Social Worker - Hospice - Bereavement

WVU Medicine•Uniontown, AL

About The Position

Assists the patient, family, and the I.D.T in meeting the medically-related psychosocial-economic needs of the patient/family through the utilization of local, state, and federal resources.

Requirements

Master's degree in social work or related field
Must possess licensure as required by state board where services will be provided: WV: Licensed Graduate Social Worker, Licensed Certified Social Worker OR Licensed Independent Clinical Social Work through the West Virginia Board of Social Work PA: Licensed Social Worker (LSW) or Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) through the Pennsylvania Board of Social Workers, Marriage and Family Therapists and Professional Counselors OH: Licensed Social Worker (LSW), Licensed Independent Social Worker (LISW), or Licensed Independent Social Worker-Supervision (LISW-S) through the Ohio Board of Social Work MD: Licensed Certified Social Worker-Clinical (LCSW-C) OR Licensed Master Social Worker (LMSW) through the Maryland Board of Social Work Examiners
Basic Life Support Certification (BLS) within 30 days of hire date.
Valid driver’s license
One (1) year experience with bereavement.
Must be capable of handling information of a confidential nature.
Must have the ability to work successfully under highly-stressful conditions, and must be capable of adapting to varying workloads and work assignments on a constant basis.
Must have the ability to comprehend and perform oral and written instructions and procedures.
Must have effective reading and comprehensive skills.
Must have strong communication skills, written and verbal.
Must be able to work weekends, holidays, and all shifts.
Must be able to prioritize tasks.
Must have independent decision-making ability.
Must have basic math skills.
Must have ability to respond to emergency situations in a calm, professional manner.
Must be capable of using computers to input and retrieve information.
Ability to communicate effectively, both verbal and written.
Demonstrates knowledge of and adherence to patient rights.
Demonstrates knowledge of compliance of Federal, State, and Local regulations/laws.

Nice To Haves

One (1) year of social work experience in health care.
Experience in hospice.
Experience with counseling individuals or groups.
Experience with psychosocial, emotional, and spiritual assessment.

Responsibilities

Communicates patient care problems or potential problems to the Director and/or other IDT members as they are identified/occur to assure continuity and coordination of care.
Documents patient status and care or services furnished in appropriate areas as defined by the documentation standard. Documents full and accurately on progress note each visit.
Provides appropriate documentation of intervention, patient response, effectiveness, complications, and other patient information. Monitors and facilitates staff compliance with documentation standard.
Completes appropriate referrals to community agencies such as Medicaid Waiver, Senior Center, Summit Center, Meals-on-Wheels, Indigent Drug Programs, etc.
Identifies abuse and neglect and refers to appropriate agencies.
Uses the assessments performed by the IDT to develop a plan of care.
Assesses each patient for need for advance directives and implement as needed.
Performs needs assessments reflecting patient/family psychosocial, emotional, spiritual, financial, and age-specific criteria upon admission and each visit thereafter, including development of an interdisciplinary care plan that address any assessed needs.
Contact and coordinate necessary and available local, state, and federal support services.
Recognizes and supports changes in the patient’s level of comfort to the director/designee.
Develops and updates problem list based upon continuing assessment every two weeks and prn.
Performs and monitors patient teaching according to the standard. Anticipates, modifies, and evaluates teaching needs of the patient and family.
States and utilizes admission criteria per the admission policy/procedure. In compliance with the admission standard, performs pre-admission evaluation to determine the appropriateness of admission.
Performs psychosocial and socioeconomic assessment and documents assessments on each visit.
Formulates and establishes a plan of care with the IDT based on the assessed findings and updates the plan of care standard. Collaborates with the IDT to plan for change in level of care.
Participates in education of the public regarding the hospice concept through public speaking.
Provides emotional support for other team members as they deal with their own feelings and emotions associated with working with the terminally ill.
Provides direct and indirect bereavement and spiritual counseling to the patient and family.
Participates in the direct care of patients through personal contact with the patient and other IDT members and community resources as needed.
Serves as coordinator of Bereavement Services as evidenced by: Coordination of Bereavement Program. Schedules bereavement groups and facilitates group to meet the needs of the hospice families/communities. Organizes and implements at least 2 programs annually for past patients’ bereaved families/significant others. Assures bereavement follow-up as outlined in the bereavement program. Serves as hospital/community contact for bereavement information. Serves as a contact/resource for staff on issues in bereavement. Develops programs to meet community needs (i.e., Children Bereavement Programs).
Communicates patient care problems or potential problems to the director, Hospice and/or other IDT members to assure continuity and coordination of care.
Serves as patient advocate, in regards to medical ethics issues, acting as a liaison between the patient, family, and others to protect the patient’s rights.
Provides bereaved individuals with appropriate follow-up information per policy and procedure.
Completes spiritual and anticipatory grieving to identify patient needs including social, psychological, financial, cultural, and family situation.
Develops bereavement and appropriate policies as required.
Assists with orientation of new employees and volunteers in bereavement.
Identifies the stages of death and dying
Familiar with specialized needs of the terminally ill patient per hospice philosophy, policy, and procedure.
Provides follow-up of family and/or significant others in bereavement to assist in positive expressions of grief.
Monitors compliance to bereavement policy and procedure including bereavement volunteers.
Provides or arranges counseling to meet the psychosocial, emotional and spiritual needs of the patients/family members/caregivers in a manner consistent with their beliefs and desires and in accordance with the patient’s plan of care.