Social Worker

**Position title: Registered Social Worker - BSO**

**Behavioural Supports Ontario Program**

**Location**:Alzheimer Society Southwest Partners - Elgin Site - 450 Sunset Drive Suite 229, St. Thomas (with travel required within Middlesex, Oxford and Elgin County) and remote from home

**Status**: Full-Time, permanent, 35 hours per week, occasional evening and weekend work required.

**About you**:
You are an enthusiastic, highly organized professional social worker with a passion for supporting diverse groups of people, older adults, and those living with dementia or cognitive impairment. You have experience developing care plans and appropriate interventions for clients. You enjoy working with a multi-disciplinary team and utilize your excellent interpersonal skills. You are a natural with computers and your written and verbal communication skills are first-rate. You are compassionate, efficient, and have a demonstrated ability to deliver accuracy and attention to detail in your work. You manage your time well and you are able to problem-solve through challenging situations and unexpected circumstances

**Position Summary**:
Under the direction of the Manager of Clinical Services, the incumbent will work with persons living with Alzheimer’s disease or other dementia (ADOD), including Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI), or other memory complaints who are presenting with responsive behaviors. The Registered BSO Social Worker will work with the individual, their care partners, and other health care providers to ensure access to information, support, and education that assists them on their journey with the disease. The goal is to provide needed support, build effective and efficient utilization of community resources, promote links with primary care and community resource agencies; reduce care partner crisis situations and thereby reduce care partner burden. The BSO Registered Social Worker will work closely with the local Behavioural Supports specialized team(s) to provide interventions such as assessment, system navigation, short term one to one supportive counselling, crisis intervention, case management, discharge planning, and referrals to community agencies as appropriate.

**Specific Job Responsibilities**:

- Receive and respond to BSO client referrals in a timely manner
- Provide psychosocial assessments and develop care plans for clients living with dementia with responsive behaviors and their care partner network working together with health system partners
- Initiate intervention immediately in urgent situations
- Provide dementia related supportive counselling to clients as needed
- Consult with Alzheimer Society peers/colleagues on specific cases in which clients are engaging in responsive behaviours
- Identify person-centered, abilities focused care partner strategies for behavior management
- Provide regular follow up with current clients as established in agency policy
- Comply with reporting requirements of the Alzheimer Society Southwest Partners and those of the relevant professional body (OCSWSSW)
- Ensure clients are aware of existing community resources, and provide assistance as needed to clients who wish to access them
- Refer to appropriate community resources as required
- Facilitate support and education groups as assigned

**Evaluation & Other Responsibilities**
- Annual performance review with Manager of Clinical Services
- Collect, maintain and report required quantitative and qualitative data to support region-wide monitoring, evaluation, and reporting to BSO Project team
- Work with clinical team to continually evaluate BSO services by soliciting ongoing feedback from clients as well as completing written questionnaires as appropriate
- Always represent the Alzheimer Society Southwest Partners in a professional manner, treating all internal and external clients with respect and dignity and always act in the best interest of the Society
- As an employee of a non-profit organization, you are expected to participate in fund development activities as required
- Other related duties as requested by the supervisor or Director of Programs and Services or CEO

**Required Qualifications**:

- Minimum Bachelor of Social Work degree required
- Eligibility for registration with the Ontario College of Social Workers and Social Service Workers (OCSWSSW)
- Minimum 3 years providing direct Social Work service in a health care setting
- Experience working with the over 65 age group
- Experience working with persons living with dementia and their care partners
- Strong crisis management skills
- Strong assessment and case management skills required
- Experience facilitating education and/or support groups an asset
- Strong written and verbal communication skills
- Ability and knowledge to work within a computerized environment
- Ability to converse in a language other than English is an asset
- Valid driver’s license and access to own vehicle
- A Police Vulnerable Sector Check is required

**Pr