The Department of Clinical Social Work and Language Services at Children's Mercy Hospitals and Clinics is committed to providing quality field instruction for Masters of Social Work (MSW) advanced-level clinical and administrative students.

Student practicum experiences are available in a variety of inpatient, outpatient and community settings.

We are not able to accept students with other degree concentrations or those wanting only a short-term shadowing experience. 

MSW students in clinical practice will have the following learning opportunities:

• Identifying, interviewing, assessing and documenting patient contacts.
• Participating in multidisciplinary teams including case conferences, medical rounds and specialty meetings both within the hospital and in the community.
• Identifying and expanding the knowledge base of community resources and linking families to community resources.
• Counseling opportunities including crisis intervention, trauma-focused care, grief counseling and short-term counseling related to patient and family needs as they adjust to illness. 
• Administrative activities including participating in department committees; attending educational offerings; participating in Social Work Month activities; research; program and professional development; and other special projects.

MSW students in social work administration will have the following learning opportunities as they assist administrative staff in the following areas:

• Reviewing social work programming.
• Developing proposals to address social work need areas.
• Supervising and reviewing staff.
• Addressing and reporting on quality improvement activities.
• Interacting with a variety of healthcare professionals in a multidisciplinary environment.

Currently, the Department of Clinical Social Work and Language Services accepts applications from students enrolled at universities with whom we have executed collaborative agreements to provide field instruction.

The department provides opportunities for medical students from the University of Health Sciences to observe social work staff as part of a multidisciplinary medical team. Students are placed with social workers in a variety of inpatient, outpatient, and community-based settings.

If you are interested in learning more about student opportunities in the Department of Clinical Social Work and Language Services, please contact Sabra Boyd, LSCSW at (816) 983-6535. Please be aware that official practicum interviews in the department can only be conducted after the student receives approval from his/her university.