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As part of BWH's BluePrint celebration, BWH Bulletin features this special section to explore the past, present and future of the institution. Learn more at BWHPikeNotes.org/BluePrint. Questions? Email BWHBluePrint@partners.org.
That it has been 100 years since the Social Work Department, previously known as the Social Service Department, was formed at the Peter Bent Brigham Hospital?
The Social Service Department officially opened on Sept. 9, 1914, "for the purpose of supplementing the usual hospital work," according to the department's annual report from 1913-1914.
Alice Cheney, RN, was the first social worker appointed at the Peter Bent Brigham, beginning in the role on Aug. 17, 1914. She was focused on the medical mission of the hospital. "It would seem well to remind ourselves occasionally that the primary function of a hospital is to diagnose and treat diseased conditions and to cure or ameliorate symptoms resulting from them," said Cheney in a 1915 report.
Cheney noted that it was important for social workers to attend clinic and assist doctors "in teaching the patients how to carry out the treatment prescribed."
Some of the activities Cheney listed that defined social workers' role in the hospital during this time included arranging for restorative and ongoing care of patients; finding out if home conditions were suitable for a patient's return; making it possible for a patient to come into the hospital when there was a circumstance at home preventing this from happening; and following up and supervising patients through special clinics.
"We have sought to develop our Social Service Department as a very integral factor of our medical and surgical work, and the Social Service worker has helped us greatly in our professional duties," said Henry Christian, MD, then-physician-in-chief, in the 1915 report.
In 1914, Cheney saw 365 patients. In 1915, the hospital added three volunteer workers to assist her, and in 1916, the department saw 470 patients, 383 of whom were new. The department began to grow from 1928 to 1929, when, thanks to a budget increase, five more social workers and two stenographers were hired.
This year, the Social Work Department celebrates 100 years at BWH. Today, the department is part of Care Coordination at BWH, and the Social Work team works in partnership with the interdisciplinary care team to bring clinical skill, dedication and excellence to patients and families coping with complex medical and psychosocial issues. Social workers play a key role in primary care's patient-centered medical home model, and serve patients throughout the hospital's distributed campus and practices.
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