Social Worker (52698)

GAP SOLUTIONS INC•Bethesda, MD

1d•$100,000 - $110,000•Onsite

About The Position

The Social Worker will independently provide support services to satisfy the overall operational objectives of the National Institute of Mental Health within the National Institutes of Health. This role involves developing treatment plans, identifying community resources, assessing patient suitability for research protocols, conducting interviews for research data collection, performing recruitment and screening, and providing counseling and support to patients and families.

Requirements

Master’s degree in social work
Three years of experience
Experience with a psychiatric clinical setting
Knowledge of screening for psychiatric disorders and suicide risk
Experience outreach and recruitment for research studies
Skilled in MS Office

Nice To Haves

Ability to communicate effectively, orally and in writing, with non-technical and technical staff
Detail-oriented and possess strong organizational skills with the ability to prioritize multiple tasks and projects

Responsibilities

Develop a treatment plan based on assessment of psychological social and medical realities designed to enhance the validity of the research and to assist patients in making optimal hospital adjustment for requisite time of the study and arrange adequate discharge planning.
Identify, make recommendations and provide referral to a wide variety of community resources in order to facilitate continuity of patient care and enhance ability to cope with illness and research participation.
Develop recommendations and plans for the use of agency resources and community resources and services as appropriate to the needs identified.
Communicate with insurance companies and health care facilities to identify possible resources for continuity of care.
Assess and make recommendations to the physician about patients in pre-admission or admitted status as to their ability to tolerate research protocols and separation from the home environment.
Conduct structured interviews for collection of research data in off-site locations such as private home visits or community centers.
Conduct screening and baseline evaluations in collaboration with staff.
Perform recruitment, screening, evaluation of patients and their families for research protocols.
Evaluate patients’ suitability for protocols.
Conduct diagnostic interviews and collect family history information; meet with staff to determine inclusion or exclusion.
Coordinate patient recruitment across the three research groups in order to facilitate research on depression, bipolar disorder, and suicide in adolescents and adults.
Liaison with staff at local hospitals and other clinical care facilities; conduct in-services with staff at local hospitals; attend meetings with staff at local hospitals; distribute recruitment materials to staff at local clinical care facilities; review the medical records of prospective research participants to ensure eligibility and appropriateness for research participation; and educate potential participants about research studies.
Perform research diagnostic assessments and ratings on patients.
Administer and score a wide range of complex structured and semi-structured interviews.
Perform standardized clinical ratings to assess treatment response.
Conduct screening and baseline evaluations in collaboration with staff medical and other research staff.
Perform individual and family supportive educational counseling about patient psychiatric illness and effective ways to manage.
Document all patient contacts and interventions in accordance with Social Work Department Policies and Procedures.
Comply with agency and departmental standards for documentation of patient work and data collection for performance improvement and workload tracking.
Document research and clinical findings.
Perform document research and enter and analyze data.
Provide education regarding adjustment to illness and managing protocol related logistics.
Gather selected information through in-person and phone-based interviews, medical record review and consultation with interdisciplinary team members.
Develop a recommendation and plan to address areas of identified need and provide ongoing care to help participants and families access needed services.
Identify possible resources and services for which research participants/families may be eligible.
Explain eligibility criteria and discuss needs, educate resource participants about agency and community resources and services for which they are eligible.
Conduct preliminary evaluation of potential probands through telephone interviewing of parent, review of medical records, consultation with treating professionals and consultation with medical staff, leading to acceptance for on-site evaluation or rejection with referral if indicated.
Develop and implement strategies to recruit patients for research protocols and meet with potential participants and families to explain objectives, procedures, eligibility requirements, benefits and risks.
Provide short term counseling related to adjustment to illness and protocol participation.
Address and follow up on problems requiring clinical social work services, including behavioral health needs and/or coping difficulties impacting the ability to access services; refer case to supervisor as necessary.
Provide clinical support to patients and families throughout the time they are participating in research protocols.
Make recommendations for appropriate discharge plans, including psychotherapy, community services involvement, special education and activity programs.
Recruit and screen patients for projects in the unit.
Participate in research group meetings and in the decision-making process regarding patient inclusion in the studies, patient and parent diagnosis, and patient and family management throughout participation in the research protocol.
Liaison with research groups to assess recruitment needs and eligibility criteria for research studies; attend recruitment meetings across research groups.
Coordinate patient recruitment across the three research groups to facilitate research on depression, bipolar disorder, and suicide in adolescents and adults.
Serve as a liaison with staff at local hospitals and other clinical care facilities; conduct in-services with staff at local hospitals; attend meetings with staff at local hospitals; distribute recruitment materials to staff at local clinical care facilities; review the medical records of prospective research participants to ensure eligibility and appropriateness for research participation; and educate potential participants about research studies.
Perform and coordinate screening evaluations of potential research subjects using structured and semi-structured interviews over the phone and in person; participate in patient and volunteer recruitment efforts for protocols.
Coordinate clinical research protocols related to depression, bipolar disorder and risk for suicide; develop and maintain research protocol records.
Administer clinician-administered research rating scales; develop and maintain research protocol records.
Develop new referral sources through calls, referral and leads generated by advertising articles, display materials, brochures, audiovisual presentations and community exposure events.
Attend provider meetings and recruitment events to present study information and distribute recruitment materials i.e. mental health fairs.