MENTAL HEALTH SOCIAL WORK IN HONG KONG DURING THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC

Civil unrest during the COVID-19 pandemic, fears of contracting the virus, challenges for families, and disrupted daily routines complicated mental health in Hong Kong. During the pandemic, most professional social workers worked either in overburdened medical settings, or in community settings where services were suspended, and outreach discouraged. Services disproportionally focussed on information giving and essential tangible support, with fewer providing emotional support. Lessons for practice gleaned from experiences thus far include using a strength perspective to build new normal life, improving service coordination, mobilising peer support, strengthening primary prevention, and enhancing crisis intervention capability in social work education.