Download Practicum Offering: Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, Department of

Practicum Offering: Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, Department of Supportive
Care
Joint Clinical/Research Offering (2/3 clinical, 1/3 research)
Practicum Supervisors: Robin Forbes, MSW, RSW; Carmine Malfitano, MSW, RSW
Practicum Description:
Princess Margaret Cancer Centre is an institution specializing in cancer care. This
placement is offered through the Department of Supportive Care and
encompasses two divisions within this department, Psychosocial Oncology and
Psychosocial Research.
Social workers function within an interdisciplinary Psychosocial Oncology program
and are designated to a particular cancer site group Students will be working with
both in-patients and out-patients. The primary diagnoses the student would be
working are breast and lung cancer, specifically mesothelioma.
Social work is involved with patients/families at all stages of illness - diagnosis,
treatment, recurrence, palliative/end of life. The patient population come from
diverse ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds and can range in age from late
adolescent to older adults.
The patient population is anyone over the age of 18 years, and includes both
patients and their families (including working with young adults and young
families).
This placement is a joint research/clinical initiative.
Clinical Tasks: observation/shadowing clinicians, psychosocial assessment and
referral, short term counseling (e.g., emotional/supportive) resource acquisition,
administrative activities (e.g., workload measurement, e-documentation),
complex discharge planning, and attendance at appropriate staff/team meetings
& psychoeducation seminars/workshops. Theoretical framework is eclectic and
includes: systems, crisis, developmental, family life cycle, structural, and cognitive
behavioural.
Students will participate in a weekly medical clinic for patients newly diagnosed
with Mesothelioma to assist with accessing supports through the Workplace
Safety Insurance Board or other benefits.
Research Tasks: Tasks include but are not limited to: attendance of regular
research team meetings; recruitment and tracking of study participants (e.g.,
screening potential subjects for eligibility, obtaining informed consent,
administering questionnaires and other data collection tools using established
criteria). Students will be dealing with emotionally intense issues around cancer
diagnoses/treatment/palliative care, this requires a readiness and maturity to
provide service to the patients in this setting.
The student would be involved is an implementation study of an evidence based
psychotherapeutic intervention for patients with advanced cancer.
An MSW candidate in this setting will be expected to:
• Work as a collaborative member of the healthcare and research teams.
• Assess both inpatients and outpatients following a diagnosis of cancer
(through treatment, end of treatment, recurrence or end of life) for the
purpose of implementing a plan of care addressing adaptation and quality
of life within the context of the multidisciplinary Psychosocial Oncology
Program
• Advocate for patient and family care while liaising with those in the
healthcare environment and community agencies to facilitate appropriate
support for patients and families
There is an expectation that student will develop their own research project and
develop a working knowledge of quantitative and/or qualitative methodologies.
Deadline: April 12, 2017, interviews will be conducted April 18-21, and students
will be informed of the outcome by April 24.
Contact: Please email c.v. to both [email protected] and
[email protected]