Social workers work closely with families and patients to evaluate and address a variety of problems, and assist in understanding and dealing with social and emotional issues of all kinds. Communication skills are essential to the job as the social worker should be able to provide education, collaborate with support groups, and offer referrals to patients. The social worker will be able to access resources and research capabilities to locate information relevant to the specific issues of the patient's situation and communicate the information in a manner that both the patient family members can comprehend. Social workers must possess excellent time management and organizational abilities to manage a caseload and adequately document the cases when patients are evaluated regularly during their care. Social workers are the patient's advocate, and will offer the patient resources to assist in dealing with their issues and adjusting to being an ordinary citizen. The requirements for education typically include the completion of a master's degree of social work (MSW) and social workers must have a license in their state where they work or be able to get a license prior to the start of their first day at working. The applicant must be capable of working with people from all walks of life and feel at ease with a wide patient base since the issues that affect patients don't discriminate in any way. The ability to communicate in other languages can be beneficial for social workers however it is not required for employment.