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. 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. Basic Requirements: Citizenship: Be a citizen of the United States. (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/. 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: (a) 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. Preferred Experience: Experience working independently and employing critical thinking. Experience prioritizing multiple tasks and meeting deadlines. 2 years of experience providing case management services, coordinating community based referrals, crisis management and creating psychosocial treatment plans. Experience with addressing complex psychosocial issues of diverse populations including chronic illness, aging, disability, coping, grief, family dynamics and caregiver burden. Medical outpatient and/or inpatient experience and experience working with a medical interdisciplinary team. Experience in completing psychosocial assessments and addressing social work needs in the home setting. Advanced practice level social workers must be licensed or certified by a state at the advanced practice level which includes 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. All states except California use a series of licensure exams administered by the Association of Social Work Boards. Information can be found at https://www.aswb.org/. 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: Light Lifting (20 - 11 lbs. occasionally; 10 lbs. or less frequently); Light Carrying (20 - 11 lbs. occasionally; 10 lbs. or less frequently); Straight Pulling (up to 1 hour); Pushing (1 - 2 hours); Reaching above shoulder; frequent keyboarding (4-7 hours per day); Sitting (4-7 hours per day); Walking (up to 3 hours); Standing (up to 3 hours); Repeated bending (up to 1 hour); Ability for rapid mental and muscular coordination simultaneously; Correctable near sited and far sited Vision; Hearing (aid permitted). Requires daily travel into the community and the ability to get in and out of a government vehicle several times a day. ["Social Work: vacareers.va.gov/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/Total-Rewards-of-a-Social-Worker-Career-Flyer.pdf The Primary Purpose of the Position is: To provide direct services for Veterans and their families enrolled in the Home Based Primary Care (HBPC) Program. The primary duties of the incumbent will be to provide direct services to Veterans and their families, in the Veterans home, that are enrolled in the HBPC Program. Duties includes, but are not limited to: Provides crisis management and develops psychosocial treatment plans in coordination with interdisciplinary team members, including goals for psychosocial clinical treatment. Make home visits to the Veterans primary residence, including but not limited to, home, assisted living facility, Medical Foster Home, or group home to complete screenings, assessments and/or to address any needs that are identified. Establishes and maintains effective relationships with Veterans and their families/and or caregiver. Independently concludes the appropriate action, even in instances where actions can have serious impact on the life of the Veteran. Finds a suitable means of treatment to help Veterans and/or significant others cope with stressful situations. Adjusts the psychosocial treatment plans and interventions based on changing needs and responses to interventions as needed. Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m; alternative tours available Recruitment Incentive (Sign-on Bonus): Not Authorized EDRP Authorized: Contact VISN17EDRP2@va.gov, the EDRP Coordinator for questions/assistance. Learn more Permanent Change of Station (Relocation Assistance): Not Authorized 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) Selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual, based on prior [work experience] or military service experience. 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) Telework: Regular and Recurring Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Functional Statement #: 000000 Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized"]
The Veterans Health Administration (VHA) is the largest integrated health care system in the United States, providing care at 1,321 health care facilities, including 172 VA Medical Centers and 1,138 outpatient sites of care of varying complexity (VHA outpatient clinics) to over 9 million Veterans enrolled in the VA health care program. VHA Medical Centers provide a wide range of services including traditional hospital-based services such as surgery, critical care, mental health, orthopedics, pharmacy, radiology and physical therapy. In addition, most of our medical centers offer additional medical and surgical specialty services including audiology & speech pathology, dermatology, dental, geriatrics, neurology, oncology, podiatry, prosthetics, urology, and vision care. Some medical centers also offer advanced services such as organ transplants and plastic surgery.
