Social Worker | MSW | Dialysis

Location: Avera St Luke's Hospital

Position Highlights

This position will primarily support the dialysis unit and the patients it serves.

This position may be eligible for a $7,500 sign-on bonus.

Student Loan Repayment: This position may be eligible for Avera’s Student Loan Repayment Program, which helps pay off loans and save money. Each month, an extra payment of $167 (up to $10,000) from Avera will help pay down your principal balance faster.

About the Role

Responsible for planning, organizing, and implementing social work services for patients and families with medically and socially complex needs and high psychosocial acuity. The Social Worker ensures that emotional and social needs are addressed individually, facilitates quality care and education for patients and their families, and provides skilled counseling. The role involves assessing needs and facilitating intensive discharge planning, maintaining knowledge of community resources, and making appropriate referrals. Services are provided in a compassionate, culturally competent, and tactful manner to ensure continuity of care and patient advocacy. The Social Worker collaborates with a multidisciplinary team.

Responsibilities

• Interviews patient and family members to gather information about home environment, family systems, health history, and personality traits.
• Evaluates data to align with the medical plan of treatment, available social service programs, and financial counseling, planning a pertinent therapy program for maximum benefit and safety.
• Assists patients and families in understanding, accepting, and following medical recommendations, emphasizing compliance with the care plan.
• Provides services such as advising on social problems, arranging discharge or post-operative care, assisting with placement into assisted living or nursing homes, and arranging transportation to appointments and treatments.
• Conducts supportive visits to assess patient and family responses to diagnosis, evaluating strengths, coping skills, supports, and family characteristics.
• Prepares and maintains patient documentation in the Electronic Medical Record (EMR).
• Maintains department policies, procedures, objectives, and quality assurance programs, including safety, infection control, and environmental standards.
• Assists with data collection, analysis, and reporting as required by the hospital, administrative council, care teams, JCAHO, and other agencies.
• Conducts individual, marital, family, and group therapies as necessary and coordinates care conferences.
• Serves as the social work representative in a multidisciplinary team approach to patient care.
• Utilizes research findings to improve outcomes and support quality of life for patients and families.
• Collaborates with Case Management to provide coordinated services and ensure continuity of care.
• Addresses emotional problems, including anxieties and stress related to illness, hospitalization, disabilities, fears of helplessness or death, and the need for specialized care, while providing educational materials.

Requirements

• Ability to work the specified hours.
• Visual acuity adequate to perform position duties.
• Ability to communicate effectively, hear, understand, and distinguish speech and other sounds.
• Master’s in Social Work from an accredited program.
• Active Social Worker license in the state of practice (upon hire).

Preferred Qualifications

• Qualified Mental Health Provider (QMHP) license active in the state of practice (upon hire).
• 1-3 years of relevant work experience.

Expectations and Standards

• Commitment to Avera’s mission, vision, core values, and social principles in daily work to serve patients, families, and the community.
• Promote Avera’s values of compassion, hospitality, and stewardship.
• Uphold Avera’s CARE standards (Communication, Attitude, Responsiveness, Engagement).
• Maintain confidentiality.
• Work effectively in a team environment, coordinating workflow and ensuring productivity.
• Comply with safety principles, laws, regulations, and standards (e.g., CMS, The Joint Commission, DHHS, OSHA).

Pay

The pay range for this position is $29.25 - $44.00 per hour, with the actual pay rate dependent upon experience.

Benefits

• Paid Time Off (PTO) available from day one for eligible hires.
• Up to 5% employer matching contribution for retirement.
• Career development through hands-on training and mentorship.