Summary

This position is located within the Behavioral Health Service at the Mann-Grandstaff VA Medical Center in Spokane, Washington. This GS-12 Senior Licensed Clinical Social Worker serves in the role of clinical provider (25%) and as the coordinator of the Disruptive Behavior Committee (DBC 75%).

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements within 30 days of the closing date of this announcement.

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(f) 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
• COPY OF TRANSCRIPT WITH CONFER DATE REQUIRED 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/
• COPY OF CURRENT LICENSURE REQUIRED Loss of Licensure or Certification
• Once licensed or certified, social workers must maintain a full, valid, and unrestricted independent license or certification to remain qualified for employment
• Loss of licensure or certification will result in removal from the GS-0185 social worker series and may result in termination of employment
• 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: GS-12 Senior Social Worker 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: Experience working with veterans
• 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 (under 15 lbs), use of fingers, ability to see and use computer screen and mouse, hearing (aid may be permitted), working closely with others, working alone.

Duties

• The DBC recommends and implements strategies for maintaining safe and appropriate health care services for disruptive patients
• The focus is upon making behavioral threat management assessments which the DBC uses to develop recommendations for safely providing treatment to some of the most challenging patients
• Duties will include: Clinical Responsibilities (25% of time) Provide a variety of direct psychological treatment services addressing the complex psychosocial issues faced by the Veteran patients served in General Mental Health Outpatient setting
• These services include, but are not limited to intake assessment, walk-in/same-day assessment and care coordination, discharge planning, treatment plan development and implementation, follow-up/outreach to Veterans Crisis Line callers, and various treatment interventions
• Assures all high-risk patients have completed a Comprehensive Suicide Risk Evaluation and MH Suicide Safety Plan which documents Veteran-centered crisis management strategies
• Completes these plans in collaboration with the Veteran, his/her/their primary BHIP therapist or psychiatry provider, or the inpatient treatment team
• Manages Veteran crisis situations within the Behavioral Health Service outpatient MH clinic, including facilitation of referrals for psychiatric patients in crisis situations
• Facilitate utilization of resources by assessing eligibility and making referrals to a variety of VA resources and community agencies for assistance with social, emotional, financial, and physical problems
• Coordinate placements in therapeutic housing and other placement options including domiciliary, state soldier's homes, and community residential alternatives
• Provide coverage for other areas of activity within BHS or coverage due to callouts or planned leave
• Provide consultation to VAMC or community program staff regarding special problems of, and resources for, Veterans suffering from mental health related problems
• Uses word processing software to execute several office functions such as storing and retrieving electronic documents and files
• activating printers
• inserting and deleting text, formatting letters, reports, and memoranda
• and transmitting and receiving e-mail
• Disruptive Behavior Committee Coordinator (75% of time) Work closely with the WVPP to oversee the day-to-day business of the DBC, including producing agendas, minutes, and follow-up action items, as well as coordinating risk mitigation strategy recommendations and therapeutic limit-setting actions to the facility's Chief of Staff
• Conducts thorough clinical chart reviews to develop evidence-based behavioral threat assessments
• Chart reviews include clinical and administrative information from the electronic medical record (EMR) including military records (when available), criminal history, and any other legally available records to cross-check the accuracy of information, interview with the reporter of the disruptive incident and with the disruptive patient's care providers
• Schedules, organizes, and serves as the official recorder of the Disruptive Behavior Committee (DBC) monthly meetings as a mandatory duty of this position
• Manage database to record all disruptive behavior reports, completed threat assessments, DBC recommendations, patient record flags placed, and due dates for their review
• Interface with MGVAMC Police Department, Office of the Inspector General, and Coordinated Care Programs as needed to implement and/or monitor treatment plans for patients with disruptive behavior
• Serve as the facility Administrator of DBRS including, responding to notifications of new reports within 24 hours, designating DBC members to receive notifications, enter DBRS notes into the Behavioral Threat Assessment database
• Assists with recruitment, retention, and engagement of DBC members
• This may include individual meetings to review goodness-of-fit, discuss concerns, interests, questions, and progress
• Assist with re-engaging absent or non-participatory DBC members or assist with development of an exit-strategy for those members who may be experiencing burnout or loss of interest
• Collaborates closely with the Prevention and Management of Disruptive Behavior (PMDB) program staff to review effectiveness of training, provide updates on staff training, and identify training needs
• Develop and coordinate quality improvement projects around disruptive behavior
• Participate in monthly DBC Community of Practice and Violence Risk Assessment conference calls provided by the National Workplace Violence Prevention Program
• Responsible for the education, training, implementation of local and national policies, Directives, and Regulatory Requirements pertaining to disruptive behavior.