Summary

This Senior Social Worker is assigned primarily to the Emergency Department (ED) to provide direct services for adult Veterans and their families who present for services. This incumbent will also provide off-tour mental health coverage - collaborates with ED staff - the triage officer - and the on-call psychiatrist regarding assessments - disposition - and referrals for ED patients.

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
• 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)
• GS-12 Senior Social Worker 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: (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 in an Emergency room
• Experience doing suicide risks assessments and safety plans
• Experience with mental health holds and placements in psychiatric hospitals
• Reference: For more information on this qualification standard - please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/
• Physical Requirements: Work - divided between office and clinical settings - is primarily sedentary
• May require prolonged standing - moderate walking - and manual dexterity
• Requires carrying light items - such as books - files - or laptop computer.

Duties

• Total-Rewards-of-an-Allied-Health-VA-Career-Brochure.pdf Social Work: vacareers.va.gov/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/Total-Rewards-of-a-Social-Worker-Career-Flyer.pdf Duties include but are not limited to the following: Provides suicide risk assessments for those patients presenting in the ED for emotional issues
• Collaborates with the on- call psychiatrist by phone - when appropriate - for consultation regarding treatment and disposition for patients in the ED
• Involved in assisting with physician holds and coordinates placement for these patients through collaboration with mobile crisis - Ada County Court - the receiving facility - and the ED physician
• Completes suicide behavior reports for veterans who present with recent suicide attempts
• Provides family comfort/care for distraught family members who have brought the veteran in to the ED
• They provide on the job mental health training for medical students - residents and staff in the ED
• Assists in forming discharge plans for: veterans with complex/difficult dispositions - for suicide risk patients - patients who are intoxicated - impaired or undergoing detox - adult protection issues - skilled nursing home facilities placements - home-care referrals - homeless patients - and general medical or behavioral health social work discharges that involve follow up with case management - family/care-giver advice - or community resources
• Provides individual brief therapy - crisis management - family consultation - and advanced level case management interventions used in the treatment of veterans with polytrauma injuries - spinal cord injuries - traumatic brain injuries - visual impairment - serious mental illness (SM!) - addictions - and other serious disorders both physical and emotional
• Performs case finding functions and outreach - identifying and screening patients for psychosocial needs
• Has working knowledge and experience in use of medical and mental health diagnoses - disabilities - and treatment procedures
• 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
• Incumbent can independently work with patients and families who are experiencing a variety of psychiatric - medical and social problems
• 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
• Ability to evaluate incumbent's own practice through professional peer review - case conferences - and other organizational means
• Incumbent can communicate effectively - both orally and in writing - with people from varied backgrounds
• General knowledge of veterans' benefits and services relating to special programs - service ­connected compensation - non-service-connected pension
• Facilitates referrals based up veterans needs and eligibility
• Meet the needs of customers while supporting VA missions
• Consistently communicates and treats customers (veterans - their representatives - visitors - and all VA staff) in a courteous - tactful - and respectful manner
• Incumbent can provide the customer with consistent information according to established policies and procedures
• Work Schedule: Swing Shift- First Week: Monday- 3:30pm to 12:00am - Tuesday-Thursday 11:30am to 12:00am
• Second Week: Monday- Wednesday 11:30am to 12:00am
• Compressed/Flexible: Available Recruitment Incentive (Sign-on Bonus): Not Authorized Pay: Competitive salary and regular salary increases When setting pay - a higher step rate of the appropriate grade may be determined after consideration of existing pay - higher or unique qualifications - or special needs of the VA (Above Minimum Rate of the Grade)
• 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: Not available Virtual: This is not a virtual position
• Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized