SOCIAL WORKERS

Dedication Opportunity Challenge Impact Rewards

The U.S. Public Health Service (PHS), offers a variety of challenging and rewarding career opportunities for social workers in the clinical, policy, program management and research fields. Social Workers may also be assigned to programs outside the PHS such as the U.S. Coast Guard, Federal Bureau of Prisons, Immigration and Naturalization Service, Environmental Protection Agency, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Agency for International Development, State Department, and Department of Homeland Security. Assignments are made throughout the United States.

Student Programs

Graduate students in social work may obtain paid work experience in the PHS through COSTEP, the Commissioned Officer Student Training and Extern Program. Students work for 31 to 120 days. Assignment may be available in a variety of clinical, program and policy settings. Students are selected according to the training and skills of the applicant and the needs of the PHS. Students may also receive paid externships for up to 120 days through Civil Service programs.

AVAILABLE OPPORTUNITIES

Clinical

Social workers engage in a variety of psychosocial interventions with individuals, families, and groups. They also coordinate patient care with other providers, develop linkages with community agencies, and organize activities in community prevention and education. Through the clinical social work career development track, the social worker can progress to supervisory and administrative responsibilities.

One of the sites for clinical social work is the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in Bethesda, MD. Patients throughout the country are treated in the NIH Clinical Center, where state-of-the-art clinical trial treatment is developed and provided for a wide range of rare, acute, and chronic medical conditions. Social workers are an integral part of the clinical research team.

The Indian Health Service (IHS) maintains a network of hospitals and outpatient clinics that provide health care services for American Indian and Alaskan Native populations. Career opportunities for clinical social workers in IHS include medial social work, mental health care, alcoholism and substance abuse treatment, and prevention of child abuse and neglect.

Other clinical social work opportunities in the PHS include community and migrant health centers in urban and rural settings; Federal Prisons (BOP); and the Immigration and Naturalization Service.

Program Development and Management

The PHS offers a variety of opportunities in program development, coordination, and management. Social workers perform program development and coordination activities at the local level. They assess needs to identify health care delivery gaps and work with health care providers and local government officials to address these gaps. They coordinate existing services and develop new services.

On the national level social workers play an important role in developing programs to improve access to health care for minority and disadvantaged populations. The also provide management consultation and leadership in developing linkages to substance abuse treatment and social and vocational services. Accomplishments of social workers include the establishment of a national AIDS training program for substance abuse workers and planning the Surgeon General's Workshop on Drunk Driving.

In the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), social workers provide program management, specialty consultation and administrative leadership in mental health and substance abuse treatment and prevention areas. Social workers provide program development and management in the three centers-the Center for Mental Health Services, the Center for Substance Abuse Treatment and the Center for Substance Abuse Prevention, and through programs, work with States, communities, providers, consumers and families nationwide.

These programs may involve issues of improving access and quality of care, and addressing services delivery issues, often targeting special populations. 

Administration and Policy

Social workers often provide leadership in a wide variety of special initiatives and in the development of Federal policies and guidelines. They may direct and supervise programs; provide consultation on national programs, and provide policy development on issues on issues such as recruitment and education of health care professionals, or Social workers may also help plan and support the implementation of new health initiatives.

Program management positions can provide experience leading to further for involvement in other policy formulation and analysis activities. In addition, agencies outside of the PHS such as CMS, can provide additional opportunities for social workers in administration and program management.

Research

Social workers may be involved in the design and implementation of research studies which may evaluate programs, assess the effectiveness of treatment and identify, community needs and evaluate the impact of changes in public policy. Social workers also serve as members of interdisciplinary research teams examining critical public health questions. 

Eligibility Requirements

Social workers can join the PHS through the Commissioned Corps, a uniformed service consisting of health professionals and engineers, or the Civil Service, the federal civilian personnel system. Corps officers are eligible for many of the benefits that the military receives, such as 20- and 30-year retirement plans, 30 days of annual leave, health care benefits, and commissary privileges. In both cases, social workers earn competitive salaries and generous benefits. 

For an application and more information about PHS career opportunities and COSTEP, contact: the PHS Recruitment Office at 1-800-279-1605 or visit the website at www.usphs.gov.