Social Worker, As Needed (PRN), Evening & Weekend Hours

VISITING NURSE dba Stillwater Hospice • Fort Wayne, IN

3h • $22 - $35 • Hybrid

About The Position

Stillwater Hospice is seeking a Social Worker to provide social services to patients and their families enrolled in agency programs. This role involves educating staff and volunteers on grief and loss, and providing community education on agency programs and end-of-life issues. The position requires travel within 13 serviced counties, with a focus on Allen, Wells, & Adams counties, and involves on-call duties, weekday evenings, or weekend hours. The company emphasizes excellent work-life balance and employee benefits.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in social work from an accredited school of social work.
• Minimum of one (1) year experience in providing medical social work services.
• Must hold an active Indiana social work license (LBSW, LSW) OR must have an active temporary social work license and obtain full licensure within the first year of employment.
• Must have knowledge and ability to determine appropriate social service roles required to assist patient/family in maximizing the independent functioning that was impaired by the patient's physical illness.
• Ability to function independently and to work with medical professionals in the community.
• Ability to establish rapport with a wide variety of individuals.
• Must be able to safely perform the job's essential functions without posing a direct threat to the health and/or safety of self or others in the workplace.
• Must have an active Indiana motor vehicle operator’s license and have access to an automobile with current automobile insurance coverage.
• Must be able to drive independently to all patients'/family clients’ homes.
• Possesses analytical abilities sufficient to make decisions relating to complex problem situations.
• Demonstrates conceptual skills to coordinate and integrate the organization’s interests and activities as a whole and to understand how its parts depend on each other.
• Must be able to engage in clear, concise verbal/non-verbal communication.
• Must be able to perform tasks involving physical activity such as lifting (i.e., boxes of computer paper and bound reports), extensive bending and standing, reaching, handling objects, fingering, and discriminating colors.
• Must be able to endure long periods of sitting while driving.
• Must be able to remain calm in occasional emergencies and possess knowledge of agency emergency procedures.
• Must be willing to travel in inclement weather.
• Universal blood and body fluid precautions will be consistently used for all patients.

Nice To Haves

• New hire referral Finder's Bonus.
• The campus is connected to the Fort Wayne Trails system.

Responsibilities

• Provide all social service interventions for patients and their families who are enrolled in an agency program as appropriate.
• Provide education/consultation to all staff and volunteers to aid in grief and loss issues.
• Provide community education on agency programs and end-of-life issues.
• Provide Medical Social Services under the direction of a physician & in accordance with a plan of care.
• Assess emotional factors related to terminal illness.
• Assist the physician & other IDT/IDG members in recognizing & understanding the social/mental stress and/or disorder that exacerbates the symptoms related to the terminal illness.
• Assess the patient/family's psychosocial status, potential risk of suicide, and/or abuse or neglect.
• Assess environmental resources & obstacles to maintaining safety.
• Participate in the development & revision of a plan of care.
• Provide social services including short-term individual counseling, crisis intervention, assistance in providing information & preparation of advance directives, and funeral planning issues & transfer of responsibilities regarding fiscal, legal, and healthcare decisions.
• Prepare clinical & progress notes.
• Identify family dynamics and communication patterns and involve the patient/family in the plan of care.
• Identify & utilize appropriate community resources and assess patient/family ability to access them (food and meal resources; financial and legal services; community caregivers).
• Participate in in-service programs.
• Evaluate patient/family response to psychosocial interventions.
• Assess the caregiver’s ability to function adequately.
• Assess the need for counseling related to risk assessment for complicated grief.
• Assess special needs related to cultural diversity, including communication, space, the role of family members, and special traditions.
• Identify the developmental level of the patient/family and obstacles to learning or ability to participate in the patient's care.
• Address patient/family questions and issues.
• Identify obstacles to compliance and assist in understanding the goals of interventions.
• Identify support systems available to reduce stress and facilitate coping with end-of-life care.
• Evaluate long-term care when appropriate and assess the ability to accept change in the level of care.
• Communicate psychosocial information to an inpatient facility when the level of care is changed.
• Assist patients/families in assessing financial resources when appropriate.
• Evaluate patient/family response to intervention(s) when referred to community agency and satisfaction with the service(s) provided.
• Assess bereavement needs.
• Help to provide end-of-life education to patients and families.
• Recognize emergencies and have knowledge of emergency procedures according to Agency policy.
• Participate in Social Work on-call rotation.
• Adhere to Stillwater Hospice policies.
• Adhere to Stillwater Hospice privacy practices described in the Notice of Privacy Practices.
• When requested, participate in quality improvement activities and/or other agency committees or task forces.
• Be proficient and timely in all aspects of clinical documentation, including data entry.
• Display compassion, be a team player, have an optimistic outlook, and be adaptive, accountable, and customer-driven.
• Other duties as assigned by the supervisor.

Benefits

• Competitive wages
• 403 (b) Retirement Plan for all employees with no-cost access to a Financial Advisor
• Strong Company Match for full-time employees.
• Shift Incentive Pay
• Performance Incentives
• Mileage Reimbursement
• Company-provided Uniform allowance.
• Robust Employee Assistance Program (EAP) for employees and family household members.
• Free employee access to the services and programs at the Peggy F. Murphy Community Grief Center.
• Newly remodeled, modern Inpatient Unit.
• Newly built Staff Respite Room in the Hospice Home IPU.
• Multiple employee engagement events per year: Wellness/Health Events, Quarterly Employee Benefit Fairs, Organization picnics, and Organization holiday events.
• Strong commitment to promoting and advancing employees from within the organization.

What This Job Offers

• Career Level: Mid Level