The duties of this position are in support of the mission and goals of Cascade Life Alliance (CLA). This dual-focused role ensures bereavement support to families navigating the loss of a loved one and fosters a supportive environment for OPO staff needing to process the emotional impact of donation cases. The Aftercare Coordinator is critical to supporting the holistic well-being of donor families and OPO staff ensuring that all involved in the donation process feel valued, supported and equipped to navigate the complexities of loss.

This position ensures consistent and timely outreach to newly bereaved families of CLA organ donors by providing compassionate, comprehensive support. This includes but is not limited to customized outcome resources, referrals to aftercare support/bereavement groups, ongoing communication, education and information sharing, and organizing memorial events, support groups, and recognition ceremonies. Additionally, this position also provides compassionate care and resources to OPO staff needing to debrief and process the emotional impact of specific donation cases. This role requires the ability to build rapport quickly, navigate sensitive situations, and balance organizational priorities while maintaining professionalism and clear boundaries.

By serving as a vital link for donor families in their continuum of care after donation and fostering emotional resilience among OPO staff, the Aftercare Coordinator ensures outstanding support for families while promoting the self-care essential to preventing staff burnout.

Donor Family Connection and Outreach

• Develop and maintain individualized aftercare plans for donor families regardless of donation outcome, including initial contact following conclusion of organ donation case with outcome information and the positive impact of donation, post-donation care packages, follow-up calls/correspondence, and referrals to grief or local support resources
• Grief Support: Offer emotional support to families via phone or written communication, address any concerns, and provide direction to resources for navigating the grieving process
• Request, track, document, and follow recipient transplant outcome details for all CLA donor patients
• Create and distribute personalized correspondence such as anniversary mailings, donor recognition materials, family newsletters, feedback surveys, etc.
• Facilitate, track, and distribute all correspondence between donor families and recipients, including providing updates about the impact of a loved one’s donation as requested while preserving confidentiality and regulatory requirements
• Organize and facilitate all remembrance events and family support initiatives for honoring donors and their families.
• Monitor donor family social media groups, engage with content, and support families in sharing their stories
• Develop and maintain donor family volunteer program to serve and support CLA donor family projects and CLA community outreach team.

OPO Staff Support and Debriefing

• Facilitate debriefing with OPO staff involved in challenging donation cases including somatic processing to resolve symptoms of stress
• Provide education to staff regarding trauma, vicarious trauma and vicarious resilience
• Collaborate with OHSU to develop workshops and mental health resources for staff
• Promote culture of self-care within the organization by encouraging open dialogue and peer support
• Act as a confidential resource for team members experiencing distress following donation cases

Administrative and Program Development

• In collaboration with donation partners, develop and implement standardized calendar of family support events throughout the year
• May include but is not limited to: Family zoom meetings, family coffee talks, writing to recipient workshops, family volunteer events, family picnics, specific events to hold space for grief during the holidays,
• Develop and implement the monitoring of key aftercare processes (including those that can be automated): tracking system for recipient follow up, management of pending correspondence, outcome letter drafting/editing system
• Data collection and process improvement
• Maintain in-depth knowledge and understanding of best practices in grief support, trauma-informed care, and wellness programming to enhance the effectiveness of aftercare initiatives
• Develop connections to increase recipient engagement: transplant center collaboration, writing workshops etc.

Other duties as assigned

Education:

• Master’s degree in social services or equivalent (Licensed Master of Social Work, LMSW)
  

Experience:

• Minimum 4 years’ experience in counseling, grief counseling, trauma-informed care or a related field.
• Crisis intervention skills, and a demonstrated ability to establish boundaries and refer to other resources as necessary
• Knowledge and understanding of diverse cultures and processing of trauma and grief
• Must have a valid driver’s license and access to a vehicle 

Job Related Knowledge, Skills and Abilities (Competencies):

• Must be compassionate, conscientious, open minded, and ethical with strong interpersonal skills to effectively deal
  with conflict resolution, donor families in crisis, and medical professionals with frequent exposure to trauma and potential for compassion fatigue
• Ability to persist in situations dealing with intense emotions, diverse cultures and interpersonal dynamics daily.
• Flexibility with unpredictable work schedule, ability to flex schedule outside traditional work week on occasion.
• Ability to work both independently and as a team participant.
• Self-starter that is resilient and has a tolerance for ambiguity.
• Socially intuitive, self-aware, and detail oriented.
• Must be a clear, thorough, and sensitive communicator, both written and verbally, with ability to adjust information and style according to the audience.
• Must have operating computer knowledge and minimally basic skills in Outlook, Word, Excel, and other comparable software programs. 

• Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW)
• One or more years working in OPO family support, healthcare or hospice settings
• Bi-lingual, preferably Spanish speaking

Mostly standard Monday through Friday 8:30-4:30 business hours with occasional need and opportunity to
flex hours for work on evenings and weekends as needed for pre-scheduled events.

Oregon Health & Science University values a diverse and culturally competent workforce. We are proud of our commitment to being an equal opportunity, affirmative action organization that does not discriminate against applicants on the basis of any protected class status, including disability status and protected veteran status. Individuals with diverse backgrounds and those who promote diversity and a culture of inclusion are encouraged to apply. To request reasonable accommodation contact the Affirmative Action and Equal Opportunity Department at 503-494-5148 or aaeo@ohsu.edu.