Karen Sewell is an Assistant Professor at Carleton University. Karen is an experienced clinical social worker with over twenty years of practice experience, and a research profile demonstrating commitment to children’s and youth mental health, the social work profession, and transformative social work pedagogy including simulation-based learning. Her program of research centers on the improvement of mental health services for children and youth from vulnerable and marginalized populations through the development, delivery, and evaluation of effective clinical programs, with the role of supervision a key component. This includes teaching and supporting the development and ongoing maintenance of holistic competence for practitioners and students.
During her doctoral studies at the Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work, Karen engaged in research on simulation-based learning to support social work education through examining the development of holistic competence, the role of feedback in learning, understanding cognitive and affective processes, and the enhancement of competence in assessing mental health, addictions and suicide risk. She has facilitated simulation educational activities and supported faculty and instructors in integrating simulation within their courses. She coordinated a research project using simulation as a research method to understand professional decision making in times of high-risk and uncertainty.