Hospital Social Worker

Join Memorial Health and make a real difference in the lives of patients and their families. As a Hospital Social Worker (LSW) with an MSW degree, you'll play a critical role in addressing complex psychosocial factors that affect health outcomes, contributing to holistic, patient-centered care.

Key Responsibilities:
• Conduct comprehensive biopsychosocial assessments to inform healthcare decisions.
• Address social determinants of health to prevent readmissions and adverse outcomes.
• Develop interventions that consider the full psychosocial impact of illness or hospitalization.
• Collaborate with the healthcare team to remove barriers to post-acute care.
• Facilitate timely referrals to community resources and promote patient self-reliance.
• Prevent unnecessary hospital admissions by addressing social needs and avoiding "social admissions."

Bring your LSW license and MSW degree to a dynamic team and help improve patient outcomes through compassionate, proactive care.

Location: Onsite in Springfield, IL

Shift: 7:30am – 4pm Mon – Fri and Saturday on call rotation

To review Memorial's Benefits click here: Benefits - Memorial HR

Education:
• Master’s degree of Social Work from a School of Social Work accredited by the Council on Social Work Education.

Licensure/Certification/Registry:
• Illinois Licensed Social Worker required within six months of hire date
Experience:
• Experience working with adults across the life span presenting with chronic or serious illness
• Experience identifying and coordinating the needs of chronically ill patients and families as well as supporting the care team
• Understanding of psychosocial implications of illness, hospice and/or home care death and dying issues.
• Knowledge of local community resources.
• Knowledge and understanding of individual development and human behavior as it relates to the effects of illness and of the influence of culture on healthcare

1. Embodies the Memorial Health System Performance Excellence Standards of Safety, Quality, Integrity and Stewardship that support our mission, vision and values:

• SAFETY:Prevent Harm - I will put safety first in everything I do.  I will speak up, without fear, on matters of patient and colleague safety.  I will take action to create an environment of zero harm.

• QUALITY:Improve Outcomes -  I will continually advance my knowledge and skills.  I will seek out continuous improvement opportunities.  I will deliver evidence-based care that leads to excellence in outcomes.

• INTEGRITY:Show respect and Compassion  - I will respect others and show compassion.  I will behave honesty and ethically.  I will be accountable for my attitude, actions and health.

• STEWARDSHIP:Reduce Waste - I will use resources wisely and maintain financial stability.  I will work together to coordinate care and services across the health system.  I will promote healthier communities.

2. Biopsychosocial Assessment
   1. Utilizing specialized knowledge and experience, make assessment of patients’ psychosocial needs, home situation and economic constraints

3. Community Resources
4. Serve as liaison between patients/ families and community agencies
5. Coordinate information and referrals for financial and community resources to link patients/families to the appropriate resources.
6. Serve as resource to clinical team, patients and families regarding entitlement to programs and support services
7. Develop strong working relationships with internal and external healthcare organizations and community resources.
8. Work with patients to formulate an individualized plan to obtain medication, particularly, in light of Medicare coverage limitations including the facilitation of enrollment in various drug companies’ patient assistance programs when warranted

4. Care Delivery
5. Work closely and collaboratively with the clinical care team across sites of care
6. Assist the team with care delivery by scheduling appointments, assisting with the completion of forms, ensuring that patients can access services, and arranging transportation to and from medical appointments as needed
7. Participate in clinic office visits, team rounds, or family conferences with when needed based on site of care

5. Care Transitions
6. Coordinate patient care with other disciplines involved in the plan of care and maintain appropriate documentation
7. Confer with the patient, family, and clinical team to obtain information to coordinate efficient and quality patient care.
8. Build relationships with primary care providers, skilled nursing facilities, and the community to promote continuity of care

6. Support
7. Provide crisis intervention and supportive counseling for patients and their families as needed
8. Serve as patient advocate, assisting with navigation of patient eligible resources and programs
9. Provide patients and families with support and information to overcome personal and environmental difficulties which pre-dispose toward illness or interfere with obtaining maximum benefits from medical care
10. Assist patients to effectively utilize available resources to meet their personal health needs and help them develop their own capabilities
11. Evaluate patients’ ability to independently manage self and locate alternative resources when limitations are identified

7. Advance Care Planning
8. Maintains a working knowledge of relevant medical/legal issues that impact patient care, e.g., advance directives, power of attorney, and guardianships.

8. Counseling
9. When requested, provide group, individual, and family counseling to patients and their families as requested

9. Discharge Planning
10. Initiate discharge planning and care coordination for patients as appropriate

10. Record documentation for all social work activities in the electronic medical record in a timely and thorough manner.

11. Adhere to department productivity standards.

12. Participate in the monitoring of quality and utilization metrics and participates in improvement efforts to refine the delivery of care to maximize clinical, quality, and fiscal outcomes.

13. Assists, as needed, in the staff training, new employee orientation, student education, community education, in-house activities, and general public relations activities.

14. Refer to ancillary teams when warranted.

15. Aware of and comply with department and hospital policy and procedures.

16. Demonstrates knowledge of care for older adults through accurate assessments, treatment and effective implementation of interventions.

17. Adhere to the NASW Code of Ethics.

18. Participate in continuing education and in-service training to support professional growth and expertise.

19. Enter orders in preparation for authentication/signature by physician.

20. Perform other related duties as assigned.

The intent of this job description is to provide a representative summary of the major duties and responsibilities performed by incumbents of this job.  Incumbents may be requested to perform tasks other than those specifically presented in this description.