Interdisciplinary Team Teaching in a Barrio Primary Care Mental Health Setting

Abstract

The dramatic increase in the number of social workers entering the health care field, coupled with the movement within health care systems toward comprehensive primary care, represent a significant challenge to social work educators to prepare students to work effectively in this highly complex field. This paper describes an innovative, interdisciplinary mental health training program developed in Houston that is geared to primary care community settings that serve underprivileged populations. Attention is given to the role of social work in this interdisciplinary program, as well as to the broader implications that this training and service model holds for social work education.