Running Head: Interview Paper

Interview Paper
SW3010 Practice Methods 1
Wayne State University
Jodie Annis
February 4, 2014
Fi1274@wayne.edu

Interview Paper

I began this assignment with confidence that I would quickly locate a Social Worker to
interview and complete the project. I had very specific areas in social work that I wanted to
learn more about, so I focused on those types of agencies to find an interviewee. After making
several dead end phone calls I began to realize that I was not going to be able to be picky about
whom I interviewed. I called approximately fifteen different agencies, calling multiple
departments within each agency, and in the end only had three B.S.W.s offer their time.
I consider myself to be a confident, overcoming individual and not receiving phone calls
back was very difficult and frustrating. If I were going through a traumatic time in my life, and
was in need of help, this process would have been very defeating. The required class assignment
kept me going, but by day number three of phone calls with no phone calls back, I felt like
giving up. Faced with the same situation, a client in need is only going to find the strength to
make very limited phone calls before their potential feelings of hopelessness overcome them and
they give up. I only hope that these same agencies, when faced with clients in need, respond
differently than they did to my inquiries.
On the very last day before the assignment was due, I finally received a phone call back
from Lise A. Kolinski, L.B.S.W., manager of Social Work Case Management Department at
Munson Medical Center. Mrs. Kolinski graduated from Western Michigan University in 1973.
She has been working for Munson Medical Center for 31 years, and has held her current position
for the past two years.
Munson Medical Center is situated in a rural area; therefore its service area reaches from
the Mackinaw Bridge, over to Oscoda County, and down to Roscommon counties. In this
position, Mrs. Kolinski described a clientele that reaches every demographic. Her agencies

Interview Paper

clientele ranges from infant to geriatric, extreme poverty to extreme rich, as well as every ethnic
group within Northern Michigan. She works with individuals who are dealing with chronic
illness, as well as, those experiencing onetime events.
Mrs. Kolinski performs many different duties in her current position. She is in charge of
managing her departments budget, hiring, as well as scheduling of social workers and nurses
within her department. In addition to these management duties, she also performs some patient
assessment and care when needed.
Mrs. Kolinski described the role of a medical social worker as one that requires flexibility
and lifelong learning. She described the medical field as always changing, and requiring social
workers to stay on top of the ever changing needs of their clients. Some of the tasks performed
by social workers are assessing their clients needs and then working with them to develop a plan
to achieve their goals. Members of Mrs. Kolinskis team are required to make daily rounds with
other medical professionals to stay on top of their clients needs. Due to the large area that
Munson Medical Center serves, individuals on Mrs. Kolinskis team are required to know what
services are available across all of Northern Michigan.
Just recently, Munson Medical Centers Social Work Department went through a change
in the way they meet their clients needs. Instead of strictly employing social workers they have
renamed their department case management and have began hiring nurses to aid in this work.
Mrs. Kolinski described how this change has benefited the clients and the social workers. As a
team they work together, and if a client has more medical needs than social needs they will enlist
the help of a nurse to create a workable plan. Some specific types of plans that medical social
workers often deal with are end of life care plans, 5 wishes plans to help decision making if

Interview Paper

something medically catastrophic occurs, finding guardians for those unable to make their own
decision, and palliative care (long term pain management).
Mrs. Kolinski described Munson Medical Center as really good, but always having
room for improvement. She said that this field is multi-disciplinary, meaning that there are so
many different areas that workers need knowledge in. This creates a constant need for
improvement. The aforementioned change to Mrs. Kolinskis department came out of Munson
Medical Centers continuing desire to serve its patient clientele in the best way they can.
As a former patient at Munson Medical Center and a recipient of their social work
services, I can definitely say that they are effective, yet as Mrs. Kolinski stated there is still room
for improvement. As an agency their task is great. The ever changing situations these social
workers need to be prepared to address present a difficult task. Overall, it appears that Mrs.
Kolinskis team is serving their client population well and is always looking for ways to advance
their services.
On a micro level Kolinskis team impacts their clients through one on one care. They
develop care plans, and arrange other services where needed. Most of the services provided by
Munson Medical Center are direct care which is a micro level service. On a mezzo level
Munson offers different support groups dealing with specific illnesses or conditions. At the
Macro level Munson Medical Center is continually at work within the national health care
system. There are employees that are aware of the needs to revise certain parts of health care.
These individuals become the patients voice through sitting on different boards in the
community to make change. Mrs. Kolinski stated that she has social workers sitting on the Bay
Area Stroke support as well as running the Family Advisory Committee.

Interview Paper

Munson Medical Center is a beacon in our community. Social workers allow Munson
Medical Center to not only address the physical health but also improve the social and emotional
health of their patients. This interview opened my eyes to the work that medical social workers
do. Before this interview I held the belief that medical social workers were required to have their
masters degrees. I learned that this is not always true.
Mrs. Kolinski was very knowledgeable and willing to share. I felt very comfortable
during the interview process and enjoyed the opportunity to learn about another field within
social work. My perspective on social work did not change. I still view it as an incredibly
diverse field that has the potential of impacting individuals and families in all walks of life.