Abstract: Objective: To understand the perception and needs of medical social work services for patients with chronic diseases in health care workers of a tertiary grade A hospital. Methods: From September to October 2021, 12 health care workers with the expertise of chronic diseases in a tertiary grade A hospital in Guangzhou were recruited using a purposive sampling. The "one-to-one" semi-structured in-depth interviews were conducted and the data were analyzed using the Colaizzi 7-step analysis method. Results: A total of 4 themes were extracted from the interview data: healthcare professionals' agreement on the importance of clinical intervention of medical social work services for patients with chronic illnesses; inadequate knowledge of medical social work; expectations and needs of the role of medical social workers for patients with chronic illnesses; barriers in the practice of clinical collaboration. Conclusion: The knowledge of medical social work services for patients with chronic diseases is insufficient in health care professionals, however, all health professionals support such services for patients with chronic diseases. It is suggested to improve the primary infrastructures of the medical social work services, promote recognition of the services, and increase the knowledge level of health care professionals. Both health care professionals and social workers should work together to overcome barriers and promote the clinical practice of medical social work services under the limited resources.

Key words: medical and nursing staff; chronic disease; medical social work; perceptions; needs