Medical Social Worker
Healthcare
Provide individuals, families, and groups with the psychosocial support needed to cope with chronic, acute, or terminal illnesses. Services include advising family caregivers. Provide patients with information and counseling, and make referrals for other services. May also provide case and care management or interventions designed to promote health, prevent disease, and address barriers to access to healthcare.
What you'd do all day
The tasks that matter most in this job, most important first.
- 1Advocate for clients or patients to resolve crises.
- 2Educate clients about end-of-life symptoms and options to assist them in making informed decisions.
- 3Collaborate with other professionals to evaluate patients' medical or physical condition and to assess client needs.
- 4Investigate child abuse or neglect cases and take authorized protective action when necessary.
- 5Refer patient, client, or family to community resources to assist in recovery from mental or physical illness and to provide access to services such as financial assistance, legal aid, housing, job placement or education.
- 6Utilize consultation data and social work experience to plan and coordinate client or patient care and rehabilitation, following through to ensure service efficacy.
- 7Monitor, evaluate, and record client progress according to measurable goals described in treatment and care plan.
- 8Identify environmental impediments to client or patient progress through interviews and review of patient records.
- 9Counsel clients and patients in individual and group sessions to help them overcome dependencies, recover from illness, and adjust to life.
- 10Plan discharge from care facility to home or other care facility.
- 11Organize support groups or counsel family members to assist them in understanding, dealing with, and supporting the client or patient.
- 12Modify treatment plans to comply with changes in clients' status.
- 13Supervise and direct other workers providing services to clients or patients.
- 14Oversee Medicaid- and Medicare-related paperwork and recordkeeping in hospitals.
- 15Plan and conduct programs to combat social problems, prevent substance abuse, or improve community health and counseling services.
- 16Develop or advise on social policy and assist in community development.
- 17Conduct social research to advance knowledge in the social work field.
Also known as
What this job is called on JobStreet, LinkedIn and in job ads. Search these too.
- LCSW
- LISW
- LMSW
- LICSW
- C-SWHC
- Caseworker
- Case Worker
- Case Manager
- Social Worker
- Client Advocate
How far is this from you?
Roughly how much preparation this job usually takes. In Malaysia your UPU route and the programme's syarat still decide entry, so treat this as a guide, not a gate.
1
Entry straight after SPM
2
SPM + sijil / short TVET course
3
Diploma / TVET (sijil–diploma)
4
Degree (ijazah sarjana muda)
Typical entry
Postgrad (sarjana / PhD) or professional route
Subjects that matter here
The SPM subjects worth your effort for this career, with the reason for each.
What you'd need to know
The subject areas this job leans on most, and the SPM subjects that build them.
- Psychology98%
- Therapy and Counseling95%
BiologySports Science
- Sociology and Anthropology87%
- English Language87%
English
- Customer and Personal Service79%
- Education and Training70%
Tools you'd use
Software and equipment that show up in this job, worth learning early.
What the work feels like
Day-to-day working conditions, so you can tell whether the job suits how you like to work.
- Face-to-face discussionsEvery day
- Contact with other peopleConstant contact
- Dealing with customers or the publicVery high
- Leading or coordinating othersHigh
- Handling conflict situationsOften
- Indoors, air-conditionedEvery day
- Outdoors, in all weatherAlmost never
- Noisy environmentOften
Where this job is heading
Newer tasks O*NET has flagged for this occupation, a hint at how the role is changing.
- Conduct psychological assessment of clients.
AI and demand for this job
A few real, dated data points — not a single score. AI making some tasks faster usually means a job changes, not that it disappears.
Share of everyday tasks today's AI can already help with (2023)
This estimate is from 2023 — already out of date, since AI moves fast. Treat it as a rough, aging starting point, not the current picture.
US Bureau of Labor Statistics data, not Malaysian. Shown because it's the only forward-looking demand estimate we have for this job.
Pay in Malaysia
We don't have a sourced Malaysian salary range for this job yet, and we'd rather show nothing than a number we can't stand behind.
Where to check:
- JobStreet and Hiredly job ads for this title
- DOSM Salaries & Wages Survey
- SSPA scheme tables, if you're aiming for a government post
Check what you may qualify for
Enter your SPM grades and see which routes and programmes you may qualify for. An estimate to plan with, not an offer.
How to get here
Post-SPM pathways with programmes in this career's fields. Tap one to see real programmes and entry requirements.
Related careers
If this interests you, these are worth a look too.
About this information
This describes what the job involves. Pay, demand and entry routes differ in Malaysia, so check the Pathways and Programmes pages for local requirements.
O*NET occupation: Healthcare Social Workers
Job responsibilities, knowledge areas and work context from O*NET 30.3, US Department of Labor, used under CC BY 4.0. onetcenter.org