Senior Social Worker

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. 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: The basic requirements for employment as a VHA social worker are prescribed by statute in 38 U.S.C. § 7402(b)(9) - as amended by section 205 of Public Law 106-419 - enacted November 1 - 2000 To qualify for appointment as a social worker in VHA - all applicants must meet the following: Citizenship Be a citizen of the United States (Non-citizens may be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with chapter 3 - section A - paragraph 3g this part) 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 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 Grandfathering Provision The following is the standard grandfathering policy for all title 38 hybrid qualification standards Please carefully review the qualification standard to determine the specific education and/or licensure/certification/registration requirements that apply to this occupation 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) Grade Determinations: Senior Social Worker - GS-12 (1) 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 (2) 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 (3) 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
• 4) Assignments

For all assignments above the full performance level - the higher-level duties must consist of significant scope - complexity (difficulty) - and variety and be performed by the incumbent at least 25% of the time Senior social workers are licensed or certified to independently practice social work at an advanced level Senior social workers typically practice in a major program area such as but not limited to: Polytrauma Rehabilitation Center or Polytrauma Network Site a Spinal Cord Injury Rehabilitation Center - or a national VHA referral center - such as a national Center for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder or a national Transplant Center - or other program areas of equivalent scope and complexity The senior social worker may be assigned administrative responsibility for clinical program development and is accountable for clinical program effectiveness and modification of service patterns Assignments include clinical settings where they have limited access to onsite supervision such as CBOCs or satellite outpatient clinics The senior social worker collaborates with the other members of the treatment team in the provision of comprehensive health care services to Veterans - ensures equity of access - service - and benefits to this population - ensures the care provided is of the highest quality The senior social worker provides leadership - direction - orientation - coaching - in-service training - staff development - and continuing education programs for assigned social work staff They serve on committees - work groups - and task forces at the facility - VISN and national level - or in the community as deemed appropriate by the supervisor - Social Work Executive or Chief of Social Work Services This assignment is to be relatively few in number based on the size of the facility/service and applying sound position management This assignment must represent substantial additional responsibility over and above that required at the full performance grade level and cannot be used as the full performance level of this occupation Preferred Experience: Includes advanced clinical work with individuals living with serious mental illness - particularly in community-based or recovery-oriented settings Candidates should demonstrate proficiency in evidence-based practices - such as Social Skills Training (SST) - Motivational Interviewing - and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) Experience with Assertive Community Treatment (ACT) principles - interdisciplinary team collaboration - Prolonged Exposure (PE) - Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT) and intensive case management is highly desirable Additional preferred qualifications include prior experience supervising or mentoring social workers - participation in program development - and leadership in quality improvement initiatives Reference: For more information on this qualification standard - please visit The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-12 Physical Requirements: Light Lifting (15 lbs and under) Light Carrying (15 lbs and under) Both hands required Ability for rapid mental and muscular coordination simultaneously Near vision correctable at 13" to 16" Far vision correctable in one eye to 20/20 and to 20/40 in the other Hearing (aid permitted) emotional and mental stability. Duties Major Duties: This Senior Social Worker PTSD Clinical Team (PCT) has experience that demonstrates possession of advanced practice skills and judgment At least two years should be in an area of specialized social work practice The incumbent is licensed or certified by a state area of specialized social work practice The incumbent is licensed or certified by a state at the advanced practice level which included an ASWB advanced generalist or clinical examination - unless they are grandfathered by the state in which they are licensed to practice at the advance practice level The Senior Social Worker 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 The advanced practice social worker can be further differentiated from the independent practice social worker by incumbent ability to expand clinical knowledge in the profession - provide consultation and guidance to colleagues - role model effective social work practice skills - teach or provide orientation to less experienced social workers - develop innovations in practice interventions - and provide clinical supervision for social work licensure or certification The Social Worker independently provides clinical psychosocial and case management services to eligible Veterans and their family members to meet biological - psychological - social - and environmental needs Veterans treated come primarily from the John J Pershing catchment area Their health care and psychosocial problems and needs are complex and require a high degree of clinical oversight and creative problem solving Services are provided in the John J Pershing VAMC and in the community The incumbent is required to interact not only with the patient but also family - significant others - community agencies - and other staff a Interviews Clients and Conducts Psychosocial Assessments Interviews Veterans and their family members/significant others to establish facts about the Veteran's situation - presenting problems and their causes - and the impact of such problems on the Veteran's functioning #J-18808-Ljbffr Direct Jobs