Summary

The Senior Social Worker provides veterans high quality case management - clinical treatment - advocacy - and to coordinate linkage with appropriate VA and community service providers/agencies as needed by the client.

Qualifications

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
• 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/
• Physical Requirements
• See VA Directive and Handbook 5019 - Employee Occupational Health Services
• English Language Proficiency
• Candidates must be proficient in spoken and written English to be appointed as authorized by 38 U.S.C. § 7403(f)
• 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: 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
• Preferred Experience: Preferred 2+ experience in or with nursing home or personal care home level of care hospice - case management - end of life - discharge and rehabilitation planning - engagement with family systems - and ability to work with a team and autonomously
• 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: The incumbent must be in overall good health - able to sit at a desk working at a computer - engage in light to moderate physical activity including sitting - walking - bending - and carrying supplies
• The incumbent must be able to perform primarily light and sedentary duties with occasionally moderate physical demands with reasonable accommodation if necessary - without endangering the health and safety of the Social Worker or others
• Position requires walking throughout the clinic and/or Medical Center - standing for extended periods of time - and involves sitting at a computer and in counsel and consultation with Veterans and interdisciplinary teams
• Position may require occasional travel from Pittsburgh VA Medical Center-University Drive - Pittsburgh PA to Westmoreland County VA Clinic- Greensburg - PA
• Valid driver license required.

Duties

• VA Careers - Social Work: https://youtube.com/embed/enRhz_ua_UU Duties include but not limited to: Assure monthly follow-up and initial visits to veterans are completed as required by the programs Develop an assessment of the veteran in collaboration with the interdisciplinary referring treatment team - the veteran - family members and significant others - whenever possible Contribute to developing the treatment plan - and assistant with goal achievement with the veteran/family in collaboration with the Contract Nursing Home program (CNH) and the Community Residential Care program (CRC) team members and community facilities Serve as subject matter expert on VA and/or community resources Collaborate with other service providers in reassessing the veteran's needs for non-institutional - institutional services/programs and entitlements Develop resource file of VA and community social service programs and will refer the veteran to needed services Provide education related to VA and community resources - entitlements - Advance Directives/Living Will and will refer veterans/families to the appropriate interdisciplinary team member for identified health education needs Coordinate of the referrals of non-institutional services such as Home-Based Primary Care (HBPC) - Care Coordination/Home Telehealth (CCHT) - Homemaker and Home Health Aid Care (HHHA) - skilled and non-skilled homecare services in collaboration with the interdisciplinary treatment team members Coordinate referrals of institutional placements in Adult Homes - Assisted Living Programs - CNH and the CRC - or VA Community Living Center Provide the veterans and their caregivers with ongoing supportive counseling Attend all meetings (weekly interdisciplinary treatment team meetings - Social Work staff meetings - and committee meetings) as appropriate and perform other duties as required Collaborate in the performance improvement processes and comply with performance measures as required by the VA for their specific population and/or program Work Schedule: Monday-Friday - 8:00am - 4:30pm Telework: Not Available Virtual: This is not a virtual position
• Functional Statement #: 000000 Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized