Oncology Social Worker Observation Report

Over the course of this past year the Veterans Success Center (VSC) has made huge strides in being more visible and more involved with other areas across campus. I wanted to concentrate on reaching the incoming student-veterans so that when they encountered the veterans program it appeared to be far more established than it was, and interaction with it being perceived as a daily opportunity. This meant that we would need to be far more involved with the early processes of becoming a student such as: Premiere Night, SOAR/TSOAR/Preview Day/ Veteran specific orientation and Veteran campus tours. We also wanted to be much more accurate in speaking to our student-veteran population, so we worked directly with the Admission Office to create an

Throughout my 3-year employment at Penn-Mar Human Services, I have assumed several different roles. After being hired for individual supports, I quickly transitioned into a group position as a Program Instructor, where I would be better able to utilize my unique skillset and grow professionally within the organization. After only a few months, I was promoted to a Program Instructor II, accepting greater responsibilities. In this position, I flourished

I had the absolute honor of meeting and interviewing the wonderful Isis Howard, a Residential Advisor in PCV 1. Isis, a 2nd year Environmental Management and Protection major, greeted me with a smile which led me to immediately feel comfortable around her. Isis had several personal motivations for why she chose to become a RA; ranging from personal growth and gaining useful life skills, such as communication, honesty, and leadership, to giving back to the Cal Poly community. One point brought up that resigned with me was that her transition to living on her own had been difficult, but her RAs were there for her every step of the way. Their efforts to create a sense of home in an unfamiliar environment truly motivated her to become a RA. Now that Isis has received the job, she mentions she receives the benefits that she hoped for from the beginning everyday- she continues to develop skills in a wide range of areas that deem valuable for life.

Working in a nursing home piqued my interest in geriatrics and led me to become a volunteer for Hospice. This experience allowed me to spend more time with patients, and it was truly a privilege to be a part of their last moments in life. While I believe these have been excellent roles in healthcare, they have certainly reinforced my will to continue down the medical pathway even further. Becoming a PA would allow me to play a bigger, more important role in patient’s

While completing a dual Master’s of Social Work and Public Health at the University of Michigan, I worked at Michigan Medicine. I learned there that there was more to shaping the patient experience than the clinical aspects of patients’ care. My deep desire to contribute positively to patient relations in a system that shaped the professional I am today is the reason why I enthusiastically submit my application for the Patient Relations Specialist position. As a former Patient Services Assistant in the operating rooms, I took the time to learn about the resources available to our patients to ensure that their time with us was one in which they felt validated and supported.

Being labeled as the care coordinator for the WIC program really made me excited for this position and what it was offering. Participants of the WIC program reside in almost every city within the county, meaning that the people I will be interacting with can vary dramatically from person to person (in

I am a Residential Counselor specializing in situational assessments, conflict resolution and effective communication. I'm organized and energetic with over two years of experience working with clients in the milieu environment. Highly involved caregiver committed to a proactive and hands-on approach in assisting staff. Ambitious with excellent research, time management and problem solving skills. Versatile, adaptable and adept at working effectively with children and families. Excellent at juggling multiple tasks and working under pressure. Motivated with wide-ranging abilities relating to animal care including pet sitting, and basic training

I also have an extensive training in working with local agencies. The spring semester of my sophomore year, I began volunteering at the Cedar Valley Hospice for approximately 20 hours a month. I was trained in the following areas: Patient/Family, Grief, and Cedar AIDS Support System (CASS) services. Through my work at the CASS, I was responsible for making contacts with a variety of other agencies on the behalf of my clients, such as the Black Hawk County Health Department, Operation Threshold, and the Cedar Valley NAMES Project. In this capacity, I did office work, I was a buddy to an HIV positive individual, and I did face-to-face education panels in local school and community settings. I was also extensively involved in training future buddies. It was during this time period that I completed the American Red Cross course work for certification as an HIV/AIDS educator. In this capacity, I have been a guest speaker in several elementary school and college courses about HIV/AIDS. The

I am using this degree to hopefully squeeze myself in the VA systems so I invoke positive restructuring to this broken organization. I also realize that veterans are not the only

My professional experience involves Bartley Health care, which is an assisted living for the geriatric population as I mentioned in the earlier paragraph. My duties are providing direct social services to residents and their families. Assisting residents and families with receiving services in the facility and or community, conducting family care conferences, completing initial social services assessments, assisting residents that are experiencing personal and environmental difficulties, inviting residents and or/families to care plan meetings, coordinate discharge planning, and providing support to residents that are in need. Bartley is one of the best nursing home facilities and I enjoy working with my co-workers who have been like family to me. I enjoy working my residents and putting a smile on their face.

In the beginning, I was not feeling to positive about it because it seem a little unorganized. It took me a minute to get in contact with someone to get my orientation. Once I was able to start volunteering, I was extremely nervous. I had no idea what to expect or even what to do. This is was my first time working first hand with the senior citizen population. As weeks went by, I started to loosen up and became comfortable with everyone in the facility. It also helped that residents were used to having volunteers on a daily basis. The only major problem I had was fitting the service learning placement into my schedule because we cannot volunteer after 5pm. I wish I was able to do this during a different semester because my schedule this semester is really hectic. Other than that, I did enjoy my time at Northwind Rehabilitation and Health Care Center. My service learning placement had a positive influence for my future career path. My career path after graduation is to go into nursing. I will have to interact with all different ages before I can pick the certain position I want to focus on. It help define my career path because I was never fond of working with senior citizens. After being exposed to it, I realized it was not that bad as I thought and that I can definitely work with senior citizens. It made me realize that senior citizens are humans just like us, despite

working outside of hospitals, so as care shifts into a community based setting, there is a strong

Different governmental strategies or guidelines have been developed to inform cancer survivorship practice, to meet breast cancer patients’ needs and enhance their survival and well-being. In the US, different organisations like the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN), The American Cancer Society (ACS), and The American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) have released publications and guidelines, and events related to cancer survivorship care. The Institute of Medicine (IOM) report, From Cancer Patient to Cancer Survivor: Lost in Transition, recommended the main elements of survivorship care which are prevention, surveillance, health promotion, managing long term effects and well-planned, coordinated care to help cancer patients progress from the acute treatment phase to life after cancer (Hewitt, Greenfield et al., 2006). Recently, the ACS and the ASCO updated their guidelines of breast cancer survivorship care, addressing the follow-up, prevention and monitoring (Runowicz, Leach et al., 2016). According to their guidelines, it is recommended that the patient should receive physical examination every 3 to 6 months for the first 3 years, every 6-12 months for the next 2 years and then annually. Annual Mammography is recommended on the intact breast for those who have undergone a mastectomy and on both breasts for who did lumpectomy (Runowicz, Leach et al., 2016). On the other hand, there is no access to Saudi Arabian health care guidelines concerning survivorship

Over the past two years I’ve been able to oversee several individuals as a coordinator at the nonprofit organization, Santa Cruz Homeless Services Center. Through my work there I was able to recognize my strengths and weaknesses in health services management. Working for a nonprofit

Medical social workers collaborate with other human service workers to help severely ill patients, suffering from physical and psychological issues. Throughout the many challenges of patients, medical social workers and other professionals meet the common and severe needs of people with physical and mental illnesses. Andrews, Darnell, McBride, & Gehlert (2013) state “Social workers are familiar with the complex and overlapping systems that must be negotiated to ensure that the social, psychological and economic needs of individuals and groups are addressed in a way that underscores optimal health” (p. 67). Once the patient discuss their core issues with the medical social worker and other medical staff members at the hospital, physicians, nurses, and medical social workers can give patients ' positive feedback the concerns their health and well-being. Medical social workers interact with each other for the patient’s safety.