Clinical Social Work: Technology

Clinical social workers who use social media in their private practice should develop a social media policy to inform patients how social media will be used in the therapeutic relationship. The social media policy in this document serves as an example to assist private practitioners in developing a policy that may meet the needs of their practice.

Electronic health records (EHRs)are digital versions of paper records which make patient information instantly accessible to authorized users. EHRs are becoming popular and many health care providers have adopted them in practice.

Get tips for clinical social workers use of technology, based on some of our members' most common concerns related to this topic.

Social workers’ use of technology is proliferating. Technology has transformed the nature of social work practice and greatly expanded social workers’ ability to assist people in need. Contemporary social workers can provide services to individual clients by using online counseling, telephone counseling, videoconferencing, self-guided Web-based interventions, electronic social networks, mobile apps, automated tutorials, e-mail, text messages, and a host of other services.

Advancement in technology continues to change the way that clinical social workers manage their private practices and deliver services to patients. Technology has made most services accessible and convenient in addition to making communication easier and faster. It also raises liability concerns, which can place clinical social workers at risk. Clinical social workers should take certain precautions when using technology to ensure patient confidentiality and privacy of records. They should also follow federal and state statutes regarding the use of technology in their private practice. The cellular phone, answering machine, facsimile machine, and computer are technology tools used in private practice that deserve special attention.