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Boston College School of Social Work Associate Professor Marylou Sudders has been awarded a $664,000 grant from the Health Resources and Services Administration of the US Department of Health and Human Services to fund a program that will provide critical on-the-ground training for 53 second-year master’s level students at the BC School of Social Work. The program will also provide vital support to local health care providers and agencies adapting to new requirements set forth by the Affordable Care Act to better integrate behavioral and physical health services.
“Professor Sudders is an ideal person to direct this exciting training program,” said BCSSW Associate Dean of Research David Takeuchi, the co-principal investigator on the grant. “As past Massachusetts commissioner of mental health, she has a broad view of the landscape, has deep insights about problems and potential issues in the delivery of mental health care, knows emerging policy issues, understands the mental health needs of the state, social work, and of students, and can access her extensive networks across the state to meet the training goals of this new grant.”
Over the course of two to three years, students will receive experiential inter-professional behavioral health training in primary care settings. Examples of organizations accepting highly specialized student placements include: Boston Children’s Hospital, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Massachusetts General Hospital, the Massachusetts Department of Mental Health, the Massachusetts Health Policy Commission, and Revere Public Schools (these placements are part of BC Social Work’s comprehensive field education program).
Students will also be required to participate in class sessions with nationally recognized clinical and policy leaders in integrative healthcare.
This story was provided by the Boston College School of Social Work; to read more, see http://bcsocialworkblog.com/2014/09/25/sudders-wins-major-federal-grant-to-train-behavioral-health-professionals/