St Mary Medical Center·Long Beach, California
The Clinical Social Worker provides psychosocial assessments, counseling, and crisis intervention to patients and families. They collaborate with multidisciplinary teams to coordinate care transitions and connect clients with essential community resources.
Where You’ll Work Founded in 1923, Dignity Health - St.
Mary Medical Center is a 389-bed, acute care, nonprofit hospital located in Long Beach, California.
Serving over 80,000 patients annually, the hospital offers a full complement of services including a Level II Trauma Center, Level III NICU, heart care, and orthopedics.
Additionally, St.
Mary Medical Center has been recognized as an LGBTQ+ Healthcare Equality High Performer by the Human Rights Campaign Foundation.
It is a Joint Commission-certified Thrombectomy-Capable Stroke Center and received a Healthgrades 5-Star Award for Heart Failure in 2026.
One Community.
One Mission.
One California Job Summary and Responsibilities As our Social Worker, you will be a compassionate advocate, providing vital support and guidance to individuals and families facing complex challenges.Every day, you will conduct psychosocial assessments, develop care plans, provide counseling and crisis intervention, and connect clients to resources.
You'll advocate for clients and collaborate with multidisciplinary teams to ensure holistic support and promote well-being.To be successful in this role, you must possess exceptional interpersonal skills, empathy, strong knowledge of community resources, and proven crisis management abilities, fostering positive change and client empowerment.
Advocacy & Education: Patient/Family Self Care Management, Patient/Family Health Management Education, Bioethics Referrals & Management, Physician, Staff & Community Education, Case Management Education & Training, Risk Management Identification & Referral.
Psychosocial Management: Crisis Intervention, Psychosocial Assessment/Functioning, Counseling Support & Referral, Abuse/Neglect Identification & Referral (Partner, Child, Elder), Family Issues Affecting Care, Coping/Emotional Adjustment, Grief/Bereavement Support (Individual & Group), Adoption Resources, Health/Wellness Promotion, Substance Abuse Screening/Resources, Psychiatric Screening/Behavior, Management, Staff Support and Crisis Intervention (Critical Incident Stress Debriefing).
Patient/Family Care Conferences: Interdisciplinary Care Communication/Coordination, Continuity of Care Planning Management.
Continuity/Transition Management: As part of Care Coordination team, facilitation of Patient decisions and communications regarding post-acute care; professional responsibility for knowledge of community resources related to clinical social work scope of service and functions and social worker discretion; maintaining appropriate up to date resource lists; education for patients/families about availability of community resources, mental health service coordination, Hospice.
Community Resource Coordination; Life Care Planning, Palliative/End-of-Life Care, expert consultation on health care resource management; team and patient education regarding CCS/Medicare/Medi-Cal/SSI.
Performance & Outcomes Management: Understanding of Federal/State/Local Regulatory Agency Compliance, Joint Commission Standards Compliance, Evidenced Based Practice; Understanding of Organizational Financial Performance/Management, Length of Stay, Cost per Case, Revenue Cycle.
Job Requirements Required Master's Degree from a School of Social work accredited by the Council of Social Work Education.
A minimum of two years of clinical and/or medical social work experience.
Basic Life Support - CPR Preferred Licensed Clinical Social Worker: CA
Candidates must hold a Master's Degree from a CSWE-accredited school of social work and have at least two years of clinical or medical social work experience. Basic Life Support (CPR) certification is required, and a CA Licensed Clinical Social Worker license is preferred.
Market context
In California, behavioral-health roles tied to substance use disorder counseling and case management are typically supported by ongoing community and treatment-program demand. These positions are competitive because employers often look for a high school diploma, at least 2 years of SUD counseling or case management experience, and current Registered or Certified Drug and Alcohol Counselor status. Review the AI-summarized requirements and benefits here to quickly compare fit and note that professional development and paid continuing education are listed as benefits.