Social Worker III - Adult Services

Salary : $48,428.00 Annually
Location : Columbus
Job Type: Full-Time Regular
Job Number: 202300232
Department: HHSA
Division: HHSA - Social Services
Opening Date: 07/02/2026
Closing Date: 8/10/2026 11:59 PM Eastern

Description
General Statement of Duties

This position will service the Polk County Polk County Health and Human Services Agency (HHSA) divisions of social services. The agency is seeking a unique individual who has a passion for working with at-risk adults, working with a broad age range of adults, conducting outreach efforts in the community, provide social work services, and protective services for adults. The selected candidate will promote independence; and enhance the dignity of disabled and elderly adults and their families in Polk County. These services are provided in the least intrusive and most productive manner.

We have an innovative model of service delivery that promotes a comprehensive team approach to providing quality service to our community. The selected candidate will be expected coordinate with community partners and HHSA staff on cross functional programming activities.

Examples of Duties
Duties and Responsibilities

• GUARDIANSHIP SERVICES
  • Assessing an individual's need for guardianship
  • Locating the appropriate person(s) to serve as guardian(s)
  • Petitioning or assisting the individual's family for the adjudication of incompetence and the appointment of a guardian
  • Ongoing casework when the agency director has been appointed as guardian
• PROTECTIVE SERVICES FOR ADULTS
  • Intake -- Receive and Document allegations that a disabled or elderly adult has been abused, neglected or exploited and is in need of protective services
  • Evaluation - Determine whether an adult is disabled, has been abused, neglected or exploited and is in need of protective services; and assess what services are needed to prevent further mistreatment
  • Mobilize Services - Provide services to the disabled adult when a case has been substantiated
• OTHER ADULT SERVICES
  • Conducting social work intervention services which, in addition to core services listed above protect and promote the welfare of disabled and elderly adults. The primary elements of the duties and responsibilities of each service are defined by law and policy. These services include but are not limited to the following:
    • Adult Day Care
    • Adult Placement
    • Individual and Family Adjustment
    • Representative Payee
    • Special Assistance In-Home
    • In-Home Aide
• Adult Home Specialist
  • The primary elements of the duties and responsibilities of the Adult Home Specialist are defined by law and policy and include but are not limited to the following:
  • Assist potential adult care homeowners with the Initial Licensure Process
  • Monitor and Assess licensed adult care facilities
  • Evaluate Incident Reports
  • Conduct Complaint Investigations
  • Complete Corrective Action Process
  • Initiate Negative Licensure Action & Administrative Penalties
  • Investigate Unlicensed Facilities
• Other duties will be assigned and may include but not be limited to participation in community outreach and educational efforts and as a member of various agency workgroups.

• All Polk County HHSA may be called upon to perform work during emergency or disaster situations including but not limited to staffing shelters overnight. This service, if required, will take precedence over duties described in this position description.

Supplemental Information
Knowledge, Skills and Abilities

• Good work ethic
• High level of initiative to learn job responsibilities
• Flexibility within established schedules
• Ability to function in highly stressful circumstances
• Ability to maintain a high level of professionalism and to conduct business in an ethical manner at all times
• Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships with administrative superiors, co-workers, and with community, social and religious organizations by utilizing the Six Principles of Partnership
• Basic workable understanding of social work theory, techniques and practices, individual and group behavior, social problems, medical and mental illness, family dynamics, coping behavior, crisis intervention, and treatment of various medical and mental diseases and social issues.
• Social work principles, techniques and practices and their applications to complex casework, treatment, and investigation of abuse or neglect of children
• Laws, policies and procedures affecting the provision of Adult Protective Services, Guardianship Services, Adult Home Monitoring Services and other Adult Services
• Specialized needs of families and adults served within Adult Protective and Guardianship services
• Governmental and private organizations and resources in the community
• Racial, ethnic and other cultural groups in society - their values and life-styles
• Theories and techniques of planned change
• Social and environmental factors affecting clients to be served
• Emotional process of separation, attachment and reattachment
• Listening to others with understanding purpose
• Eliciting information and in assembling relevant facts to prepare a social history, assessment and report
• Creating and maintaining professional, helping relationships and in using oneself in relationships
• Observing and interpreting verbal and nonverbal behavior and in using a knowledge of personality theory and diagnostic methods
• Engaging clients in efforts to resolve their own problems and in gaining trust
• Discussing sensitive emotional subjects in a non-threatening, supportive manner
• Creating innovative solutions to clients' needs
• Determining the need to end therapeutic relationship and how to do so
• Interpreting the findings of research studies and professional literature
• Work effectively as a team contributor on all assignments
• Work independently and prioritize work, as well as schedule effectively
• Speak and write clearly
• Teach others
• Respond supportively in emotion-laden or crisis situations
• Interpret complex psychosocial phenomena
• Organize a work load to meet designated responsibilities
• Identify and obtain resources needed to assist others
• Assess one's performance and feelings, and to use help or consultation
• Participate in and lead group activities
• Function under stress
• Deal with conflict situations or contentious personalities
• Relate social and psychological theory to practice situations
• Identify the information necessary to solve a problem
• Offer supportive services in the separation, detachment and reattachment process

Other Position Characteristics

• Accuracy Required in Work:

A high degree of accuracy is required in carrying out all duties assigned to this position. Interviewing, receiving, and interpreting information and communicating with adults, families and professionals require the highest degree of accuracy and the worker must be able to produce and provide substantial documentation for future reference as well as court evidence. Decisions affect adults and their families and are often made under stressful and sometimes dangerous situations. Many decisions must be made immediately or with little time for consultation.

• Consequence of Error:

Assessments, interviews and service treatment decisions affect the safety and well-being of adults in abuse, neglect, exploitation and placement situations. An error in assessing and evaluating risk or failure to follow-through on case management visits, remove an adult or to monitor treatment outcomes could result in severe injury, neglect, exploitation or adult fatality. Errors in evaluation or intervention could result in clients provoked to anger resulting in risk to the worker and further stress to the family.

• Instructions Provided to Employee:

This worker will be provided opportunity and is required to attend training mandated and provided by the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services Aging and Adult Services and other optional training opportunities. The assigned supervisor is available to instruct as needed at any time. Decisions involving disruption of a family or the safety of an adult are jointly made when possible. Regular unit meetings and supervisor / staff meetings provide instruction and case review.

• Guides, Regulations, Policies and References Used by Employee:

General Statutes and Service Program policy and guidelines provided by the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services Aging and Adult Services are the major source of policy guidelines used by the employee in carrying out duties and responsibilities. Agency and County policies apply to the position. Media resource and reference materials are also available.

• Supervision Received by Employee:

This employee is supervised by one of the Social Work Services Supervisors. Supervision is provided through supervisory conferences and unit meetings. Supervision of employee performance in specific case decisions is on-going as needed. The Agency utilizes Performance Evaluations at intervals of two, four and six months for new employees to the agency or position and then yearly thereafter. As requested, the Agency also complies with County Evaluations. As appropriate, Work Development and / or Improvement Plans are implemented with the Supervisor.

• Variety and Purpose of Personal Contacts:

This employee maintains personal contacts with disabled and elderly adults, extended family members, placement providers, a variety of medical and psychological professionals, law enforcement, legal services and social and community agencies. The main purpose is to gather and share information, to determine the extent of abuse, neglect or exploitation; to provide counseling; to arrange for services and to provide expert opinions to legal officials.

• Physical Effort:

Employee must be physically able to access adults and families in various locations, and to visually and audibly complete tasks. Physical effort to do this job is minimal; however, it could require some lifting. Lifting suitcases or boxes containing personal belongings would be the most common type of physical effort. Workers must also be aware that transporting disabled and elderly adults will require that they be able to assess the individual's needs. The worker must also be able to perform manual work exerting up to 50 pounds of force occasionally and/or up to 10 pounds of force constantly to move objects in setting up environment for training.

• Work Environment and Conditions:

Employees work in the standard office environment within the DSS agency, but work often involves visiting homes, health and mental health facilities and other service agencies including but not limited to jails, and any other environment where a disabled or elderly adult suspected of being abused, neglected, or exploited is found. Worker must be prepared to travel to any location in all seasons and weather conditions. Hazards may include contact with irate clients and / or family members who may be hostile, resistant or violent. Some homes may be poorly maintained and have unsafe living conditions. Some may be in unsafe areas where the threat of violence is real or in isolated areas where access to emergency services may be difficult.

• Machines, Tools, Instruments, Equipment, and Materials Used:

Standard office equipment including telephone, computer, calculator, copier; manual material, administrative letters and memoranda, state and federal directives and forms as necessary for carrying out duties. Employee must have a valid driver's license and the use of a vehicle for situations when an agency vehicle is unavailable.

• Visual Attention, Mental Concentration, and Manipulative Skills:

Must be able to observe disabled and elderly adults for any signs of abuse / neglect; homes for appropriate safety conditions and adequate provisions for the adult's well-being, and for studying, preparation and maintenance of cases.
Mental concentration is imperative to obtain facts necessary to evaluate an adult's safety in various situations. The worker must maintain extreme concentration and focus on the current situation, as well as previously gathered information, and draw upon the worker's own knowledge of family dynamics. The interviewing process requires a multi-level awareness which is particularly difficult. This includes planning the interview and questions in a manner that will produce needed information without revealing confidential sources, remaining sensitive to the client's needs and moods, and simultaneously reviewing responses for clues and indicators of family dynamics, inconsistent information and factors of psychosocial dysfunctions.

• Safety for Others:

This employee's primary responsibility is for the physical and emotional safety of disabled and elderly adults. The emotional health and integrity of families involved need safe-guarding in order to enhance, rather than to destroy, what may be fragile. The social worker is bound by a code of confidentiality to safeguard the rights of other persons. The worker has the responsibility to exercise care for their own physical safety as well of that of others within the agency. The worker must be especially observant of conditions within the agency that could potentially affect the safety and welfare of children, elderly and disabled adults and co-workers.

• Dynamics of Work:

This position is challenging, demanding and rewarding. Policy, law and standards regularly change to improve service delivery and the protection of disabled and elderly adults. These changes must be incorporated into employee's work processes.
Typical Qualifications

Salary : $48,428