Social Worker

Work Location:

Koidu Government Hospital (Kono District)

Department:

Operations

Reports to:

Social Work Lead

Line Management

No

Requisition #

Duration of Contract

Twelve (12) Months with the possibility of extension

Application Status

External Advert

Organization Profile

Partners In Health (PIH) is an international health organization relentlessly committed to improving the health of the poor and marginalized. PIH partners with local governments to build local capacity and works closely with impoverished communities to deliver high-quality health care, address the root causes of illness, train providers, advance research, and advocate for global policy change. Our delivered services in the field are based in our partnership with the Governments and Ministries of Health and the support to education, training and mentorship to Health care workers and students is one of our pillars for the Health care system strengthening.

PIH currently has implementation programs in Haiti, Rwanda, Lesotho, Liberia, Malawi, Peru, Mexico, Russia, Sierra Leone and Navajo Nation. Through our partnership with Harvard Medical School and the Brigham and Women’s Hospital, we support a wide range of programs in dozens of other countries around the world.

Our Work In Sierra Leone:

PartnersInHealth Sierra Leone (PIHSL) began supporting the government of Sierra Leone in response to the Ebola epidemic in October 2014. Recognizing the large need for continued investments in the health system after Ebola, PIH is committed to long-term health system strengthening in support of the Ministry of Health and Sanitation (MOHS), guided by the same principles as our emergency response and our work around the world: public sector accompaniment, integrated and comprehensive services, social justice, nimbleness and flexibility, partnership, community ownership, and evidence-based interventions. In the aftermath of the epidemic, PIH is committed to supporting the delivery of comprehensive health services in Sierra Leone, from the community level to the health center and to referral hospitals.

Position Overview

The Social Worker (SW) serves as a link and accompanier between clinicians, and patients or patients’ relatives at Koidu Government Hospital (KGH). The HSW primarily serves to accompany and check on vulnerable patients admitted to the wards during their hospitalization. Hospital Social Worker is a staunch patient advocate, who provides for/addresses patient’s social needs, to ensure that patients receive proper care and are not charged unofficial or illegal fees.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities:

Act as patients’ advocate
Assess and identify vulnerable patients, and link them with the available social support program.
Receive referral information and instructions from the Hospital Social Work Lead or clinical leads
Accompany patients through Koidu Government Hospital, counseling patients on the process and insisting on correct, legal costs of treatment.
Visit vulnerable patients who have been admitted each working day, counsel them on their conditions and note questions, concerns, and information about their social problems, and discuss them with the Hospital Social Work Lead or Clinical Lead.
Liaise with nurses and administrators to ensure proper care of patients and continue with good relationships and teamwork
Additional Responsibilities:

Assist patient with discharge process home or; referrals to outside facilities
Liaise with PIH Finance and SHIS Department
Perform such other duties, related to the department, project, and/or job description, as may be required by the Hospital Social Work Lead.
Prevention of Sexual Exploitation, Abuse and Harassment

At Partners In Health, we are dedicated to ensuring that those who benefit from our work, including our patients, families, and community members, as well as our employees, are treated with dignity and respect, and are free from sexual exploitation, abuse, and harassment. A range of pre-employment checks will be undertaken in conformity with Partners In Health’s PSEAH policy. Partner In Health will request information from applicants’ previous employers about any findings of sexual exploitation, sexual abuse, and/or sexual harassment during employment or incidents under investigation when the applicant left employment. By submitting an application, the job applicant confirms their understanding of these recruitment procedures.

Qualifications/Requirements

Preferably must have completed an Ordinary National Diploma or Higher National Diploma in Social work or related field of study.
* Experience in Social Work preferred

* Strong communication, interpersonal, and organizational skills, must be able to take initiative and problem-solve, be a creative thinker, and must be flexible.

* Ability to work well with a team, be dependable, and hard-working.

* Ability to be adaptable and function in a busy work environment.

* Commitment to social justice and human rights.

* Must NOT hold dual employment from private or national consolidated funds

Social Justice

We are a global health and social justice organization that responds to the moral imperative to provide high-quality health care globally to those who need it most. We strive to ease suffering by placing patients at the center of all care, bringing the benefits of modern medicine to all.