The APHSW Board
The APHSW Board was formed in 2016 with the support of the Social Work Hospice & Palliative Care Network (SWHPN) leadership and grant funding from the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation. The Advanced Palliative Hospice Social Worker Certification (APHSW-C) program was developed as leaders in the field recognized the special skills and knowledge that social workers bring to the practice of hospice and palliative care. Led by Dr. Barbara Head, the initial committee explored funding opportunities and developed a proposal for an evidence-based certification for social workers in hospice and palliative care, the first of its kind.
The APHSW Certification Board was established as a separate non-profit organization. The APHSW Board functions independently and is responsible for the governance and oversight of the APHSW-C program.
The APHSW Board has sole decision-making authority for all APHSW-C program policies regarding certification eligibility requirements; recertification requirements; examination development, administration, and scoring; grievance and disciplinary policies; and, the appointment and oversight of subject matter expert (SME) task groups. The APHSW Board ensures that eligibility and recertification requirements, examination development and administration processes, and all certification program policies are related to and support the purpose of the APHSW-C program.
To contact the APHSW Certification Board, please reach out to info@aphsw-c.org.
Executive Director
Board of Directors
Angela Alvarado, MS-IS, MS, LBSW-IPR, APHSW-C
Dallas, Texas
Medical Social Worker, Kindred at Home – Hospice Division
Myra Glajchen,DSW, MSW, BSW, ACSW, APHSW-C
New York City, New York
Director of Medical Education
Assoc Prog Dir, Fellowship Training Prog
MJHS Institute for Innovation in Palliative Care
Associate Professor, Dept of Family and Social Medicine
Albert Einstein College of Medicine
Barbara Anderson Head, PhD, CHPN, ACSW, FPCN, APHSW-C
Louisville, Kentucky
Professor, University of Louisville School of Medicine
Affiliated Faculty – Kent School of Social Work
Diane Blum, LMSW
Nonprofit Health Care Consultant
New York, NY
Karen Bullock, PhD, MSW, LCSW, APHSW-C
Raleigh, North Carolina
Professor, School of Social Work, North Carolina State University
Reid Jacobs, MSW, LSW, APHSW-C
Denver, Colorado
Lead Instructor, CSU Institute for Palliative Care
Arden O’Donnell, MPH, MSW, LICSW, APHSW-C, In-Coming Board President
Boston, MA
Palliative Care Social Worker
Brigham and Women’s Hospital
PhD Candidate, Boston University
Nicole Parente, MSW, LISW, APHSW-C Board Treasurer,
Columbus, Ohio
School Social Worker
South-Western City Schools
Elyse Salend, MSW
Beverly Hills, California
Program Officer at Cambia Health Foundation
Katherine Supiano, PhD, LCSW, F-GSA, FT, APHSW-C
Salt Lake City, Utah
Associate Professor
Univ of Utah College of Nursing
Dir, Caring Connections: A Hope and Comfort in Grief Program
Laurel Tropeano, ,LCSW, APHSW-C Board President
Denver, CO
Director of Research and Education
The Holding Group
Ryan Weller, LCSW, APHSW-C Past Board President
Portland, Oregon
National Dir of VA Interprofessional Fellowship in Palliative Care
Palliative Care Program Manager
VA Northwest Network
Rebecca Wood, MSW,LCSW, APHSW-C Board Secretary
Clinical Social Worker
