At MultiCare Hospice, our mission is to partner for healing and a healthy future. We serve patients with terminal illnesses and support their caregivers and families, providing medical care, bath aide services, social work support, end-of-life planning, and more. At hospice, we are comfort-focused, not curative. Our team members (RNs, MSWs, bath aides, chaplains, comfort therapists, volunteers, etc.) meet patients right where they are, visiting them in homes and facilities to provide the care that they need. The MSW student will be exposed to a variety of settings, visiting patients in homes, Adult Family Homes, Skilled Nursing Facilities, Assisted Living Facilities, and Memory Care Units.

The MSW student will support both the hospice team and volunteer services, spending their time in a combination of office and field environments. This role receives hybrid supervision between the social work and volunteer departments.

The student will engage in direct patient care through the following opportunities:
• Embark on solo companionship and respite visits to support patients and caregivers.
• Document patient conditions, patient interactions, caregiver interactions, intake calls, and medication/equipment requests.
• Engage in immersive learning by shadowing MSWs and chaplains. Learn how they conduct intake and assessments, apply
interventions, and chart visits.
• Call patients/caregivers weekly to assess needs for medication or medical equipment, route needs to RN Case Managers, and
submit documentation to medical records.
• Conduct intake calls to patients and caregivers referred for volunteer support.
• Assist with training new hospice volunteers.
• Support bereavement team outreach.

• Participate in interdisciplinary team meetings on a weekly basis.
• Observe (and potentially help facilitate) bereavement support groups.
• Use electronic medical record to create reports, call lists, and evaluate hospice data.
• Develop and revise educational materials.
• Project management (including holiday gift drive).
• Assist with program development and evaluation (including, but not limited to, Story Catching initiative and We Honor Veterans
partnership).
• Community outreach (including tabling at volunteer fairs).

Limited, but opportunities include:
• Assist with and advance We Honor Veterans partnership to address inequities impacting veterans on hospice.
• Learn how hospice MSW’s are impacted by and helping patients navigate current policy changes (such as those impacting
Medicare/Medicaid, withdrawal from the WHO, and immigration enforcement).

Students will have access to Relias Learning during their practicum. This is an online learning platform with more than 1,200 training opportunities in a wide array of offerings.

Student should not be recovering from a significant loss of 6 months prior or less.
Student should be prepared to interact with elderly and disabled individuals with prognoses of 6 months or less.
Student should be comfortable with discussing death and grief, as well as maintaining a close proximity to the dying process. Ability to work with a diverse population is important, including veterans, LGBTQIA+, very low-income clients, and patients from a variety of religious backgrounds.
Student should have strong written and verbal communication skills, organizational skills, ability to navigate Microsoft office, and ability to manage their own calendar.

Please email OFE practicum cover sheet, letter of interest, and resume to Lynette Kolsrud, Supervisor Hospice SW, LICSW, lynette.kolsrud@multicare.org, and Fiona Mudgett, Lead Volunteer Services Program Coordinator, flmudgett@multicare.org.