In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Social Work from Portland State University, it was my desire to do a Practicum which would be of benefit to the community where I live, Longview, Washington. One area in which the shortcomings were apparent was pointed out to me time and again by my husband, who is a practicing physician in Longview and through my own contacts in the community, i.e., neither Cowlitz General Hospital nor St. John!s Hospital had a Social Service Department. Therefore, I have written proposals for a Social Service Department for each hospital. There are some slight variations, so that one proposal is applicable to St. John's Hospital and the other, to Cowlitz General Hospital. The proposal itself does not reflect the numerous contacts with people in the community, the subsequent efforts to implement the establishment of Social Service Departments, and the research and inquiries into available resources. My responsibility in doing a Practicum was to make a useful contribution to an existing agency, not to see to the actual establishment of the departments. This is, however, one of my personal goals. My list of the references, therefore, does not include all of the resources consulted in preparation for writing the proposals.