Senior Social Worker

Summary This position supports the HIV and Specialty within the Social Worker Service Line at the Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center (MEDVAMC) in Houston - Texas. Summary This position supports the HIV and Specialty within the Social Worker Service Line at the Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center (MEDVAMC) in Houston - Texas. 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 Education and Experience 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 - the candidate 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: The service line would like 2-5 years medicine experience along with 2-5 years primary care experience The service line would also like Lead or Supervisory experience Reference: For more information on this qualification standard - please visit The full performance level of this vacancy is 12 Physical Requirements: Physical aspects associated with work required of this assignment are typical for this occupation - see duty section for essential duties of this position May require standing - lifting - carrying - sitting - stooping - bending - pulling - and pushing May be required to wear personal protective equipment and undergo annual TB screening or testing as conditions of employment Work Environment: Work is performed in an office/clinic setting with minimal risks that requires normal safety precautions the area is adequately lighted - heated - and ventilated However - the work environment requires someone with the ability to handle several tasks at once in sometimes stressful situations. Duties Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional The MEDVAMC - a Complexity Level 1A VHA facility - services as the primary health care provider for more than 120.000 Veterans in southeast Texas The MEDVAMC is home to a Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Clinic a Network Polytrauma Center an award-winning Cardiac and General Surgery Program a Liver Transplant Center and one of the VA's six Parkinson's disease Research - Education - and Care Centers MEDVAMC is a multi-site health care system that includes a major medical facility in Houston - TX and 11 outpatient clinics and growing in the Houston Metropolitan area MEDVAMC is an academic health care system with significant teaching and research programs The Prime Care Outpatient Clinics are part of the Medicine Care Line The clinics are designed to provide the broadest scope of health care to eligible veterans - including those from the socioeconomic and geographic origins - those seeking to maintain optimal/preventive health care - and those confronted with multiple chronic diseases Incumbent is responsible for the professional leadership and monitoring of the Social Work and Case Management services of the HIV Clinic S/he will supervise and provide program support for a Social Work Associate who is employed as a Ryan White Title Case Manager and provide professional consultation for a Master Level Social Worker S/he will be responsible for initiating - coordinating and monitoring services provided by community agencies which are made available to HIV patients S/he will provide leadership - training and education in HIV prevention and education throughout Primary Care Clinic and MEDVAMC S/he is also responsible for the providing direct patient care to veterans enrolled in the HIV Clinic and their families The incumbent will provide direct patient care to other Specialty Clinic patients and families (Cardiology - Endocrine - Gastroenterology - Pulmonary and Rheumatology) and develop programs and services to meet the Social Work needs of these patients and providers Work Schedule: 8:00 a.m to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday Subject to changed based on the needs of the facility Recruitment/Relocation Incentives (Sign-on Bonus): Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (Relocation Assistance): 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 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 Functional Statement #: 01145-F Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized #J-18808-Ljbffr U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs