Hospice Chaplain/Social Worker

Company:

Compassus

 

Position Summary

The Hospice Chaplain and Social Worker provides both spiritual and psychosocial support to patients and their families throughout the hospice experience.

The Chaplain offers spiritual care, counseling, and guidance in accordance with the beliefs of the patient and family. The Chaplain may be a priest, minister, rabbi, or other individual with hospice training and experience in providing spiritual support. This role complements rather than replaces the patient's own clergy, ensuring that spiritual needs are respected and addressed.

The Social Worker delivers preventive, educational, evaluative, and treatment services to address the psychosocial needs of patients and families. This includes assisting with coping, adjustment, advance care planning, and connecting patients and families to community resources. The Social Worker collaborates closely with the interdisciplinary team (IDT) to ensure continuity and quality of care.

Position Specific Responsibilities

• • Chaplain/Social Worker Responsibilities
  • Explain hospice services and Medicare benefits; obtain Informed Consent and Election of Benefits documents as requested.
  • Complete and submit visit documentation timely, in accordance with company policy.
  • Participate as a member of the interdisciplinary team (IDT), including development and implementation of the plan of care.
  • Identify and communicate the need for intervention by other IDT members.
  • Collaborate with IDT to coordinate spiritual and psycho-social care that ensures appropriateness, continuity, and quality of services.
  • Maintain updated care plans reflecting current problems, goals, and interventions.
  • Respect patient and family environments and belief systems; remain nondiscriminatory regarding age, race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, national origin, disability, or other personal matters.
  • Provide spiritual care and counseling in accordance with patient and family beliefs; engage community clergy as requested.
  • Provide psycho-social support and counseling to patients and families; engage external counseling resources as needed and within scope of practice.
  • Complete initial and ongoing psycho-social assessments addressing financial resources, insurance, living arrangements/placement, caregiver stressors, anticipatory grief, and community resource needs.
  • Facilitate long-term care placement when needed and monitor adjustment.
  • Participate in care planning meetings at long-term care facilities.
  • Support and facilitate advance care planning, including living will/POA documentation, funeral arrangements, memorial services, and body/organ donation.
  • Support patients and families through the stages of death, grief, and bereavement.
  • Articulate the regulatory framework governing the role of the Spiritual Counselor (federal and state, as applicable).
  • Serve as liaison to the clerical community; interpret hospice needs and assist with recruitment of clerical volunteers.
  • Perform other duties as assigned.

Education and/or Experience

• Minimum of Bachelor's degree in Social Work, Psychology, Sociology, or other field related to social work with one (1) year of social work experience in a healthcare setting required; and licensure if required by state rules. Will require supervisory oversight by MSW for hospice patient care planning and counseling needs.
• Master's degree in Social Work with one (1) year of social work experience in a healthcare setting highly preferred; and licensure if required by state rules.
• Completion of at least one (1) unit of CPE preferred, unless required per state regulation.
• Minimum of one (1) year of experience in the provision of spiritual/ pastoral support to individuals or families required.
• Minimum of one (1) year of experience in the provision of pastoral support to individuals/ families related to loss, grief, bereavement, or trauma preferred.

State Specific Requirements:
Missouri

• Completed education in counseling or related field such as mental health, psychology, addiction, comparative religions and spiritual practices, or thanatology (bachelor’s degree preferred) required.
• Must complete additional training within 90 days of hire (provided by employer) to include death and dying, belief systems, spiritual assessment skills, and other areas of importance for the care of patients with terminal illnesses
• Additionally, a BSW from an accredited school of social work is minimum education required but must be supervised by MSW.

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