Casual Social Worker – Cardiac Rehabilitation Program

North Bay Cardiac Rehabilitation Program
North Bay, Ontario

Position: Registered Social Worker – Cardiac Rehabilitation
Engagement: Independent Contractor / Part-Time
Hours: Approximately 4–6 hours per week, with flexibility based on program and patient needs
Compensation: $50–$60 per hour, commensurate with education and experience, under an independent contractor arrangement

Position Summary

The North Bay Cardiac Rehabilitation Program is seeking a Registered Social Worker to provide services to our interdisciplinary cardiac rehabilitation program on a part-time independent contractor basis.

The Social Worker will provide focused, time-limited psychosocial support, counselling, education, and system navigation to individuals participating in cardiac rehabilitation. The role will include both individual patient consultations and the development and facilitation of group-based educational workshops addressing the psychological and social aspects of recovery following cardiovascular disease.

A cardiovascular event can create substantial psychological, social, financial, and practical challenges for patients and their families. Fear of another cardiac event, loss of confidence with exercise, difficulty adjusting to changes in health, sleep disruption, social isolation, and setbacks during recovery can all affect a patient’s ability to successfully participate in rehabilitation.

The Social Worker will help patients address these challenges while identifying barriers that may interfere with recovery, treatment adherence, exercise participation, and long-term cardiovascular health.

A major component of the role will also involve connecting patients with appropriate health, social, financial, mental-health, and community resources within North Bay and the surrounding region.

Key ResponsibilitiesIndividual Patient Consultation

- Conduct focused psychosocial assessments for patients referred by members of the cardiac rehabilitation team.
- Identify psychosocial and socioeconomic barriers affecting recovery, treatment adherence, exercise participation, and engagement in cardiac rehabilitation.
- Provide brief, solution-focused supportive counselling related to adjustment following a cardiovascular event or diagnosis.
- Support patients experiencing anxiety, fear of recurrent cardiac events, loss of confidence with physical activity, stress, changes in functional capacity, caregiver burden, or difficulty returning to usual activities.
- Help patients develop practical coping strategies following setbacks in their recovery or rehabilitation.
- Identify patients requiring more intensive psychological or psychiatric intervention and facilitate referral to appropriate community or healthcare resources.
- Support patients and families in adapting to chronic cardiovascular disease and changes in health or functional status.

Social and Community Resource Navigation

Assist patients in identifying and accessing appropriate local and regional resources, including:

- Transportation and ride-support programs
- Food security and community food programs
- Financial assistance and income-support programs
- Medication and health-related financial assistance
- Dental-care resources
- Vision care and access to glasses




- Footwear and clothing assistance programs
- Disability and employment-related resources
- Home and community care services
- Caregiver supports
- Community recreation and social-support programs
- Mental-health and counselling resources
- Other community programs that may reduce barriers to successful cardiac rehabilitation

The Social Worker will help the program develop and periodically update a practical directory of community resources available to cardiac rehabilitation patients.

Cardiac Rehabilitation Education and Workshops

An important component of the position will be developing and facilitating practical, patient-focused workshops addressing the psychological, behavioural, and social aspects of recovery from cardiovascular disease.

Workshop topics will include:

- Trauma following a cardiac event – understanding and responding to the emotional and psychological impact of a heart attack, hospitalization, cardiac procedure, or other significant cardiovascular event.
- Dealing with setbacks during recovery – helping patients manage frustration, unexpected symptoms, interruptions in rehabilitation, and changes in functional ability without abandoning longer-term recovery goals.
- Fear of exercise and return to activity – addressing anxiety about physical exertion, fear of recurrent cardiac events, loss of confidence, and gradual return to protected activity.
- Sleep hygiene – practical strategies to improve sleep quality and address the interaction between sleep, stress, recovery, and cardiovascular health.
- Mindful eating – helping patients develop greater awareness of eating behaviours, emotional triggers, hunger cues, and sustainable approaches to dietary change.
- Mindfulness – introducing practical mindfulness-based strategies for stress management, emotional regulation, and coping with chronic disease.
- Social support and connection – helping patients recognize the importance of family, peer, and community support and connecting patients with appropriate social-support programs.

Workshops should be practical, interactive, accessible, and relevant to adults recovering from cardiovascular disease. The Social Worker will have an opportunity to help refine and further develop the psychosocial education curriculum as the program expands.

Interprofessional Collaboration

The Social Worker will work collaboratively with the program’s cardiologist, nursing staff, kinesiologists, dietitian, and other members of the cardiac rehabilitation team.

Responsibilities will include:

- Participating in interdisciplinary discussion of patients with significant psychosocial or socioeconomic barriers.
- Providing recommendations regarding appropriate community resources and supports.
- Helping develop standardized referral pathways for common social and psychosocial needs.




- Communicating relevant recommendations to the clinical team while maintaining appropriate patient confidentiality.
- Contributing to the ongoing development of the cardiac rehabilitation program and its psychosocial services.

QualificationsRequired

- Bachelor or Master of Social Work from a recognized university.
- Current registration and good standing with the Ontario College of Social Workers and Social Service Workers (OCSWSSW).
- Strong knowledge of community resources, social services, and healthcare navigation.
- Excellent interpersonal, communication, organizational, and problem-solving skills.
- Ability to work effectively as part of an interdisciplinary healthcare team.
- Ability to provide both individual patient consultation and group education.

Preferred

- Master of Social Work (MSW).
- Previous experience in cardiac rehabilitation, cardiovascular care, rehabilitation medicine, chronic disease management, hospital-based social work, or ambulatory healthcare.
- Experience providing brief supportive counselling to adults living with chronic illness.
- Experience addressing health-related anxiety, adjustment to illness, caregiver stress, trauma, and social determinants of health.
- Knowledge of resources available in North Bay and Northeastern Ontario.
- Experience developing and facilitating patient education workshops.
- Training or experience in trauma-informed care.

Additional training in evidence-based trauma therapies, including EMDR, Deep Brain Reorienting Therapy, somatic therapies, or other neurobiologically informed trauma approaches, would be considered a significant asset.

Scope and Independent Contractor Arrangement

This is primarily a consultative cardiac rehabilitation role rather than a longitudinal case-management position.

The Social Worker will generally provide focused assessment, brief intervention, education, resource navigation, and referral to appropriate ongoing community services when longer-term support is required.

Services will be provided under an independent contractor arrangement rather than as an employee of North Bay Cardiology. The contractor will be responsible for their own professional obligations, applicable taxes, and other requirements associated with independent practice.

The position is expected to average approximately 4–6 hours per week, with scheduling flexibility based on program and patient needs. Hours may include a combination of scheduled cardiac rehabilitation workshops, individual patient consultations, interdisciplinary case discussion, resource development, and brief follow-up.

About the Program

The North Bay Cardiac Rehabilitation Program provides comprehensive cardiovascular rehabilitation and secondary prevention to patients from North Bay and surrounding communities.

Our interdisciplinary model combines supervised exercise, cardiovascular risk-factor management, patient education, behavioural change, nutritional support, and psychosocial care to help patients recover following cardiovascular disease and develop sustainable strategies for long-term cardiovascular health.

We are continuing to expand the program and are looking for a Social Worker interested in helping develop a practical, patient-centred psychosocial and community-resource component within cardiac rehabilitation.

Pay: $50.00-$60.00 per hour

Work Location: In person

📌 Social worker Cardiac Rehab (North Bay)
🏢 North Bay Cardiology
📍 North Bay