Social work field instruction in a perinatal aids setting

This article will discuss the knowledge required for social workers to help AIDS victims and demonstrate that generic social work practice skill is the foundation upon which more specialized knowledge and expertise is built. Individuals with AIDS suffer the ravages of a deadly disease and practical hardships and obstacles in almost every aspect of life. Field instruction in a prenatal AIDS program calls for a biopsychosocial approach to practice. Students experience a full range of social issues and treatment modalities. Legal protection of confidentiality, rules of disclosure and deliberations about values and ethical dilemmas frame their interventions. With supportive supervision, knowledge and a patient care system based on teamwork and colleagiality, students learn the complex and evolving world of social work in health care.