Kathleen Sheridan Russell, LCSW, DSW
Licensed Clinical Social Worker, Doctorate of Social Work
Responsibilities
In my role as a clinical social worker at the Simms Mann Center in Westlake Village, I provide psychosocial support for our patients and their family members. I am committed to identifying the specific needs of each individual and then developing a plan that is tailored to meet their needs. This may include individual counseling, making referrals to other Simms Mann services, or reaching out to community resources and organizations. My goal is to provide support and guidance to our patients and family members as they navigate their cancer journey.
I am thrilled to be part of the Simms Mann team, all of whom are committed to providing exceptional and compassionate patient care.
Training & Professional Experience
After receiving my master’s degree in social work from Columbia University in New York, I worked as an inpatient oncology social work at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. This provided me with hands on experience of working as part of a multidisciplinary team with a range of cancers and different treatment modalities. I then moved to the United Kingdom where I continued working in the field of psychoncology. First doing outreach work with cancer screening including developing, planning, and coordinating health care services for homeless women. Next, I developed and facilitated a cancer support group program, planned and coordinated mobile cancer awareness exhibitions, while continuing to provide individual counseling to cancer patients at large British nonprofits.
While working, I was also pursuing my doctorate in social work at the Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust in London. I conducted a qualitative research study at the Royal Marsden Hospital entitled “Psychosocial Concerns and Individual Anxieties in Fathers with Testicular Cancer”. This study inspired me to produce a cancer awareness video encouraging fathers and sons to talk about male cancer.
When I returned to the US, I spent seven years at the University of Miami’s Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center where I provided counselling and support to patients, supervised other social workers, conducted training seminars, and piloted and implemented the collaborative care model of practice into the Cancer Support Service Department.
I am excited to now be joining the UCLA Health community.
Selected Professional Publications and Presentations
“Collaborative Team Approach: Caring for the Head and Neck Cancer Patient” Presentation at the 2021 American Speech and Hearing Association Convention. Online conference. November 2021.
“Implementing the Collaborative Care Model: A Pilot Project”. Presentation at the 2019 Florida Oncology Social Work Conference in St. Augustine, Florida.
“Fathers with Cancer: Encouraging Communication and Awareness”. Presentation at the 2015 World Congress of Psycho-Oncology in Washington, DC, USA.
Russell, K.S. (2015). “Qualitative interviewing in sensitive settings: Giving fathers with cancer a voice” in Relationship Based Research in Social Work: Understanding Practice Research, Rush, G. and Julkunun, I. (eds). London: Jessica Kingsley Publishers.
“Client self-reported satisfaction of face-to-face counselling compared to phone counselling.” Presentation at the 2009 International Psycho-Oncology Society Conference, London, UK.
Personal Interests
I love spending my free time hiking and skiing with my family and friends, walking my dogs, and writing -having recently published my first children’s book.