The HBPC Social Worker in this position requires advanced knowledge and understanding of the services and benefits available for Veterans from both federal, state and private sector resources. As an advanced practice level clinical Social Worker, the HBPC Social Worker is assigned to work with multiple VA healthcare services and with community agencies, leaders and organizations where they have no access to Social Work clinical supervision. Applicants pending the completion of educational or certification/licensure requirements may be referred and tentatively selected but may not be hired until all requirements are met. 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. English Language Proficiency. Candidates must be proficient in spoken and written English to be appointed as authorized by 38 U.S.C. § 7403. 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. Licensure. Persons hired or reassigned to social worker positions in the GS-0185 series in VHA must be licensed or certified by a state to independently practice social work at the master's degree level. Current state requirements may be found by going to http://vaww.va.gov/OHRM/T38Hybrid/. May qualify based on being covered by the Grandfathering Provision as described in the VA Qualification Standard for this occupation (only applicable to current VHA employees who are in this occupation and meet the criteria). Grade Determinations: In addition to the basic requirements for employment, the following criteria must be met when determining the grade of candidates. Senior Social Worker, GS-12 (1) 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. (2) 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. (3) 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. (b) Ability to incorporate complex multiple causation in differential diagnosis and treatment within approved clinical privileges or scope of practice. (c) 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. (d) 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. (e) 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. (4) Assignments. For all assignments above the full performance level, the higher-level duties must consist of significant scope, complexity (difficulty), and variety and be performed by the incumbent at least 25% of the time. Senior social workers are licensed or certified to independently practice social work at an advanced level. Senior social workers typically practice in a major program area such as but not limited to: Polytrauma Rehabilitation Center or Polytrauma Network Site; a Spinal Cord Injury Rehabilitation Center, or a national VHA referral center, such as a national Center for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder or a national Transplant Center, or other program areas of equivalent scope and complexity. The senior social worker may be assigned administrative responsibility for clinical program development and is accountable for clinical program effectiveness and modification of service patterns. Assignments include clinical settings where they have limited access to onsite supervision such as CBOCs or satellite outpatient clinics. The senior social worker collaborates with the other members of the treatment team in the provision of comprehensive health care services to Veterans, ensures equity of access, service, and benefits to this population, ensures the care provided is of the highest quality. The senior social worker provides leadership, direction, orientation, coaching, in-service training, staff development, and continuing education programs for assigned social work staff. They serve on committees, work groups, and task forces at the facility, VISN and national level, or in the community as deemed appropriate by the supervisor, Social Work Executive or Chief of Social Work Services. This assignment is to be relatively few in number based on the size of the facility/service and applying sound position management. This assignment must represent substantial additional responsibility over and above that required at the full performance grade level and cannot be used as the full performance level of this occupation. Preferred Experience: Preferred experience conducting home visits, demonstrated ability to perform clinical social work duties autonomously and with minimal supervision. Experience working with the geriatric population and those who have complex medical and psychosocial issues who may be homebound or bedbound. 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. ["VA Careers - Social Work: https://youtube.com/embed/enRhz_ua_UU Major duties include, but not limited to the following: The Home Based Primary Care (HBPC) Social Worker must have significant experience that demonstrates possession of advanced practice skills and judgment. The HBPC Social Worker is assigned to work with special Veteran populations consisting of highly complex health and /or mental health problems. The HBPC Social Worker primary responsibilities are to provide clinical evidence based services and interventions, Veteran and staff education on caregiver issues, community outreach, resource development, continuous quality improvement activities, and evaluation/consultation. The HBPC Social Worker in this position requires advanced knowledge and understanding of the services and benefits available for Veterans from both federal, state and private sector resources. As a Social Worker, the HBPC Social Worker will adhere to the NASW Code of Ethics, all local Social Work policies, and maintain an unrestricted, unsuspended license to practice Social Work. The HBPC Social Worker provides service to HBPC clients by acting as an integral member of an interdisciplinary team providing primary Social Work care in the home for housebound Veterans who have functional impairments of both medical and mental health chronic illnesses. The HBPC SW provides psychosocial assessments within 30 days of the patients admission to the program, health screening, care planning, in order to prevent or minimize problems that may interfere with the Veteran's ability to stay in the home. The Senior Social Worker provides the Veterans and their caregiver with ongoing clinical counseling. The Senior Social Worker coordinates with the HBPC team and community agencies to facilitate Veteran compliance with treatment plans to achieve treatment outcomes. The Senior Social Worker assesses progress toward Veteran, professional, ·and program goals in order to improve performance as evidenced by participation in team meetings, self-assessment activities, and performance improvement activities. The HBPC Social Worker will support the Home Based Primary Care Program, Hospice/Palliative Care Program and other Geriatric and Extended Care (GEC) programs as needed and may provide Social Work services to Veterans managed in these Geriatrics and Extended Care based programs. The HBPC Social Worker will act as a consultant to other team/staff members. The Senior Social Worker is under the direct supervision of the HBPC Program Director as the first line supervisor, who assumes broad oversight responsibility for the structure and functioning of the program to which the HBPC social worker is assigned and provides administrative supervision to the social worker. Work Schedule: Monday - Friday 7:30am-4:00pm, subject to change based on the needs of the agency. Telework: Available Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Functional Statement #: 593-01830-F Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized"]

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