Social Worker - Lsw - Hospice

Medical Social Worker

The primary purpose of the medical social worker is to provide psychosocial services to patients and families under the direction of a physician and in consultation with the interdisciplinary team. These services may include home visits, telephone calls, written information and such therapeutic interventions as physical presence, active listening, therapeutic touch, values clarification, problem and goal identification, long range planning and decision making, life review, short term therapy, crisis counseling and referrals to community services.

Social work services must be based on the patient’s psychosocial assessment and the patient’s and family’s needs and acceptance of these services.

Responsibilities include assessing the patient/family social and emotional factors to identify psychosocial needs and estimate their potential to cope with terminal illness and death. The social worker assesses and enhances the responsiveness of the environment and connects the patient, family and caregiver with community resources as needed. They provide psychosocial counseling and support to the patient/family experiencing emotional, social, and/or economic conflict.

The social worker assists patient/family and staff in utilizing community resources, assesses patient/family financial and insurance status and assists with appropriate resources as needed, assesses and refers for ongoing bereavement services, documents problems, psychosocial assessment, appropriate goals, care provided, interventions and patient, family and caregiver response to each intervention, maintains the dignity of the dying patient, assesses and supports the patient’s unique spiritual and cultural beliefs, provides holistic family-centered care across treatment settings to improve the quality of life, participates in interdisciplinary team meetings to establish, review and revise the plan of care for each patient, identifies comfort care needs in collaboration with other members of the IDT, supports, instructs and educates the patient, family and caregiver, helps to coordinate all patient and family services, displays a positive and professional image and attitude in all relationships with patients, families, peers and in the community, participates in the Quality Assessment Performance Improvement (QAPI) program, demonstrates flexibility in meeting the needs of the program and responds positively to changes in workflow, promotes teamwork by demonstrating willingness to assist others in meeting the needs of all individuals and collaborating effectively with the interdisciplinary team and other departments throughout the organization, complies with agency infection control and safety policies, completes annual competency requirements, consistently communicates requests, suggestions, concerns or problems to the appropriate personnel, consistently completes assigned responsibilities in required time frame and accepts additional duties and responsibilities as requested by Unit Director, consistently maintains a professional appearance, protects patient health information according to the HIPPA rule and related Aultman policies, coordinates the discharge planning process, participates in the hospice program’s quality assessment/performance improvement process, participates in regular social work supervisory meetings, creates and fosters a work environment that is consistent with the Mission, Vision and Values of the Aultman Health Foundation, supports strategic organizational goals, abides by the Aultman Code of Conduct at all times.

Qualifications include a Master’s degree from a school of social work accredited by the Council on Social Work Education;
Baccalaureate degree in social work from a school…