ExCEL in Social Work: Excellence in Cancer Education & Leadership: An Oncology Social Work Response to the 2008 Institute of Medicine Report

Abstract

ExCEL in Social Work: Excellence in Cancer Education & Leadership was a multi-year National Cancer Institute (NCI)-funded grant for the development and implementation of an innovative educational program for oncology social workers. The program’s curriculum focused upon six core competencies of psychosocial–spiritual support necessary to meet the standard of care recommended by the 2008 Institute of Medicine (IOM) Report: Cancer Care for the Whole Patient: Meeting Psychosocial Health Needs. The curriculum was delivered through a collaborative partnership between the City of Hope National Medical Center and the two leading professional organizations devoted exclusively to representing oncology social workers—the Association of Oncology Social Work and the Association of Pediatric Oncology Social Workers. Initial findings support the feasibility and acceptability of this tailored leadership skills-building program for participating oncology social workers.