Medical social worker vs licensed social worker

The differences between medical social workers and licensed social workers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a medical social worker and a licensed social worker. Additionally, a medical social worker has an average salary of $57,093, which is higher than the $57,005 average annual salary of a licensed social worker.

The top three skills for a medical social worker include social work, patients and home health. The most important skills for a licensed social worker are social work, patients, and home health.

Medical social worker vs licensed social worker overview

	Medical Social Worker	Licensed Social Worker
Yearly salary	$57,093	$57,005
Hourly rate	$27.45	$27.41
Growth rate	9%	9%
Number of jobs	87,792	66,130
Job satisfaction	-	2
Most common degree	Master's Degree, 48%	Bachelor's Degree, 55%
Average age	45	45
Years of experience	2	2

What does a medical social worker do?

A medical social worker specializes in managing a patient's health care and welfare while communicating with guardians or families, focusing on helping them cope and understand the medical conditions and situations. They are primarily responsible for assessing a patient's condition to identify their needs, conducting interviews to gather background information regarding the patient and family, and referring any social service programs that may provide them with the assistance or help they need. Furthermore, it is crucial to identify any signs of abuse or neglect and conduct intervention procedures right away.

What does a licensed social worker do?

Licensed Social Workers are duly and legally recognized to carry out activities related to social work. They identify individuals or groups of people in need and assess what kind of help they require. They may assist these people in connecting to agencies that would cater to their needs. Licensed Social Workers also help people cope with their challenges. They are responsible for crafting treatment plans or well-being improvement plans for the individuals they help. They may also be called on during times of crisis to provide emotional support to the individuals involved.

Medical social worker vs licensed social worker salary

Medical social workers and licensed social workers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Medical Social Worker	Licensed Social Worker
Average salary	$57,093	$57,005
Salary range	Between $42,000 And $77,000	Between $41,000 And $78,000
Highest paying City	San Francisco, CA	Sacramento, CA
Highest paying state	Alaska	Alaska
Best paying company	Health Advocates	Favorite Healthcare Staffing
Best paying industry	Health Care	Health Care

Differences between medical social worker and licensed social worker education

There are a few differences between a medical social worker and a licensed social worker in terms of educational background:

	Medical Social Worker	Licensed Social Worker
Most common degree	Master's Degree, 48%	Bachelor's Degree, 55%
Most common major	Social Work	Social Work
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Pennsylvania

Medical social worker vs licensed social worker demographics

Here are the differences between medical social workers' and licensed social workers' demographics:

	Medical Social Worker	Licensed Social Worker
Average age	45	45
Gender ratio	Male, 14.3% Female, 85.7%	Male, 16.1% Female, 83.9%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 19.9% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 12.3% Asian, 3.3% White, 58.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%	Black or African American, 19.9% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 12.3% Asian, 3.3% White, 58.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%
LGBT Percentage	13%	13%

Differences between medical social worker and licensed social worker duties and responsibilities

Medical social worker example responsibilities.

Understand manage care, Medicare and Medicaid benefits.
Humanize the medical setting for elderly patients by using appropriate compassion in explaining complex information.
Provide crisis intervention, supportive counseling and trauma/grief counseling for patients and their families experiencing acute or chronic traumatic events.
Provide hands-on assessment and monitoring of suspect child abuse and neglect cases of children needing intensive rehabilitation and specialize care.
Provide social casework to patients having difficulty in social functioning, primarily as it affects their health and emotional rehabilitation.
Facilitate family counseling, crisis intervention, and assessments of specials population including geriatrics, homeless and substance abusing veterans.

Licensed social worker example responsibilities.

Foster self-determination of patients by evaluating for vocational rehabilitation that includes employment, volunteering, or education opportunities.
Evaluate and provide psychotherapy services to patients diagnose with serious and persistent mental illness and/or chemical dependency within an inpatient setting.
Provide clinical supervision to MSW students.
Supervise and train MSW students during their final concentration practicum.
Plan and facilitate trainings that address trauma exposure and the impact of compassion fatigue on administrative staff.
Provide medically relate social services to residents in a sub-acute, short term rehabilitation unit.

Medical social worker vs licensed social worker skills

Common medical social worker skills

Social Work, 24%
Patients, 19%
Home Health, 11%
MSW, 7%
Patient Care, 6%
Crisis Intervention, 3%

Common licensed social worker skills

Social Work, 29%
Patients, 13%
Home Health, 11%
Rehabilitation, 5%
Substance Abuse, 5%
Crisis Intervention, 4%

Medical Social Worker vs. similar jobs

Medical Social Worker related careers

Medical Social Worker related jobs

Medical Social Worker jobs by location

Zippia Careers
Community and Social Services Industry
Medical Social Worker
Medical Social Worker vs Licensed Social Worker

Updated January 8, 2025

Browse community and social services jobs