Pilot program creates more opportunities for grads

Social work students benefit from practicums at AHS

Story by Cassie Ford

EDMONTON — A new pilot program here is helping to place more social work students in practicums at Alberta Health Services (AHS).

Eight students from Grant MacEwan University and the University of Calgary (U of C) spent a total of 12 weeks between the Royal Alexandra Hospital and the Glenrose Rehabilitation Hospital thanks to this collaborative program. For the Royal Alex, this is double the number of students these sites have accommodated in previous years.

“I really wanted exposure to various environments, which is how I ended up in this practicum,” says Victoria Fitzner, a recent graduate of the social work program at U of C. “I asked for something that would give me a lot of breadth of experience, and these hospitals, although right next to each other serve very different purposes and demographics. The patient needs are incredibly different.”

The students were split into two groups, with four beginning their practicums at the Royal Alex and four beginning at the Glenrose. They switched hospitals at the six-week mark. Historically, social work students do a 13-week practicum placement at a single site.

“With this new practicum model, the students were able to see more of that continuum of care,” says Karen Cettiga, the Allied Health program manager who oversees the social work department at the Royal Alex. “They were able to get experience and exposure to not only an acute care hospital but also a rehab hospital. They got to work with different social workers and see different approaches.”

The pilot program also allowed for shared responsibility between the sites and the universities. On top of the supervision offered by preceptors at the sites, the universities provided onsite field instructors who met with the students once a week to debrief, and provided preceptors with help, where needed, to complete paperwork for midterm and final evaluations.

Holly Knight, Provincial Student Placement manager, says her team works hard to help match students with meaningful placements that support their career goals.

“Innovative approaches like this help to support more students in completing their academic requirements so that they in turn can join the workforce,” says Knight.

Cettiga says having social work students at AHS for their practicums also helps them better prepare to join the healthcare workforce.

“The learning curve in an acute care setting can be significant when you don't have that practical experience,” says Cettiga. “A healthcare placement immerses them in our work environments and patient populations, so they can feel more comfortable and competent coming out of their practicums. They’ll be more likely to look for positions within AHS.”

This rang true for the students who participated in the pilot program. Six of the eight recent grads, including Fitzner, have accepted casual or permanent social worker positions with AHS.

“I've always had a passion for understanding and acknowledging health disparity, and I want to work to reduce it,” says Fitzner.

With her ultimate goal of a career in healthcare social policy, she says she’s excited to work at AHS and build her competencies in case management and frontline work in acute care.

Would she recommend this practicum placement to other social work students? Absolutely.

“Working in multiple environments is invaluable,” she adds. “You're going to gain a comprehensive understanding of the healthcare system while forming strong connections — not only with patients but with doctors and nurses and anyone in the human service field.”