Director Social Services

Dartmouth-Hitchcock Health • Hampstead, NH

14d

About The Position

The Director of Social Work provides clinical leadership, supervision, and operational oversight for all inpatient social work services at Hampstead Hospital, a child and adolescent acute psychiatric hospital. This role is responsible for ensuring the delivery of high-quality, ethical, and developmentally appropriate social work services across all inpatient levels of care, including the Child Services Unit, Adolescent Services Unit, Young Adult Services Unit, and the Psychiatric Residential Treatment Facility (PRTF).
The Director of Social Work directly supervises all inpatient social workers, including two clinicians assigned to the PRTF, and is accountable for both clinical excellence and the day-to-day management of the social work department. This position plays a central role in driving high-quality clinical care, interdisciplinary collaboration, and effective discharge planning across the hospital.

Requirements

• Master's degree from an accredited institute of higher education with major study in Social Work from a program accredited by the Counsel on Social Work Education.
• Eight years of experience in clinical social work include acute psychiatric care in a hospital setting preferred, five years of which must have been in a management level position involving duties concerned with program administration, program planning and evaluation, business management or related management experience.
• OR
• Bachelor's degree from an accredited institute of higher education with major study in Social Work from a program accredited by the Counsel on Social Work Education.
• Nine years of experience in clinical social work include acute psychiatric care in a hospital setting preferred, five years of which must have been in a management level position involving duties concerned with program administration, program planning and evaluation, business management or related management experience.
• Must be licensed as LICSW in New Hampshire.
• BLS Certification (within 30 days of hire)
• CPI Certification (within 3 months of hire)

Nice To Haves

• Preferred experience in administration/management within an acute psychiatric care/hospital setting. Preferred experience with patients/families in a psychiatric setting and candidates who have been aligned with NH’s System of Care, supporting services that are: family-driven, youth-guided, community-oriented, trauma-informed, and culturally and linguistically competent.

Responsibilities

• Directs the quality and appropriateness of all social work services provided by HHRTF and ensures compliance with Joint Commission and Medicare standards applicable to Social Work. Provides clinical oversight to the Acute Inpatient and Residential Treatment Units.
• Authorizes appropriate utilization of social work staff and operations to ensure coverage and timely delivery of services; serves as a senior clinical consultant when necessary.
• Authorizes the development of policies and procedures for the long-term administration of the hospital’s social work operations and programs. Implements strategies consistent with the core principles and values of HHRTF and with alignment to the professional standards and the expectations of all accrediting bodies.
• Assesses both the short- and long-term impacts of policy changes and oversees implementation of same. Performs departmental budgetary functions to ensure that HHRTF resources, and programs are supported, and monitors operational and fiscal activities for efficient and effective allocation of resources.
• Ensures reliable hospital-wide social work coverage and develops strategic planning for staffing gaps and critical ongoing services. Implements training, development, and education opportunities such as in-service initiatives to ensure employee growth and engagement. Consult with Unit Program Directors to assure oversight and supervision of all Master’s of Social Work (MSW) clinicians.
• Monitors objectives that assure that the physical environment and standards of practice meet or exceed the safety needs of staff and patients. Conducts investigative or disciplinary reviews and makes decisions for hiring and dismissing staff.
• Promotes timely communication among therapeutic staff, management, and interdisciplinary departments to ensure the efficacy and quality of social work services.
• Facilitates and fosters an environment that allows problem-solving to maintain positive interpersonal relationships with subordinates and peers.
• Perform quarterly audits and monitoring of all social work documentation reporting directly to the Patient Care Committee and Performance Improvement Committee; identify an solved bottleneck, captures successes, and gathers Key Performance Indicators and data/metrics to implement and support improvements.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Director