Career Path Guide
If you want to become a hospice coordinator, you first need to determine if this career path is a good fit for your skills, interests and personality traits. If the following description sounds like you, then you’re probably well suited for work in this field:
• You have a keen interest in improving the lives of individuals and families coping with terminal illness
• You are kind, empathetic and patient
• You are able to supervise, coordinate and evaluate volunteer services
• You are able to work as part of an interdisciplinary team
• You have an interest in analyzing the healthcare needs of patients
Below we've outlined what you'll need to begin a career as a hospice coordinator. We've also included helpful information for this career, such as job description, job duties, salary expectations, a list of possible employers and much more!
Educational Requirements
The educational requirements for becoming a hospice coordinator vary from employer to employer, and job to job. Many employers list a 2-year degree or diploma in a related field as their requirements, while others list only a high school diploma.
Others may require that you have a bachelor’s or master’s degree in Social Work, Psychology, Mental Health counseling, Nursing, or Pastoral Counseling, whereas some may require that you are a Registered Nurse (RN) or a License Practical Nurse (LPN) in order to work as a hospice coordinator.
General Job Description
Hospice coordinators (also known as hospice care coordinators, hospice volunteer coordinators and bereavement coordinators) are responsible for managing the day-to-day operations of an organization’s Hospice volunteer department, which includes being the first point of contact for the volunteers.
Hospice volunteer coordinators are responsible for ensuring that patients and their families receive the best palliative care possible by hiring and training volunteers, scheduling the proper volunteers for patients, coordinating with professional health service providers (such as doctors and nurses), and providing patients and staff with bereavement counseling services.
Typical Job Duties
• Travel to locations where patients require hospice services to supervise and assist with the delivery of these services
• Plan, coordinate, and manage volunteer training and orientation programs
• Recruit, hire and train hospice workers
• Work with physicians to ensure proper medication is being administered
• Oversee and monitor patient care
• Coordinate bereavement counseling with social workers on behalf of families
• Maintain safe working environment for self, other employees, patients, visitors, and medical staff
• Provide information to individuals and community groups about hospice volunteer services
• Prepare reports for the Program Administrator as required
• Maintain volunteer database for accuracy
• Monitor the emotional state of volunteers and provide counseling as needed
• Pair the right volunteers with the needs of the families being served
• Provide direction for the volunteer and help them decide when a trained hospice health care provider should be called
Skills Needed to Be Successful
In order to be effective as a hospice coordinator, and perform your job duties with competence, you need to posses a certain set of skills, including:
• Have current driver’s license and reliable transportation to and from work site
• Excellent writing, verbal communication and presentation skills
• Able to recruit, hire, train and motivate volunteer hospice workers
• Able to organize educate and develop volunteer hospice personnel for both patient and organizational needs
• Able to supervise, coordinate and evaluate volunteer services
• Able to work as part of an interdisciplinary team
Characteristics Needed to Become a Hospice Coordinator
In order to enjoy performing the duties of a hospice coordinator, you need to have certain personality traits. Taking enjoyment from your duties as a hospice coordinator is important, as it helps you maintain a positive attitude towards your work, which usually leads to having a long and successful career.
• A keen interest in improving the lives of individuals and families coping with terminal illness
• Compassion and empathy for patients, their families and volunteers
• Wiling to consistently demonstrate a commitment to the employer’s mission and code of ethics
• A passion for high quality work
• An interest in analyzing the needs of patients
• An interest in matching volunteer resources to patient needs
• Willing to travel frequently during the workday
Hospice Coordinator Salary
Unfortunately, there is no salary information available from reputable sources for this specific occupation. We can however, get a rough idea of what workers in this field earn by looking at the salary levels of workers in closely related fields.
Hospice Coordinator Salary - United States: According to the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, American workers in the Healthcare Social Workers occupational group earn a mean annual wage of $58,470 per year (May, 2018 figures).
Salary - Canada: According to the 2016 Alberta Wage and Salary Survey (the most recent figures available at the time of writing (Sept. 25, 2019), Albertans working as part of the Community and Social Service Workers occupational group earn an overall average salary of $65,593 per year. In British Columbia, those working in that same occupational group earn an annual provincial median salary of $71,032. No similar statistics were available from reliable sources for other Canadian provinces or territories at the time of writing.
Please Note: The salary level of hospice coordinators can vary based on their level of education, their level of experience, the size and type of their employer, the region in which they work, and many other factors
Who Employs Hospice Coordinators?
Hospice coordinators are employed on a part-time, full-time or contractual basis, typically by the following types of organizations:
• Hospice organizations
• Managed care organizations
• Accountable care organizations
• Patient-centered medical home programs
• Coordinated care organizations
• Home health nursing organizations
• Community-based health organizations
Current Job Opportunities
Our job board below has "hospice coordinator" postings in Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia, when available:
Typical Work Environment
Hours: Hospice coordinators may work part-time or full-time hours, and typically work normal weekday working hours. From time to time, they may have to work during evenings, holidays and weekends in order to perform their duties.
Setting: The work setting of hospice coordinators can vary; some work mainly in a healthcare facility or an office; others work in these settings while also traveling to the homes of patients throughout the workday in order to supervise care and volunteers.
Conditions: Hospice coordinators require a great deal of patience and empathy to preform their job duties, as they must work with patients and volunteers who experience a great deal of emotional duress.
Similar Careers in Our Database
Listed below are careers in our database that are similar in nature to "hospice coordinator", as they may involve many of the same skills, competencies and responsibilities.
References
Please consult the references below to find more information on the various aspects of a career as a hospice coordinator.
Occupations in Alberta: “Community Health Nurse.” (March 31, 2018). ALIS website - Alberta Learning Information Service. Retrieved December 20, 2019.
Occupational Employment and Wages: “Healthcare Social Workers.” (March 29, 2019). Occupational Outlook Handbook - United States Bureau of Labor Statistics website. Retrieved December 20, 2019.
Explore Careers: “Social Workers.” (December 11, 2018). WorkBC website. Retrieved December 20, 2019.
Personal Care & Service Jobs: “What Does a Hospice Volunteer Coordinator Do?.” Lisa McQuerrey (n.d.) Houston Chronicle website. Retrieved December 20, 2019.
Scholarships for Becoming a Hospice Coordinator
The scholarships in our system that are relevant for becoming a hospice coordinator are all of those that can be found on our Nursing Scholarships and Psychology Scholarships pages.
Success Tip: Be sure to apply for any scholarships that you even barely qualify for, as there are millions of dollars of scholarships that go unused every year due to a lack of applicants!
Relevant Fields of Study
Studying one of the university majors listed below is an excellent starting point for getting into this line of work. Click on the links to find out what else you can do with these majors!
