ABSTRACT
This chapter provides a general introduction to the social work assessment process. It presents select information needed to address the biological aspects of functional age, including knowledge about normal aging, the functioning of organ systems, and the nature of acute and chronic illnesses. Some agencies offer a geriatric assessment. When assessing an older adult in this instance, social workers as part of an interdisciplinary team evaluate the person: his or her motivations, strengths, challenges, and capacity to change. Social workers who use the person–environment fit as a conceptual assessment framework examine older clients' behavior as a "complex outcome of person–environment transactions at multiple systems levels." An assessment "aims to identify and explain the nature of a problem, to appraise it within a framework of specific elements, and to use that appraisal as a guide to action." Biological factors are central to the aging process and the assessment process.
