MANSFIELD, PA— Nancy Sidell, interim dean of the College of Professional Studies and
professor of Social Work at Mansfield University, has had the second edition of her book, Social Work Documentation: A Guide to Strengthening Your Case Recording, published by National Association of Social Workers (NASW) Press.
The second edition is an update to Sidell’s 2011 book on the importance of developing effective social work documentation skills. The new edition aims to help practitioners build writing skills in a variety of settings. New materials include updates on current practice issues such as electronic case recording.
Sidell was interviewed about her book, career and other topics for NASW’s “Social Workers Speak” forum.
“I wrote this book with the hope of guiding others through the world of documentation,” Sidell said in the interview. “Practitioners are expected to arrive in positions with excellent skill sets and equally impressive writing skills, but the latter is often overlooked.”
To read the entire interview, go to socialworkersspeak.org
In its review, NASW Press says, “The book addresses the need for learning to keep effective documentation with new exercises and provides tips for assessing and documenting client cultural differences of relevance. Sidell encourages individuals to reflect on personal strengths and challenges related to documentation skills. Social Work Documentation is a how-to guide for social work students and practitioners interested in good record keeping and improving their documentation skills.”
Social Work Documentation, 2nd Edition is available at naswpress.org
Sidell came to Mansfield in 1998 and has served as Social Work Program director since that time. She chaired the Department of Social Work, Anthropology & Sociology from 2002-2011 and has also served as an assistant to the Provost. She was interim dean in August.
Sidell is also an adjunct instructor for Temple University’s Mansfield Masters of Social Work (MSW) program and is active nationally in Association of Social Work Boards, the organization responsible for developing social work licensing exams used in 49 states and four Canadian provinces. She is serving on the Council on Social Work Education’s Commission on Accreditation, a 24-member board responsible for accreditation decisions for Bachelor’s of Social Work (BSW) and MSW programs
Sidell earned her PhD from the College of Social Work at Ohio State University.