Position overview
Exciting opportunities exist to work as a new graduate social worker in several teams across inpatient, outpatient and community settings:
The Community Health and Integrated Care team (CHIC) provides integrated and effective services in the areas of rehabilitation, aged care and community care in a broader range of sites throughout the ACT, including Canberra Hospital (CH) and The University of Canberra Hospital (UCH), community health centres and the homes of clients. This includes health care and support for people with acute, post-acute and long-term illnesses.
The Acute Allied Health Services Social Work team is responsible for the care and support of patients across a range of critical and acute care areas of CH. These include the Medical and Surgical inpatient wards, Intensive Care Unit, the Emergency Department, Maternity and Paediatric inpatient wards and a range of paediatric and adult outpatient clinics.
The Cancer Psychosocial Service is located in the Canberra Region Cancer Centre (CRCC). This service provides multidisciplinary psychosocial care to patients and their families or carers who attend the CRCC, or who have been admitted into Ward 4A or Ward 14B. Working closely with other disciplines in the CRCC and the wards in CH, the Cancer Psychosocial Service provides leadership in psychosocial care of patients and their families or carers. Services include facilitation of access to resources, responding to crisis, counselling, palliative care and bereavement issues, staff consultation and in-services.
Mental Health, Justice Health, Alcohol and Drug Services (MHJHADS) provide health services directly and through partnerships with community organisations. The services provided range from acute crisis support through to treatment, rehabilitation, recovery and harm minimisation. Services are delivered at a number of locations, including hospital inpatient and outpatient settings, community health centres, detention centres, and other community settings including people’s homes. These services include (and are not limited to):
- Alcohol and Drug Services
- Adult Community and Older Persons Mental Health Services
- Justice Health Services
- Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services
- Adult Inpatient Mental Health Services.
Social workers provide assessment and therapeutic intervention for a range of client populations throughout their patient journey. The successful applicants will have an understanding of issues related to health and wellbeing and the impact on the person and their family/carer, including adjustment to change in their health. Social workers promote improved client outcomes through working in collaboration with the multidisciplinary team to provide high quality clinical services across a range of service specialty areas.
The successful applicants will be part of a large network of social workers and will also receive education and support through the CHS Allied Health Interprofessional Graduate Program. The program is specifically designed to support new graduates to launch their careers in healthcare and develop their professional identity. It provides graduates with individual support to optimise learning and career opportunities. New graduates will have onsite access to a clinical supervisor who will work with them and support them to grow their clinical and professional skills. New graduates will also be matched with a peer from the previous cohort of new graduates to provide them with additional mentoring and support. The program also offers a 12-month allied health interdisciplinary education program facilitated by the Allied Health Clinical Education Unit.
The successful applicants will be employed as a full-time health professional level 1 social worker and where available will be afforded opportunities to rotate caseloads to enhance individual learning and experiences
This position may be required for weekend and after-hours work, overtime, on call and/or rotation rosters.
Key Responsibilities
Specific responsibilities include, but are not limited to, the following:
Under direction of the team manager/ leader, and supervision from an experienced social worker, you will:
- Provide appropriate assessment and interventions using established principles, techniques and methods with support.
- Include carers, children, Nominated Persons, GPs and other service providers in the recovery planning process, as required.
- Complete clinical and administrative data collection and evaluation to standards.
- Participate in clinical supervision, continuing professional development and personal performance review process.
- Participate in team and program related service activities as required.
- Participate in the implementation of clinical governance activity, quality improvement projects, research programs, and health promotion in areas relevant to service.
- Undertake other duties appropriate to this level of classification which contribute to the operation of the organisation.
Competencies
Specific responsibilities include but are not limited to the following.
- Ability to develop critical thinking skills and form defensible conclusions based on evidence and sound judgment
- Ability to manage confidential and sensitive information
- Work with a wide variety of people
- Adapt quickly to a changing environment
- Commitment to achieving positive outcomes
- Good verbal and written communication skills
- High standard of ethical practice in line with CHS and the relevant professional association or Board standards, such as maintaining patient confidentiality and making sound decisions
- Problem solving and negotiation skills
Qualifications
Essential
- Tertiary qualification in Social Work
- Be registered (or eligible for registration) with the Australian Association of Social Workers (AASW).
Desirable
- Current Australian Driver’s licence.
Experience
Essential
- Nil
Desirable
- Nil
Prior to commencement
Appointment to this position is conditional on being granted and retaining appropriate clearances:
- Pre-employment National Police Check.
- Current registration issued under the Working with Vulnerable People (Background Checking) Act 2011 is required.
- Comply with Canberra Health Services Occupational Assessment, Screening and Vaccination policy.
- Comply with CHS credentialing and scope of clinical practice requirements for allied health professionals.
Important information
All employees are required to:
- Adhere to the Canberra Health Services Values and the ACT Public Service Code of Conduct.
- Act in accordance and comply with all relevant Safety and Quality policies and procedures.
- Comply with all relevant clinical and/or competency standards.
- Be available for weekend and/or after-hours work.
CHS is leading the drive to digitally transform health service delivery in Australia through the implementation of a territory wide Digital Health Record. Computer literacy skills are required which are relevant to this role as you will be responsible for completing required documentation and becoming a proficient user of the Digital Health Record and/or other Information Technology systems; once proficient, you will need to remain current with changes, updates, and contingencies.
What you Require (Key Selection Criteria)
These are the key selection criteria for how you will be assessed in conjunction with your resumé and experience.
- Ability to develop clinical social work interventions, including assessment, counselling, advocacy, planning, and patient/carer education.
- Ability to develop prioritisation and management of a caseload, under supervision, with awareness of and adherence to risk management processes.
- Ability to develop an understanding of working in a multidisciplinary team, including establishing and maintaining effective dialogue and working relationships with staff, people, carers, and service providers.
- Demonstrated effective oral and written communication skills. Including the ability to establish and maintain effective dialogue and working relationships with the people who access our service, staff and other service providers, and the ability to utilise a range of information technology applications to maintain documentation and data collection.
- Demonstrates understanding of, and adherence to, safety and quality standards, work, health and safety (WH&S) and the positive patient experience. Displays behaviour consistent with CHS’s values of reliable, progressive, respectful and kind.
Work environment description
The following work environment description outlines the inherent requirements of the role and indicates how frequently each of these requirements would need to be performed. Please note that the ACT Public Service is committed to providing reasonable adjustments and ensuring all individuals have equal opportunities in the workplace.
| Administrative | Frequency |
|---|---|
| Telephone use | Frequently |
| General computer use | Frequently |
| Extensive keying/data entry | Occasionally |
| Graphical/analytical based | Occasionally |
| Sitting at a desk | Frequently |
| Standing for long periods | Occasionally |
| Psychosocial demands | Frequency |
|---|---|
| Distressed People e.g. Emergency or grief situations | Frequently |
| Aggressive & Uncooperative People e.g. drug / alcohol, dementia, mental illness | Frequently |
| Unpredictable People e.g. Dementia, mental illness, head injuries | Frequently |
| Restraining e.g. involvement in physical containment of clients/consumers | Never |
| Exposure to Distressing Situations e.g. Child abuse, viewing dead / mutilated bodies; verbal abuse; domestic violence; suicide | Frequently |
| Physical demands | Frequency |
|---|---|
| Distance walking (large buildings or inter-building transit) | Frequently |
| Working outdoors | Occasionally |
| Manual handling | Frequency |
|---|---|
| Lifting 0 - 9kg | Frequently |
| Lifting 10 - 15kg | Occasionally |
| Lifting 16kg+ | Never |
| Climbing | Never |
| Running | Never |
| Reaching | Occasionally |
| Kneeling | Occasionally |
| Foot and leg movement | Occasionally |
| Hand, arm and grasping movements | Occasionally |
| Bending/squatting | Occasionally |
| Bend/Lean Forward from Waist/Trunk twisting | Occasionally |
| Push/pull | Occasionally |
| Sequential repetitive movements in a short amount of time | Occasionally |
| Travel | Frequency |
|---|---|
| Frequent travel – multiple work sites | Occasionally |
| Frequent travel – driving | Occasionally |
| Specific hazards | Frequency |
|---|---|
| Working at heights | Never |
| Exposure to extreme temperatures | Never |
| Operation of heavy machinery e.g. forklift | Never |
| Confined spaces | Never |
| Excessive noise | Occasionally |
| Low lighting | Never |
| Handling of dangerous goods/equipment e.g. gases; liquids; biological. | Never |
| Slippery or uneven surfaces | Occasionally |
Directorate: Canberra Health Services
Division: Various
Business Unit: Canberra Health Services
Position number: P62715 + Multiple
Position title: New Graduate Social Worker
Classification: Health Professional Level 1
Location: Canberra Health Services
Reporting relationships:
Direct Manager: Senior Director of Allied Health
Manager +1: Various
Canberra Health Services (CHS) is focussed on the delivery of high quality, effective, person-centred care. We provide acute, sub-acute, primary and community‐based health services, to the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) and surrounding regions. More information can be found on the CHS website.
Our Vision: creating exceptional health care together
Our Role: to be a health service that is trusted by our community
Our Values: Reliable, Progressive, Respectful and Kind