Student Program
As reflected in the Social Work Department's mission statement, the Department provides a year-round field instruction program for graduate students from accredited and affiliated schools of social work. The Department's field placement program educates graduate students to provide clinical services to patients enrolled in a variety of patient-care research studies. The program incorporates an experience with psychosocial research for second-year students. The purpose of the field training is to help students develop clinical skills with an emphasis in healthcare social work.
Students are exposed to a variety of clinical practice approaches–which include individual, family, and group work–as well as opportunities to function as members of interdisciplinary teams. Licensed social workers provide clinical supervision. All students participate in weekly educational seminar groups, which focus on the various aspects of clinical social work in healthcare. Topics include psychosocial assessments; psychosocial issues in death and dying; professional boundaries; psychosocial issues for children with chronic illness; bioethical issues for social work practice; and the healing journey of a cancer patient.