- Help patients understand their diagnosis and make the necessary adjustments to their lifestyle, housing, or healthcare
- Provide information on services, such as home healthcare or support groups, to help patients manage their illness or disease.
- Explain the effects that diseases and illnesses have on patients’ mental and emotional health to doctors and other healthcare professionals
- Can specialize in geriatric social work, hospice and palliative care, or medical social work.
- Develop standards of practice
- Recommend health policy
- Improve health programs
- Ensure patients, families and organizations receive high quality and state of the art social work services.
- A Bachelors Degree, earned at an accredited college or university. Obtain a bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution of higher learning
- A master’s degree in social work from a graduate program accredited by the Council on Social Work Education.
Note* To help ensure the safe, competent, and ethical practice of social work, social workers obtain licensure. License requirements vary from state to state. For more information please visit the Association of Social Work Boards https://www.aswb.org/licensees/about-licensing-and-regulation/
Certified Social Workers in Health Care must:
- Obtain a Master’s degree in social work from a graduate program accredited by the Council on Social Work Education
- Document at least two (2) years (equivalent of 3,000 hours) of paid, supervised, post-MSW social work employment in an agency or organization that provides treatment to individuals and families whose lives are adversely affected by medical conditions or physical limitations.
- Hold a current state MSW-level license or an ASWB MSW-level exam passing score-based social work license, registration, or certification issued by the designated state office.
- Adhere to the NASW Code of Ethics and the NASW Standards for Continuing Professional Education
The median annual wage for social workers was $49,470 in May 2018.
Association of Social Work Boards. (2019). About licensing and regulation. Retrieved from https://www.aswb.org/licensees/about-licensing-and-regulation/
Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Outlook Handbook. (2019). Social Workers. Retrieved from https://www.bls.gov/ooh/community-and-social-service/social-workers.htm
National Association of Social Workers. (2019). Certified Social Worker in Health Care (C-SWHC). Retrieved from https://www.socialworkers.org/Careers/Credentials-Certifications/Apply-for-NASW-Social-Work-Credentials/Certified-Social-Worker-in-Health-Care
