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RUNNING HEAD: INTERVIEW PAPER

Interview Paper
SW3010
Ashley Merrill
Fk8083
March 20, 2015

INTERVIEW PAPER

The process of finding someone to interview with a Bachelors of Social Work degree was
not easy. Personally, I felt a little more at a disadvantage because I currently live in the state of
Colorado and Bachelors of Social Work programs are not prevalent at the universities here as
they are in Michigan. My chances of finding a person with a Bachelors of Social Work were
slim. I also live in an area that does not need as much social services as urban areas so, the
agencies I had to chose from were limited. I called around to all the agencies in my area such as
the senior center, the detox hospital, and the local government. Every person at those agencies
that I contacted had a Masters of Social Work degree. Although, at the senior center and the
detox hospital both of the representatives for the agencies sent out emails to all the employees
asking if anyone had a Bachelors of Social Work degree for my interview and I did not receive a
single reply. It felt very discouraging and I can understand a clients frustration when trying to
obtain services they need for their daily lives.
My interview subject was obtained when I had inquired to a woman named Emily about
attending the Youth Mental Health First Aid Training in Denver that she was teaching. I
mentioned to her I needed to interview a person with a Bachelors of Social Work working in the
field and she sent out a few emails and connected me with another woman names Lauren Hollis
whom had her Bachelors of Social Work degree and through a few email conversations she
gladly accepted my offer to do the interview.
Throughout the interview, I discovered that Lauren Hollis B.S.W. received her Bachelors
of Social Work degree in 2007 from the University of North Texas. During her experience at the
University of North Texas, each of her semesters focused on one of each of the three levels of
practice (micro, mezzo, and macro). Also during her time studying for her Bachelors, she lobbied
for bills she felt compassionate about through the legislature in Texas on Social Work Advocacy

INTERVIEW PAPER

Day in 2009. Lauren completed her internship at an organization called Health Services of North
Texas which, is an AIDS service organization and that is how she initially became involved with
HIV/AIDS case management.
After graduating Lauren accepted a position as a Medical Care Manager at Rocky
Mountain Cares in Denver, Colorado. Rocky Mountain Cares is the second largest AIDS service
organization in the Denver metro area and they provide medical case management services to
those living with HIV/AIDS. As a Medical Care Manager, Lauren assists her clients by clearly
identifying and voicing their medical and non-medical needs. Working side by side with her
clients she creates wellness plans and provides on-going support throughout the process to
ensure they meet their goals. Lauren additionally helps her clients navigate though the
healthcare system by collaborating with the clients health care providers and pharmacies.
Enrolling the clients in medical assistance programs is also a task Lauren takes on to help lessen
the burden of expensive medications that one living with HIV/AIDS must take daily. For those
who have a difficult time making their monthly bill payments, Lauren helps get emergency
financial assistance for qualifying clients. Lastly, she pointed out that she provides referrals to
clients who need extra help with mental health, housing, substance abuse, food and emergency
services.
The population that Rocky Mountain Cares serves is individuals living with HIV/AIDS in
the Denver metro area. Lauren explained that her clients consist of people from all walks of life
including men, women, transgendered individuals, and children; clients who are disabled; clients
who are employed with very few needs to those who are homeless; all sexual orientations; and
people with mental health illnesses or substance abuse issues. Rocky Mountain Cares accepts

INTERVIEW PAPER

anyone who walks through the door as long as, they are an individual living with HIV/AIDS.
HIV/AIDS is the one unifying factor of all the clients Lauren serves.
The social and personal problems or concerns addressed in the agency are any needs that
are brought forth by the clients. Needs addressed by the clients include: prescription assistance,
medication distribution; adherence to plan development; coordinating health care appointments;
medical transportation program enrollment; resolving issues involving health insurance;
Medicaid enrollment; state benefit enrollment such as food stamps; HIV disclosure; psychosocial support; financial assistance for rent, utilities, and phone bills; advocacy for financial
assistance through other social service agencies; referrals for miscellaneous resources including
mental health, substance abuse treatment, food banks, and resources for the homeless. The
concerns and needs for the clients are addressed by Lauren and her agency to provide the most
accurate assistance to the HIV/AIDS population.
Lauren stressed that her combination of field experience between her internship and her
four plus years of social work studies have enabled her to effectively perform her duties as a
Medical Care Manager at Rocky Mountain Care. Lauren also included the fact that she is very
passionate about the issues surrounding the HIV/AIDS population and enjoys being an advocate
for her clients. She said that she genuinely cares and enjoys the clients she works with.
Along with her personal work, Lauren feels that the agency as a whole is very effective
within the community that they serve. Rocky Mountain Cares is a smaller agency that offers a
safe and comfortable place for their clients and their loved ones. Lauren mentioned that the
atmosphere that the agency has created has made her clients feel genuinely cared for and believe
that the stress they are dealing with, with their disease is lightened through the services they
receive at Rocky Mountain Cares. Just alleviating any stress that a client may have is considered

INTERVIEW PAPER

a success whether it is resolving a problem the client may have or just being a willing and open
listener can go a long way.
The three levels of practice are fully performed within the Rocky Mountain Cares agency.
Lauren stated that on a daily basis she works within the micro level with individuals one-on-one
by developing treatment plans, helping the clients solve problems and helping clients achieve
their goals. On the mezzo level one of the main goals of the agency and a Medical Case
Manager is continuity of care. The continuation of care includes collaborating with pharmacies,
physicians, and other social service agencies. At the macro level, they believe that because the
population they serve is generally stigmatized they push for education of the disease to the
public. The agency engages in prevention education by attending health fairs in the Denver
metro area and providing free HIV testing to the public. Also collecting data and preparing grant
proposals is an important task of the agency to receive the funding needed to run the agency.
Rocky Mountain Cares is a grant-funded, non-profit agency.
My assessment of the interview is that it highly exceeded my expectations and opened
my eyes to a population that needs services that I generally did not think of very often. What
Rocky Mountain Cares does for the individuals with HIV/AIDS in the Denver metro area is truly
amazing. The agency seemed to have all the bases covered; from accepting any individual with
HIV/AIDS, coming up with treatment plans, providing them with referrals for resources and
services and educating the public on the HIV/AIDS disease. I am open to learning more about
the services the HIV/AIDS population is in need of. It sounded and seemed like Lauren Hollis
really enjoyed her work as a social worker within the agency and I can see myself in the same
shoes as her and performing the same case management tasks that she does. It honestly got me
excited to graduate and get myself out in the field. The interview could not have gone any better

INTERVIEW PAPER

and Lauren thoroughly answered all of the questions I had and then some. It was quite awkward
and intimidating at first because of the fact that it was a stranger who I had never met before but
she could not have been more welcoming. I am very thankful Lauren took the time out of her
busy schedule to help me with this assignment and it just proved to me how great of a
caseworker she really is to her clients. I am looking forward to contributing to society in the
same way that she is able to.