaders
at yesterdays luncheon meeting of
the Health Committee of the Coun-
Gil of Social Agencies at the Y. w.
C. A.
Speakers treating different phases
OF organization work included Miss
Irene Grant, chief of the social work
section, Veterans Administration;
DR.. Frank S. Horvath, associate
clinical professor of medicine,
Georgetown University; Miss
Beatrice Mullin, supervisor of medi-
cal social work, Georgetown Uni
versity Hospital, and Miss Lucia
Murchison, director of medical social
service, District of Columbia Health
Department.
Miss Grant, speaking on THE
General Purpose of Medical Social
Work" declared that nearly every
disease had specific social aspects
in that it requires at least tempo
rary modification of some feature of
the patients way of life and rela-
tlonship to Others" She said the
patient is given responsibilities and
that the prescribed method for get
ting well is seldom lust following
directions on the medicine bottle"
The economic, emotional and ply
Geological factors of the patients
background then come into play,
she said, and the problem arises as
to his ability or position to carry out
precisely the medical advice given
him.
1T is the function of medical
social work" she added, ito see that
skillful help is given in modifying
social situations and emotional fac
tors to the patients advantage,
based on the deepest human under
standing and the ability to help
build a satisfying, comforting, per-
sonal philosophy of life
Emotional Stress and Strain.
DR.. Horvath outlined the social
aspects OF disease, placing particular
emphasis on the emotional stress
and strain" of patients, declaring
that the role of emotion in illness
was not recognized generally until
recent years. However, it is capable
of causing disaster to the nervous
system" he stated, "and emotional
conflicts over a period of time can
work their way into the body and
lead to disease"
The increasing number of suicides
is due, DR.. Horvath said, to fear,
worry and emotional
strain-which results many times in
illness. The proper curative treat
ment calls for care and adjustment
OF daily life to new situations and
the type of treatment varies with the
individual. He said physicians were
aware that social aspects in every
case made the efforts of medical
social workers indispensable in help
ing to make diagnosis and the re-
sulting treatments for recovery,
based on the background data
assembled by the Investigator.
Activities of medical social work
were outlined by Miss Mullin who
said the groups major objective was
to eliminate fear, prejudice and ig-
norance among patients visited by
their workers and to try and i'm
prove the economic condition wher-
ever possible. She said those things
many times were the deciding fac
tors in the patients recovery. I'VE
do not regard medical social work
as an isolated park in the medical
universe" she remarked, "and we
intend to develop and expand the
program locally so that our hospital
units are more efficient and ade-
quate in this branch of medical
work"
Stations in Various Cities.
Miss Murchison described the ex-
panding program nationally and
said IS States, including the District,
had set up medical social work sta
tions in various cities. OF that
number, Is have one or more work.
ers on State Health Department
staffs, she added Washington, es-
tablishing bureau Of social service
in the Health Department in March,
1888, is the second city in the eoun.
try to install such q group, Los
Angeles being the hrst, she said.