Social Worker 3 - LCSW Diff Palliative Childrens

A Pediatric Palliative Care professional provides compassionate, interdisciplinary care to infants, children, and adolescents with serious, life-limiting, or life-threatening illnesses. This role focuses on enhancing quality of life through expert symptom management, psychosocial support, and coordination of care across settings. The provider collaborates closely with families and medical teams to establish goals of care, facilitate complex decision-making, and deliver culturally sensitive, family-centered support throughout the disease trajectory, including end-of-life care and bereavement services. Strong communication skills, emotional resilience, and the ability to navigate ethical complexities are essential in supporting both patients and their families during challenging medical journeys.

1. Clinical Practice and Care Management
   1. Serves as the case manager for assigned patients. Coordinates the interdisciplinary assessment process.
   2. Completes psychosocial assessment within guidelines defined by the organization.
   3. Conducts group and individual therapy and/or case management activities as appropriate to the treatment plan.
   4. Conducts family meetings as necessary and as directed by the physician.
   5. Develops and implements high quality patient treatment plans based on thorough patient assessment and evaluation, analysis of family and home dynamics, and assessment of patient's capacity and potential to cope with problems of daily living in an effort to promote the high quality health and wellness services provided by the department.
   6. Follows established practice guidelines with regard to work and patient scheduling and demonstrates flexibility in scheduling to meet practice and patient needs. Provides 24 hour on-call coverage for the center on a rotating basis as scheduled and manages any crisis issues that occur.
   7. Demonstrates professional judgment in reporting cases of suspected abuse or neglect while maintaining patient and family member confidentiality in an effort toward ensuring the provision of high quality health and wellness services by the department.
2. Documentation
   1. Completes treatment plan documentation and updates according to patient needs and organizational expectations.
   2. Completes documentation of all patient and caregiver interactions.
   3. Completes documentation of all group, individual and family activities.
   4. Explains and discusses the living will and durable power of attorney to patients and family members in a sensitive and caring manner in accordance with established hospital policy and procedure.
   5. Follows policies and procedures regarding discharge planning, evaluations, chart documentation, and follow-up coordination, ensures appropriate and efficient completion of authorization to provide or receive information, and completes billing forms and writes letters and reports as indicated in a timely manner.
   6. Develops high quality and appropriate instructional materials for cardiac rehabilitation patients in an effort to facilitate patient recovery and promote overall patient wellness.
3. Communication, Partnership and Collaboration
   1. Works collaboratively to solve problems, improves processes, develop services, and acts as a patient advocate. Acts as an information and referral source by developing cooperative agreements with community agencies and services in an effort to meet patient needs and ensure that treatment is immediately relevant to the problems the patient is experiencing.
   2. Participates in departmental and organizational quality improvement initiatives. Provides high quality counseling to staff members and facilitates staff support groups in an effort to promote a positive working environment and address the immediate needs of fellow co-workers.
   3. Actively participates in the development and implementation of the interdisciplinary treatment plan.
   4. Actively participates in treatment team activities.
   5. Promotes a therapeutic milieu by formal and informal methods.
4. Professional Development
   1. Acts as a clinical resource and serves as a mentor to health care team members; displays leadership behaviors.
   2. Identifies own learning needs based on self-evaluation and the progress made from the previous year's goals.
   3. Accountable for all documentation and completion of all required continuing education and competencies relevant to area of practice as defined by clinical management.
   4. Ensures improvements in practice settings by assuming responsibility for self-development in life-long learning.
   5. Provides direction and guidance to others regarding practice, serves as a resource, preceptor, and mentor. Leadership skills in critical thinking, decision-making, and problem solving.
   6. Participates in community outreach services as an educational resource informing the public about innovative care management programs available to caregivers. Provides high quality professional consultation and in-service education to medical and hospital staff.
   7. Performs other duties as assigned or requested.

• Palliative Care