What Does a Hospital Social Worker Do?

Hospital social workers engage with patients and their support systems and provide assistance as necessary. These professionals—also referred to as health care or medical social workers—offer non-medical support to patients who are dealing with medical challenges. 

In other words, hospital social workers step in at an extremely emotionally charged time, when individuals and their loved ones are going through stress, grief, and myriad logistical obstacles. 

Whether social workers in hospitals connect people to counseling or assist with coordinating their services, they’re an incredibly important part of the health care ecosystem. If you’re interested in directly helping people when they need it most, hospital social work may be a perfect fit. 

First Things First: What Does a Hospital Social Worker Do?

The Bureau of Labor Statistics has reported that more than 190,000 social workers in the United States perform their duties in health care settings. In health care environments, such as hospitals and long-term care facilities, social workers can help their clients with many types of challenges.

These may include helping patients: 

• Understand their diagnoses, relevant treatment plans, and comments from their medical team.
• Determine and implement any lifestyle adjustments that may be necessary per instruction from their medical team.
• Invest in and improve their mental health during stressful medical treatments.
• Transition between care settings (e.g., supporting patients through the complex logistics of moving between the hospital and hospice or home).
• Locate and access any relevant community or support resources.
• Understand their hospital bills and any applicable payment options.

Clearly, social workers provide vital support that allows patients to make good choices and feel empowered through stress-inducing health events. 

But are there other reasons besides the feeling of helping patients that make hospital social work an intriguing career choice? 

The Day-to-Day Responsibilities of a Hospital Social Worker

Hospital social workers do more than just work directly with patients; often, they collaborate with medical staff, including doctors and nurses, to advocate for a patient’s well-being. 

This variety of interactions can make the average day in the life of a hospital social worker very busy!

Each day, a hospital social worker prepares to focus on the emotional and practical needs of both patients and their families. They problem-solve, they provide resources, and they offer helping hands (literally and figuratively). 

Depending on the day, this may include: 

Crisis Intervention

When patients and their families experience moments of crisis, hospital social workers can often provide the immediate emotional help they may need. Sometimes, this involves timely response at the point of a sudden diagnosis, supporting people through medical emergencies, or sitting with people as they manage grief and other intense or high-stress situations. 

Patient Care and Discharge Planning

Once a patient is ready to go home, a hospital social worker will help them make sure they have everything they need to continue their care (or recovery) outside the hospital setting. This is critical and complex support! It can include arranging home health care services, ensuring a patient has access to the appropriate medications, coordinating follow-up care, and helping patients understand how to follow their post-hospital care instructions. 

Support for Families

Hospital social workers may provide resources and guidance to patients’ families, who are also mired in deep logistical and emotional challenges as their loved one goes through treatment.

Depending on the nature of the patient’s care, a social worker may help their family cope with a severe patient diagnosis, understand patient care plans, walk through treatment options, and access the support or community resources they need going forward. 

Patient Advocacy

In many ways, hospital social workers are poised to fight for their patients’ rights. They make sure that patients know their voices are heard and that they can make informed decisions for themselves.

To work toward this end, hospital social workers communicate patient preferences to medical teams, ensure patients know their rights, and act as patient advocates during medical challenges. 

Are There Health Care Social Worker Specializations? 

As you may imagine, this is not a one-size-fits-all profession. The sheer complexity and variety of tasks hospital social workers undertake demands some level of specialization. Fortunately, social workers can select a niche to specialize in, enabling them to offer more targeted support to people with more specific needs. 

Common hospital social worker specializations include: 

• Oncology, where social workers can help patients and their families navigate the practicalities of managing cancer care.
• Trauma, where social workers support patients with counseling and crisis intervention after life-changing events such as natural disasters, violence, or accidents.
• Geriatric, where social workers can focus on care for older adults—including end-of-life planning, transitions to assisted living, and the logistics of mental health care often associated with dementia or depression. 
• Pediatrics, where social workers can support both children and their families through serious injuries or illnesses to set everyone up for a successful outcome. 
• Palliative care, where social workers help patients and their families navigate end-of-life care, with empathetic planning services and emotional support to ensure everyone feels as comfortable and respected as possible. 

How to Become a Hospital Social Worker

Being a hospital social worker can be difficult, but it’s a calling that can bring comfort and joy to many members of your community when they need support most. 

To become a hospital social worker, most candidates follow a similar path. (If you’re interested in becoming a social worker, where along this journey does your educational background place you?)

1. Start by earning a degree. Obtaining a Bachelor of Social Work (BSW) can help you attain entry-level roles. Pursuing a Master of Social Work (MSW) can allow you to provide more specialized counseling. 
2. Get licensed. After you’ve completed your degree, you’ll need to study for and pass an exam and complete supervised fieldwork to become a licensed clinical social worker (LCSW). 
3. Find employment! Once you’ve obtained your license, you may be eligible to apply for roles in social work at health care facilities, specialized medical departments, or hospitals. 

Ready to work hard to alleviate stressors for patients? Interested in connecting people with vital resources during a challenging season of their lives? Want to partner with other health care professionals, from hospital administrators to doctors and nurses, to help patients thrive? 

It’s time to take your next step.

MVNU Online’s Bachelor of Social Work program provides the foundation you need to launch a rewarding career. Or further your education with MVNU's online Master of Social Work program.