Citation

Kourgiantakis T, Lee E. Soc. Work Educ. 2022; 41(6): 1351-1366.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2022, Informa - Taylor and Francis Group)

DOI

10.1080/02615479.2021.1955850

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Social workers are one of the core professionals on the mental health workforce and most work with individuals, families, and communities with mental health and addiction concerns. Schools of social work have a responsibility to adequately prepare students for practice in the field of mental health and addictions, but there are gaps in social work education and training. This paper describes a social work practice in mental health course that has been re-designed to focus on developing student competence in mental health, addictions, and suicide risk assessment. We formed an advisory committee consisting of faculty, MSW and PhD students, as well as community social workers. The re-designed course uses simulation-based learning and a form of blended learning known as a flipped classroom approach. We developed educational online modules that provide opportunities for students to increase knowledge on mental health and addictions and give more time to focus on practice in the classroom. Simulation-based learning provides students with opportunities to practice in the classroom with a simulated client. This paper will describe how simulation can be used to teach and assess mental health and addiction competencies. We will discuss implications for social work education and practice. © 2021 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.

Language: en

Keywords

suicide; assessment; Mental health; social work education; addictions; simulation-based learning