April 16: A Day to Consider and Communicate Your Health Care Choices

Mar 10, 2014

NASW is pleased to continue its support for National Healthcare Decisions Day, now in its seventh year. Join the observance by encouraging your clients to consider, discuss, and document their goals for their health care—and by preparing, reviewing, and sharing your own advance directives.

Advance care planning is more than a document. It’s an ongoing process that can help each individual direct her or his health care. Social workers play an integral role in helping clients understand, and engage in, advance care planning.

Resources

National Health Care Decisions Day Web site

NASW Practice Perspective: Reexamining Advance Care Planning

Legal Defense Fund Legal Issue of the Month: Social Workers and Advance Directives

Information about the social work role in advance care planning on NASW’s consumer Web site, Help Starts Here

Information about advance care planning on the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization’s consumer Web site, Caring Connections

Hospice Foundation of America spring 2014 program on adolescent loss, presented in cooperation with NASW

Chris Herman, MSW, LICSW
NASW Senior Practice Associate

Have 8 Minutes? Share Your Thoughts on Client Substance Use

Feb 3, 2026

We’re listening! We want to learn about your work with clients on alcohol and other substance use. In just eight minutes, you can help us better train and educate social workers who serve clients at risk for substance-related problems, including substance use...

Recent Child Care Updates

Jan 29, 2026

Since the start of the new year there have been several new developments regarding child care. Childcare has been a consistent conversation among parents, social workers, child advocates, and the childcare workforce because the costs of care are rising. Without affordable child care, some parents leave the workforce, and some spend more than 7% of their income on care while paying for other necessities. Childcare is plagued with long waitlists, low compensation for workers and some rural communities have few options to access care.

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