The Center for Social Work in Healthcare (CSWH) is dedicated to promoting and supporting the optimal use of the social work profession in health care settings, with an emphasis on primary health care. This is accomplished through the provision of educational opportunities and supports to social work students who have demonstrated an interest in interdisciplinary practice in health care. The Center supports and participates in Oklahoma projects and programs focused on improving primary and community health, and in advancing the use of evidence-based social work practice in health care.
In addition, the Center is committed to building capacity across the state by conducting and disseminating applied research, securing external funding to expand programming and innovation, and strengthening the infrastructure needed to sustain impactful practice. The Center provides technical assistance and resources to primary care practitioners interested in developing social work positions within their practices or enhancing the integration of social workers within interdisciplinary teams. Through these efforts, the CSWH serves as both a catalyst for advancing the profession and a hub for collaboration that improves the reach and effectiveness of social work in health care.
“The CSWH upholds its mission through supporting student opportunities through elective courses related to social work practice in health care and offering stipend support for field experiences in healthcare, graduate research assistantships, and interdisciplinary training opportunities in conjunction with the OU Health Sciences Center. One such program available to graduate students is the Unity Clinic. Another, open to both undergraduates and graduate students, is All Professions Day (APD). Both the Unity Clinic and APD are interprofessional interdisciplinary experiential programs that train OU students from 13 health disciplines to work together to better serve people in our communities.
The CSWH is involved in various activities aimed at supporting the adoption of evidence based best practice models for the use of social work in healthcare and ensuring social work is able to practice using clinical interventions to promote behavioral change and improved health. Some of these activities are the provision of technical assistance, start up support and continuing technical support to SoonerCare Medical Home practices that have demonstrated interest and potential capacity to employ and sustain social work professionals in primary health care settings. CSWH collaborates with and supports Oklahoma programs and projects with a goal of improving access to and quality of primary care and community health services in Oklahoma.
In 2015 the Center received a grant from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) to train students in Medicine (MD), Physician Assistant (PA), Nursing (MSN and BSN), Social Work (MSW and BSW), Psychology (Graduate level), and Counseling (undergraduate) students on Screening, Brief Intervention, and Referral to Treatment (SBIRT). The OU SBIRT Collaborative has provided the trainees with live simulation experience and resource materials to support integration of SBIRT into their future practice. To date, the grant has trained over 1,600 future healthcare professionals in how to have collaborative, non-judgmental, patient-centered conversations about alcohol, substance use, tobacco, and depression.
CSWH works with AHZSSW to partner with diverse organizations that are primary care, community health services, and health adjacent to place both BSW and MSW level interns to expand knowledge of health social work. In addition, CSWH funds scholarships for some students placed in these settings to grow social work healthcare workforce in Oklahoma. Additionally, CSWH actively engages with community mental health and health providers to conceptualize how partnerships can expand the social work in healthcare workforce in Oklahoma.
