The Social Work Group and its Distinct Healing Qualities in the Health Care Setting

This article describes how the humanistic values and democratic norms fundamental to social group work are operationalized in groups in the medical setting. The author delineates numerous values and norms and identifies and describes the uses of practice interventions in health care groups. The focus is on group practice that provides a healing environment of caring, empowerment, and support for members. Practitioner efforts center on the development of group norms that enhance belonging in open-ended and closed groups, foster diversity in the group, include rather than exclude others, widen freedom of choice and open decision making, and help members question the authority of the worker as well as of the hospital system. Illustrative examples of group forms are included to demonstrate practice in this framework.