Social Worker-MSW LCSW-PRN

IU Health•Lafayette, IN

10h•Onsite

About The Position

The PRN Social Worker provides face-to-face support with patients and families, conducting psychosocial assessments, crisis intervention, discharge planning, and resource coordination. This role serves as a resource and role model for students, interns, LBSWs, and LSWs. The Social Worker collaborates with the clinical team to develop treatment plans that address psychosocial issues and meet patient needs, including consulting on mental health diagnoses. The position emphasizes timely, safe, and resourceful patient care, along with effective communication of complex needs. This role also involves serving as a point person for abuse, neglect, domestic violence, and protective services cases, ensuring appropriate intervention and coordination with community and state agencies. The Social Worker supports patients through acute crises, utilizing de-escalation techniques to prevent violence and promote safety.

Requirements

Master’s Degree in Social Work (MSW) required.
Permanent licensure as an LCSW in Indiana required.
Certification in Crisis Prevention Intervention or an equivalent de-escalation training required within 6 months of hire.
Knowledge of evidence-based psychosocial assessment, short-term therapeutic counseling, and crisis intervention for common mental health and substance use disorders.
Understanding of disease processes and human behavior related to health social needs.
Strong skills in complex discharge planning for safe patient transitions.
Knowledge of state and county legal mandates for child and adult protective services.
Familiarity with principles of growth and development across the lifespan, including end-of-life care.
Ability to identify decision-makers and coordinate goals-of-care discussions to optimize patient outcomes.
Experience adapting services to geographically, culturally, and financially diverse populations.
Ability to develop and sustain strong working relationships with hospital staff, law enforcement, community agencies, and schools.
Proficiency in electronic medical record documentation and general computer literacy.
Flexibility to work on-call and holiday rotations as scheduled.

Responsibilities

Meet face-to-face with patients and families for psychosocial assessments and therapeutic interventions.
Assist in the development of educational materials for team members, patients, and families.
Serve as a resource and role model for students, interns, LBSWs, and LSWs.
Collaborate with the multidisciplinary team to develop and implement treatment plans for psychosocial issues.
Interpret and communicate complex patient and family needs, modeling caring practices.
Assess psychosocial risk factors, prior functioning, support systems, and coping skills.
Counsel patients and families regarding emotional, social, and financial impacts of illness/disability.
Access and mobilize community and family resources to meet patient needs.
Provide mental health assessments upon physician referral.
Facilitate complex discharge planning to ensure safe transitions.
Serve as a liaison for child abuse/neglect, adult/elderly abuse/neglect, institutional abuse, and domestic violence cases, coordinating with protective services.
Maintain principles and practices of crisis intervention and de-escalation techniques to manage acute crises and potentially dangerous situations.
Provide intervention in guardianship (temporary/permanent), foster care, adoption, and mental health placements.
Offer specialized mental health services, including crisis intervention, addiction assessments, and psychiatric referrals.
Support patients in end-of-life, guardianship, foster care, and adoption cases.
Utilize effective interviewing principles with victims, perpetrators, families, and significant others.
Develop and maintain strong relationships with hospital administrators, medical teams, law enforcement, APS/DCS, schools, probation, and community agencies.
Document all clinical activities accurately in electronic medical records.
May be scheduled for on-call and holiday rotations.