Summary

This position is eligible for the Education Debt Reduction Program (EDRP) - a student loan payment reimbursement program. You must meet specific individual eligibility requirements in accordance with VHA policy and submit your EDRP application within four months of appointment. Program Approval - award amount (up to $200 -000) and eligibility period (one to five years) are determined by the VHA Education Loan Repayment Services program office after complete review of the EDRP application.

Qualifications

Basic Requirements:

• United States Citizenship: Non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy
• Education: Have a master's degree in social work from a school of social work fully accredited by the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE)
• Graduates of schools of social work that are in candidacy status do not meet this requirement until the School of Social Work is fully accredited
• A doctoral degree in social work may not be substituted for the master's degree in social work
• Verification of the degree can be made by going to http://www.cswe.org/Accreditation to verify that the social work degree meets the accreditation standards for a masters of social work
• English Language Proficiency: Candidates must be proficient in spoken and written English to be appointed as authorized by 38 U.S.C. § 7403(f)
• Grade Determinations - Senior Social Worker GS-12: Experience/Education: The candidate must have at least two years of experience post advanced practice clinical licensure and should be in a specialized area of social work practice of which - one year must be equivalent to the GS-11 grade level
• Senior social workers have experience that demonstrates possession of advanced practice skills and judgment
• Senior social workers are experts in their specialized area of practice
• Senior social workers may have certification or other post-masters training from a nationally recognized professional organization or university that includes a defined curriculum/course of study and internship or equivalent supervised professional experience in a specialty
• Licensure/Certification: Senior social workers must be licensed or certified by a state at the advanced practice level which included an advanced generalist or clinical examination - unless they are grandfathered by the state in which they are licensed to practice at the advanced practice level (except for licenses issued in California - which administers its own clinical examination for advanced practice) and they must be able to provide supervision for licensure
• Demonstrated Knowledge - Skills - and Abilities: In addition to the experience above - candidates must demonstrate all of the following KSAs: Skill in a range of specialized interventions and treatment modalities used in specialty treatment programs or with special patient populations
• This includes individual - group - and/or family counseling or psychotherapy and advanced level psychosocial and/or case management
• Ability to incorporate complex multiple causation in differential diagnosis and treatment within approved clinical privileges or scope of practice
• Knowledge in developing and implementing methods for measuring effectiveness of social work practice and services in the specialty area - utilizing outcome evaluations to improve treatment services and to design system changes
• Ability to provide specialized consultation to colleagues and students on the psychosocial treatment of patients in the service delivery area - as well as role modeling effective social work practice skills
• Ability to expand clinical knowledge in the social work profession - and to write policies - procedures - and/or practice guidelines pertaining to the service delivery area
• Reference: For more information on this qualification standard - please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/.The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-12
• Physical Requirements: See VA Directive and Handbook 5019 - Employee Occupational Health Services.

Duties

• The Senior Social Worker is located within the Mental Health Service Line with primary assignment to provide patient care in the Mental Health Clinics in CBOCs and Dayton locations
• Primary work site would be within the CBOC work settings
• Duties include - but are not limited to: Independently performs case finding functions and outreach - identifying and screening patients for psychosocial needs
• Possesses advanced knowledge and abilities to independently implement treatment - provide counseling or psychotherapy for individuals - families and groups using evidence-based treatments for mental health disorders
• Must be trained in evidence-based psychotherapies (i.e
• Cognitive Behavioral Therapy - Interpersonal Therapy - Acceptance and Commitment Therapy etc.) and demonstrate competence within these modalities
• Independently conducts psychosocial assessments including suicide prevention related services for treatment planning and interventions related to mental health conditions
• Develops treatment plans in collaboration with the veteran/family and with the BHIP treatment team
• Engages in measurement-based care to facilitate optimal treatment outcomes
• Possesses the skills to offer psychosocial interventions and to measure outcomes of interventions
• Provides clinical services including - but not limited to - assessment - individual and group therapy - psychoeducation - and case management services to veterans in the assigned work area(s) at the Dayton VAMC Mental Health Clinics
• Knowledge of the principles and theoretical concepts of the practice of clinical social work at the advanced practice level is required
• Keeps up to date on new findings - trends - and treatment techniques pertinent to their area of social work practice
• Independently provides case management and service coordination for Veterans as assigned to include facilitating admissions to acute psychiatric care - treatment planning - discharge planning - and post-discharge engagement
• Coordinates community-based services - including information and referral for additional services from other VA programs - other government programs - and community agency programs
• Required to have knowledge of Veterans community programs and resources and interact not only with the Veteran but also with family and significant others - when indicated - BHIP team members - other VA staff - and community organizations and social service agencies
• Independently identifies high-risk patients and provides clinically indicated intervention case management services
• Provides crisis intervention services - seeking to address the cause as well as the presenting complaint - coordinates family conferences and serves as liaison to family/support as clinically indicated
• Has working knowledge and experience in intersection of medical and mental health diagnoses - disabilities - and treatment procedures to align treatment plans and interventions appropriately
• This includes acute - chronic and traumatic illnesses/injuries - common medications and their effects/side effects - and medical terminology
• Establishes and maintains effective therapeutic relationships with veterans and their families
• Independently works with patients and families who are experiencing a variety of psychiatric - medical and social problems utilizing individual - group and family counseling and therapy skills
• Independently provides consultation services to other staff regarding the psychosocial needs of veterans and the impact of psychosocial problems on health care and adherence to treatment plan
• Performs other duties as required
• Work Schedule: 8am to 4:30pm Monday thru Friday Recruitment Incentive (Sign-on Bonus): Not authorized Permanent Change of Station (Relocation Assistance): Not authorized EDRP Authorized: Former EDRP participants ineligible to apply for incentive
• Contact VHA.ELRSProgramSupport@va.gov - the EDRP Coordinator - for questions/assistance
• Learn more Pay: Competitive salary and regular salary increases Paid Time Off: 37-50 days of annual paid time offer per year (13-26 days of annual leave - 13 days of sick leave - 11 paid Federal holidays per year) Parental Leave: After 12 months of employment - up to 12 weeks of paid parental leave in connection with the birth - adoption - or foster care placement of a child
• Child Care Subsidy: After 60 days of employment - full time employees with a total family income below $144 -000 may be eligible for a childcare subsidy up to 25% of total eligible childcare costs for eligible children up to the monthly maximum of $416.66
• Retirement: Traditional federal pension (5 years vesting) and federal 401K with up to 5% in contributions by VA Insurance: Federal health/vision/dental/term life/long-term care (many federal insurance programs can be carried into retirement) Virtual: This is not a virtual position
• Functional Statement #: 93984-0 Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not authorized Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional