Job Description
Medical Social Worker – Inpatient Hospice Unit
Your Social Work Career Can Make a Difference That Lasts
Are you a Licensed Social Worker looking for meaningful work where you can make a difference for patients and families every day? Join Ohio’s Hospice as a Medical Social Worker on our inpatient hospice unit at OSU IPU.
This is an opportunity to use your social work expertise in a collaborative inpatient setting while supporting patients and families during some of life’s most important moments. You’ll build meaningful relationships, provide emotional and psychosocial support, advocate for patient needs and preferences, connect families with resources, and help ensure compassionate, patient-centered care.
If you’re an LSW or LISW who wants your work to have a meaningful impact every day, we’d love to meet you.
Why Join Our Hospice Social Work Team?
- Make a meaningful difference: Support patients and families during challenging and deeply personal moments.
- Build meaningful relationships: Become a trusted source of support for patients, caregivers, and loved ones.
- Work with purpose: Help provide care focused on comfort, dignity, choice, and quality of life.
- Collaborate with an experienced team: Work closely with nurses, physicians, chaplains, hospice aides, volunteers, and other healthcare professionals.
- Be part of an inpatient care environment: Provide social work support directly within the OSU inpatient hospice unit.
- Every day is different: Each patient and family brings unique needs, experiences, goals, and perspectives.
Position: Medical Social Worker
As a Medical Social Worker on the OSU inpatient hospice unit, you will provide psychosocial assessment, counseling, care planning, advocacy, resource coordination, caregiver support, crisis intervention, and end-of-life support to hospice patients and their families.
You will play an important role in helping patients and families navigate the emotional, social, financial, and practical challenges that can arise during an inpatient hospice stay.
What You’ll Do
- Assess the psychosocial, emotional, financial, and practical needs of patients and families.
- Develop and participate in individualized plans of care based on patient goals, preferences, and needs.
- Provide counseling, education, emotional support, and crisis intervention as appropriate.
- Support patients and families as they navigate end-of-life decisions and changes in condition.
- Connect patients and families with financial assistance, community resources, agencies, and support programs.
- Assist patients and families with advance directives and end-of-life planning.
- Provide caregiver support related to stress, anticipatory grief, loss, and bereavement.
- Advocate for patient rights, preferences, dignity, comfort, and quality of life.
- Participate as an active member of the interdisciplinary hospice team.
- Collaborate with physicians, nurses, chaplains, hospice aides, volunteers, hospital staff, and other care professionals.
- Participate in patient and family care conferences and other interdisciplinary discussions as appropriate.
- Facilitate communication between patients, families, and members of the care team.
- Assist with discharge planning and coordination of appropriate resources and services when applicable.
- Complete accurate and timely documentation in the electronic medical record.
- Maintain professional relationships and communication with patients, families, hospital partners, and members of the interdisciplinary team.
Schedule & Work Environment
Monday–Friday | 8:30 a.m.–5:00 p.m.
- Shared weekend and holiday rotation
- Inpatient hospice unit located at OSU IPU
- Primarily hospital-based work environment
- Close collaboration with an interdisciplinary hospice and hospital care team
- No routine community-based travel required for this inpatient position
Qualifications
Required
- Bachelor’s degree in Social Work (BSW)
- Current Ohio LSW or LISW license
- Minimum 1 year of healthcare experience
- Excellent communication, organization, and documentation skills
- Ability to work independently while collaborating effectively with an interdisciplinary team
- Ability to provide compassionate support to patients and families experiencing serious illness, end-of-life care, and loss
Preferred
- Master’s degree in Social Work (MSW)
- Hospice or palliative care experience
- Hospital or inpatient healthcare experience
- Oncology experience
- Geriatric care experience
- Home health experience
- CHP-SW or ACHP-SW certification
- Current CPR certification
- Notary Public designation or ability to obtain within 6 months of employment
Benefits & Perks
Ohio’s Hospice offers a comprehensive benefits package designed to support your personal and professional success, including:
- Competitive pay
- Medical, dental, and vision coverage
- Employer-paid life insurance
- Short- and long-term disability benefits
- Paid time off and holidays
- Retirement savings plan with employer contribution
- Tuition reimbursement
- Certification assistance and certification incentive pay
- Structured orientation with dedicated mentorship
- Continuing education and career development opportunities
The Difference You’ll Make
As a hospice social worker, you’re not simply providing a service—you’re showing up when patients and families need support the most.
You’ll help patients and families navigate difficult decisions. You’ll listen when someone needs to be heard. You’ll help caregivers cope with stress, uncertainty, and grief. You’ll connect families with resources and support. Most importantly, you’ll advocate for each patient so their wishes, dignity, comfort, and quality of life remain at the center of their care.
Your expertise matters. Your compassion matters. And the work you do matters.
Ready to Make an Impact?
If you’re a Licensed Social Worker (LSW/LISW) who is passionate about helping patients and families and wants to make a difference in an inpatient hospice setting, we encourage you to apply.
Join Ohio’s Hospice and turn your social work skills into meaningful impact—one patient and family at a time.
Apply today. We’d love to have you on our team.
