The job of a social worker can vary significantly. From correctional facilities to schools and foster care to mental health services and more, social workers deal with many kinds of situations. Their jobs are demanding — draining even. In hospice care, social workers are tasked with helping to prepare the patient and their family for the final stage of life. They serve a critical role here at Suncrest Home Health and Hospice of Austin, Texas.
The Process of Becoming a Social Worker
The Process of Becoming a Social WorkerMany people say social work is more of a calling than a job. While other professions, such as teaching, involve heart-wrenching situations, every job a social worker does is heart-wrenching. It is the existence of a distressing situation that qualifies it as appropriate for a social worker.
What Do Hospice Social Workers Do?
Social workers are the point people — the coordinators of patient care in hospice. They are the first professionals you talk to when you are looking into hospice care for yourself or your loved one.
As you can imagine, entering hospice care requires the coordination of many services. The patient’s doctor must prescribe hospice care, then a hospice nurse must evaluate the patient and develop a plan of care. The plan of care often involves Certified Nursing Assistants, physical therapists, occupational therapists, speech therapists, mental health services providers, spiritual advisors, and others.
Whether the patient is receiving hospice care at home or in a facility in Austin, arranging for the right type of care to be provided is important.
Further, although hospice care is a guaranteed benefit under Medicare, other patients have other types of insurance that may come into play, and social workers deal with these situations as well.
Not only do social workers have to be experts in many areas to ensure patients receive the care they deserve, but they also must be skilled at handling their cases with compassion. This is especially true with hospice social workers. Death is an inevitable, but natural, part of life, and dealing with the accompanying stages of grief is unquestionably difficult.
Suncrest Social Workers
The social workers at Suncrest Home Health and Hospice provide invaluable services to patients and their families with compassion and professionalism. We’re here to help you and your family with the transition to hospice care. To find out more about hospice care or to meet with a social worker, contact the team at Suncrest Home Health and Hospice in Austin today.
