Summary 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. Program 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. Responsibilities VA Careers - Licensed Clinical Social Worker: https://youtube.com/embed/U_xC25QsN0w Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional Triage - Social Worker may perform consult/triage duties as scheduled by the Program Manager. In addition to scheduled and unscheduled walk-in appointments for Veterans referred from Primary Care Mental Health staff, physicians in specialized clinics, other medical clinics (i.e., Alzheimer's clinic, C&L), incumbent responds to appropriate requests to perform initial assessments/open access visits of veterans. Following interviews with the Veteran, incumbent independently performs assessments, diagnoses, arranges for medication assessments or further medical evaluations with psychiatrists, coordinates care, makes referrals to VA or community resources, and recommends further treatment either within the AMHC or to other specialty clinics/inpatient units in the VA Medical center. Screening/Assessment - The social worker will complete a comprehensive intake/ psychosocial assessment of the veteran in collaboration with the interdisciplinary treatment team, the Veteran, family members and significant others as appropriate. The goal of the assessment is to highlight the veteran's strengths, limitations, and internal/external supports and service needs in order to optimize the veteran's functional status. Based upon the psychosocial assessment, the social worker will use advanced level of professional judgment and practice skills to make DSM - 5 diagnosis. The social worker demonstrates an understanding of the range of treatment and skills needed for all adult patients, including geriatric patients, related to their complex psychiatric presentation, physical limitations, psychological needs and age associated illnesses and conditions. The social worker must have an understanding of the problems of advancing age and respect for the diversification of the aging veteran population, being sensitive to human growth and development, age-appropriate needs and concerns of the geriatric Veteran and be able to provide current and advanced techniques to the treatment of this specialized veteran population. It is the responsibility of the social worker, working within the interdisciplinary treatment team to develop a treatment plan with the Veteran based on this assessment. Individual Psychotherapy and Counseling - The social worker is responsible for carrying a caseload of complex individual therapy cases for Veterans with mental health disorders, co-occurring disorders and psychosocial needs. Less complex cases are treated through psycho-educational classes. In collaboration with the Veteran, incumbent coordinates and plans treatment for each individual. Incumbent also assesses for any other needed mental health services, including psychiatric care, other specialized services, or family services, and makes referrals as needed. Psychoeducational Classes - The social worker provides psychoeducational classes for veterans as agreed upon by the social worker and the Mental Health Clinic Program Manager. These classes typically utilize cognitive behavioral treatment approaches to treat less-complex cases of depression, anxiety, anger, etc. Incumbent may also participate in creating class topics and in program planning for additional groups as well as implementing new groups as needed. Treatment Planning/Goal Setting - The social worker is responsible for collaboratively developing the treatment plan and setting achievable treatment goals with the Veterans participating in his/her individual caseload Education/Health promotion and prevention - The social worker will be able to teach and mentor staff and students in the area of Social Work practice and to provide supervision for licensure or specialty certification when applicable. The social worker also provides education related to VA and community resources, BHIP, entitlements, Advance Directives/Living Will and refers veterans to the appropriate interdisciplinary team member for identified health education needs. Work Schedule: Monday-Friday 8:00am-4:30pm, irregular hours and/or Saturday work may be required Compressed/Flexible: Available Recruitment Incentive (Sign-on Bonus): Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (Relocation Assistance): Not Authorized EDRP Authorized: Former EDRP participants ineligible to apply for incentive. Contact david.billingsleyjr@va.gov,, the EDRP Coordinator for questions/assistance. Learn more Telework: Situational (Ad Hoc) Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Functional Statement #: 635-54127-A Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized Requirements Conditions of Employment You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job. Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959. Must be proficient in written and spoken English. You may be required to serve a trial period. Subject to background/security investigation. Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements (https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/form-i-9-acceptable-documents). Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued dentification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment. Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP). 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. 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. 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. 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: 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. 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 work of the position is primarily sedentary. It may require some lifting (10-20 lbs) occasionally. Reaching above shoulder; Frequent keyboarding (4-7 hours per day); Sitting (4-7 hours per day); Walking (up to 6 hours per day); Standing (up to 8 hours per day); Infrequent climbing/descending of stairs; Some bending; Ability for rapid mental and muscular coordination simultaneously; Correctable near sighted and far-sighted vision; Hearing (Aid permitted) Education Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/. If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/. Additional Information Receiving Service Credit or Earning Annual (Vacation) Leave: Federal Employees earn annual leave at a rate (4, 6 or 8 hours per pay period) which is based on the number of years they have served as a Federal employee. Selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual, based on prior work experience or military service experience. This credited service can be used in determining the rate at which they earn annual leave. Such credit must be requested and approved prior to the appointment date and is not guaranteed. During the application process you may have an option to opt-in to make your resume available to hiring managers in the agency who have similar positions. Opting in does not impact your application for this announcement, nor does it guarantee further consideration for additional positions. This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies. This position is in the Excepted Service and does not confer competitive status. VA encourages persons with disabilities to apply. The health-related positions in VA are covered by Title 38, and are not covered by the Schedule A excepted appointment authority. If you are unable to apply online or need an alternate method to submit documents, please reach out to the Agency Contact listed in this Job Opportunity Announcement. Under the Fair Chance to Compete Act, the Department of Veterans Affairs prohibits requesting an applicant's criminal history prior to accepting a tentative job offer. For more information about the Act and the complaint process, visit Human Resources and Administration/Operations, Security, and Preparedness (HRA/OSP) at The Fair Chance Act.
