Increasing Social Work’s Stake in Interprofessional Practice

Effectively Preparing MSW Students for Integrated Care Settings

Authors

  • Amy Benton Texas State University
  • Alejandro Allen
  • Lindsey Anderson
  • Erica Nason

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.18060/25624

Keywords:

integrated healthcare, social work education, stipend-supported programs, quantitative method, BHWET programs

Abstract

Integrated behavioral healthcare is becoming increasingly important and central to social work practice as the healthcare field shifts from a solely disease model of health to a more holistic approach. Researchers have also noted the need for studies demonstrating effective models for incorporating integrated healthcare training into schools of social work. Studies that demonstrate the effects of integrated training have the potential to provide legitimacy to these training programs, an important step in furthering their adoption within schools of social work in the United States and abroad. The training program described here was designed to increase the number of MSW social workers who provide trauma-informed, culturally relevant, evidence-based behavioral health prevention and intervention practices at integrated healthcare settings. This study used a pre- and post-survey design with non-participating MSW students as a control group. Findings indicate significant increases in knowledge, skills, and attitudes for training participants. A recommendation for further research is to explore to what extent graduates transfer their enhanced knowledge to the workplace.

References

Acquavita, S. P., Harley, D., Lee, B. R., Sacco, P., Levy, M., & Holmes, C. (2020). Preparing master of social work students for interprofessional practice. Journal of Evidence-Based Social Work, 17(5), 611-623. https://doi.org/10.1080/26408066.2020.1781730

Ashcroft, R., McMillan, C., Ambrose-Miller, W., McKee, R., & Brown, J. B. (2018). The emerging role of social work in primary health care: A survey of social workers in Ontario family health teams. Health & Social Work, 43(2), 109-117. https://doi.org/10.1093/hsw/hly003

Austin, M., Weisner, S., Schrandt, E., Glezos-Bell, S., & Murtaza, N. (2006). Exploring the transfer of learning from an executive development program for human services managers. Administration in Social Work, 30(2), 71- 90. https://doi.org/10.1300/J147v30n02_06

Bagdasaryan, S. (2012). Social work education and Title IV-E program participation as predictors of entry-level knowledge among public child welfare workers. Children & Youth Services Review, 34, 1590-1597. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2012.04.013

Benton, A., Feinman, E., Gonzalez, E., Rosen, A., & Anderson, L. (2020). Outcomes of a bundled intervention approach: Analyzing an enhanced MSW training project for integrated-care settings. Journal of Social Work Education, 58(2), 278-290. https://doi.org/10.1080/10437797.2020.1841698

Benton, A., & Iglesias, M. (2018). “I was prepared for the worst I guess”: Stayers’ and leavers’ perceptions of their Title IV-E education. Journal of Public Child Welfare, 12(3), 264-280. https://doi.org/10.1080/15548732.2018.1446067

Craig, S. L., Eaton, A. D., Belitzky, M., Kates, L. E., Dimitropoulos, G., & Tobin, J. (2020). Empowering the team: A social work model of interprofessional collaboration in hospitals. Journal of Interprofessional Education & Practice, 19, 1-9. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.xjep.2020.100327

Davis, T. S., Guada, J., Reno, R., Peck, A., Evans, S., Sigal, L. M., & Swenson, S. (2015). Integrated and culturally relevant care: A model to prepare social workers for primary care behavioral health practice. Social Work in Health Care, 54(10), 909-938. https://doi.org/10.1080/00981389.2015.1062456

Faul, F., Erdfelder, E., Lang, A., & Buchner, A. (2007). G*Power 3: A flexible statistical power analysis program for the social, behavioral, and biomedical sciences. Behavior Research Methods, 39, 175-191. https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03193146

Foster, G., Morris, M. B., & Sirojudin, S. (2013). Mental health workforce change through social work education: A California case study. Journal of Social Work Education, 49(3), 490-505. https://doi.org/10.1080/10437797.2013.796771

Fraher, E. P., Richman, E. L., Zerden, L. de S., & Lombardi, B. (2018). Social work student and practitioner roles in integrated care settings. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 54(6), S281-S289. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.amepre.2018.01.046

Gansle, K. A., & Ellett, A. J. (2002). Child welfare knowledge transmission, practitioner retention, and university-community impact: A study of Title IV-E child welfare training. Journal of Health & Social Policy, 15(3-4), 69-88. https://doi.org/10.1300/J045v15n03_06

Goode, T. (1999). Promoting cultural and linguistic competency: Self- assessment checklist for personnel providing primary health care services. Georgetown University Center for Child and Human Development. https://nccc.georgetown.edu/documents/Checklist%20PHC.pdf

Horevitz, E., & Manoleas, P. (2013). Professional competencies and training needs of professional social workers in integrated behavioral health in primary care. Social Work in Health Care, 52(8), 752-787. https://doi.org/10.1080/00981389.2013.791362

IBM Corp. (2011). IBM SPSS Statistics for Windows, Version 20.0. Author.

Jones, B., & Phillips, F. (2016). Social work and interprofessional education in health care: A call for continued leadership. Journal of Social Work Education, 52(1), 18-29. https://doi.org/10.1080/10437797.2016.1112629

Leake, R., de Guzman, A., Rienks, S., Archer, G., & Potter, C. (2015). NCWWI Traineeships: A national cross-site evaluation of child welfare stipend programs for ethnically diverse students. Journal of Social Work Education, 51, S299-S316. https://doi.org/10.1080/10437797.2015.1072419

Mattison, D., Weaver, A., Zebrack, B., Fischer, D., & Dubin, L. (2017). Educating social workers for practice in integrated health care: A model implemented in a graduate social work program. Journal of Social Work Education, 53, S72-S86. https://doi.org/10.1080/10437797.2017.1288594

National Association of Social Workers. (2021). NASW code of ethics. https://www.socialworkers.org/About/Ethics/Code-of-Ethics/Code-of-Ethics-English

National Collaborative on Workforce and Disability for Youth. (2004). Knowledge, skills, and abilities of youth service practitioners: The centerpiece of a successful workforce development system. https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED485705.pdf

O’Donnell, J., & Kirkner, S. (2009). Title IV-E programs: Preparing MSW students for public child welfare practice. Journal of Teaching in Social Work, 29(3), 241-257. https://doi.org/10.1080/08841230903022050

Padykula, N., Berrett-Abebe, J., & Haven, T. (2020). Helping community partners build capacity within integrated behavioral health: A call to action for social work education. Advances in Social Work, 20(2), 266-282. https://doi.org/10.18060/23667

Putney, J. M., Sankar, S., Harriman, K. K., McManama O’Brien, K. H., Robinson, D. S., & Hecker, S. (2017). An innovative behavioral health workforce initiative: Keeping pace with an emerging model of care. Journal of Social Work Education, 53, S5-S16. https://doi.org/10.1080/10437797.2017.1326329

Rubin, M., Zerden, L., & McGuire, L. (2020). Leveraging the power of social work through interprofessional education. Advances in Social Work, 20(2), i-x. https://doi.org/10.18060/24406

Sampson, M. (2017). Teaching note—Meeting the demand for behavioral health clinicians: innovative training through the GLOBE Project. Journal of Social Work Education, 53(4), 744-750. https://doi.org/10.18060/24406

Smith-Osborne, A., & Daniel, K. (2017). Concurrent infusion of integrated behavioral health practice into social work field and classroom instruction. Journal of Social Work Education, 53, S17-S26. https://doi.org/10.1080/10437797.2017.1290564

Stanhope, V., Videka, L., Thorning, H., & McKay, M. (2015). Moving toward integrated health: An opportunity for social work. Social Work in Health Care, 54(5), 383-407. https://doi.org/10.1080/00981389.2015.1025122

Tessema, M. T., Ready, K., & Astanie, M. (2014). Does part-time job affect college students’ satisfaction and academic performance (GPA)? The case of a mid-sized public university. International Journal of Business Administration, 5(2), 1-10. https://doi.org/10.5430/ijba.v5n2p50

Tucker, L., & Webber, M. (2020). ‘Maybe a maverick, maybe a parent, but definitely not an honorary nurse’: Social worker perspectives on the role and nature of social work in mental health care. British Journal of Social Work, 51(2), 1-19. https://doi.org/10.1093/bjsw/bcaa202

Walsh, M., Jaggers, J., Satre, C., & Hall, J. (2022). Evaluation of interprofessional practice education for master of social work students: Student perspectives of a short-term IPE observation. Advances in Social Work, 22 (1), 233-250. https://doi.org/10.18060/25564

Zerden, L., Jones, A., Brigham, R., Kanfer, M., & Zomoro, M. (2017). Infusing integrated behavioral health in an MSW program: Curricula, field, and interprofessional educational activities. Journal of Social Work Education, 53, S59-S71. https://doi.org/10.1080/10437797.2017.1288595

Zerden, L., Jones, A., Day, S., & Lombardi, B. M. (2020a). Interprofessional collaboration: An evaluation of social work students’ skills and experiences in integrated health care. Journal of Social Work Education. https://doi.org/10.1080/10437797.2020.1743219

Zerden, L. D., Kanfer, M., & Levine, A. (2020b). Integrated field and collaborative opportunities for MSW students at campus health. Field Educator, 10(1), 1-10. https://fieldeducator.simmons.edu/article/integrated-field-and-collaborative-opportunities-for-msw-students-at-campus-health/

Zerden, L., Lombardi, B. M., Fraser, M. W., Jones, A., & Rico, Y. G. (2018). Social work: Integral to interprofessional education and integrated practice. Journal of Interprofessional Education & Practice, 10, 67-75. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.xjep.2017.12.011

Downloads

Published

2023-03-22