Hospice Social Worker

About the role

At Elara Caring, we care where you are and believe the best place for your care is where you live. We know there’s no place like home, and that’s why our teams continue to provide high-quality care to more than 60,000 patients each day in their preferred home setting. As a Medical Social Worker (MSW), you’ll contribute to our mission by ensuring the psychosocial, financial, and environmental needs of patients are met through assessment, planning, and intervention.

Responsibilities

• Ensures all activities align with the vision of Elara Caring’s board of directors, executive team, and the leadership of the Home Health team.
• Assesses patients to identify psychosocial, financial, and environmental needs, as evidenced by documentation, clinical records, case conferences, team reports, call-in logs, and on-site evaluations.
• Makes the initial social work evaluation visit and reevaluates the patient’s social work needs during each following visit.
• Communicates significant findings, problems, and changes in condition or environment to the Supervisor, physician, and/or other personnel involved with patient care.
• Reports unsafe conditions and the outcome of each visit to the appropriate Supervisor by the end of the day.
• Implements the plan for patient safety, using patient, family, and community resources.
• Participates in the development and implementation of the Plan of Care to ensure quality, continuity of care, and proper discharge planning.
• Verifies the Plan of Care prior to each visit and provides care according to physician’s orders, assessment data, and established standards and guidelines.
• Initiates and revises the Plan of Care in response to identified patient care issues.
• Writes physician orders to cover additional visits and changes to the plan of care, per agency policy.
• Incorporates patient care goals established in the plan of care, as evidenced by documentation in the clinical note.
• Performs appropriate skilled services/interventions in accordance with accepted standards of practice and certified by the patient’s physician.
• Counsels, instructs, and includes the patient and family in following the Plan of Care and meeting social work-related needs.

Requirements

• Master’s Degree or Doctoral Degree in Social Work from a school of Social Work accredited by the Council of Social Work Education.
• 1+ year of social work experience in a healthcare setting.
• Current State License as a Social Worker.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills.
• Social work skills as defined by general social work standards.
• 50% travel required.
• Ability to frequently lift, push, pull, and support up to 50 pounds, including positioning or transferring patients and moving equipment.
• Valid driver’s license and insurance, and reliable transportation to perform job tasks.

Benefits

• Competitive compensation package.
• Tuition reimbursement for full-time staff and continuing education opportunities for all employees at no cost.
• Opportunities for advancement.
• Comprehensive insurance plans for medical, dental, and vision benefits.
• 401(K) with employer match.
• Paid time off, paid holidays, family, and pet bereavement.

You will report to the Clinical Team Manager.