Psychologist (HPACT)

Summary

The Greater Los Angeles Health Care System (GLAHCS) is seeking a Psychologist to serve within the Mental Health service.

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:

• Citizenship
• Citizen of the United States
• Education
• The individual must meet at least one of the requirements below: Have a doctoral degree in psychology from a graduate program in psychology accredited by the American Psychological Association (APA) - the Psychological Clinical Science Accreditation System (PCSAS) - or the Canadian Psychological Association (CPA) at the time the program was completed
• The specialty area of the degree must be consistent with the assignment for which the applicant is to be employed
• There are no job assignments in VHA that require the skills of a school psychologist
• therefore - an applicant with a degree in the specialty area of school psychology is not eligible for appointment
• OR Have a doctoral degree in any area of psychology and - in addition - successfully complete a re- specialization program (including documentation of an approved internship completed as part of the re- specialization program) meeting both of the following conditions: (a) The re-specialization program must be completed in an APA or a CPA accredited doctoral program
• and - (b) the specialty in which the applicant is retrained must be consistent with the assignment for which the applicant is to be employed
• NOTE: The applicant must provide an official transcript and/or certificate documenting the completion of the re-specialization program - which includes completion of an APA or CPA internship
• OR Have a doctoral degree awarded between 1951 and 1978 from a regionally-accredited institution - with a dissertation primarily psychological in nature
• AND Internships
• Have successfully completed a professional psychology internship training program that was accredited by APA or CPA at the time the program was completed and that is consistent with the assignment for which the applicant is to be employed
• OR New VHA psychology internship programs that are in the process of applying for APA accreditation are acceptable in fulfillment of the internship requirement - provided that such programs were sanctioned by the VHA Central Office Program Director for Psychology and the VHA Office of Academic Affiliations at the time that the individual was an intern
• OR VHA facilities that offered full-time - one-year pre-doctoral internships prior to PL 96- 151 (pre- 1979) are considered to be acceptable in fulfillment of the internship requirement
• OR Applicants who completed an internship that was not accredited by APA or CPA at the time the program was completed may be considered eligible for hire only if they are currently board certified by the American Board of Professional Psychology in a specialty area that is consistent with the assignment for which the applicant is to be employed
• NOTE: Once board certified - the employee is required to maintain board certification
• OR Applicants who have a doctoral degree awarded between 1951 and 1978 from a regionally- accredited institution with a dissertation primarily psychological in nature may fulfill this internship requirement by having the equivalent of a one-year supervised internship experience in a site specifically acceptable to the candidate's doctoral program
• If the internship experience is not noted on the applicant's official transcript - the applicant must provide a statement from the doctoral program verifying that the equivalent of a one year supervised internship experience was completed in a site acceptable to the doctoral program
• NOTE: Psychologists who meet the requirements of this revision and who were employed by the Department of Veterans Affairs prior to the implementation of this standard are considered to have fully met the requirements of this qualification standard
• Licensure
• Applicants must hold a full - current - and unrestricted license to practice psychology at the doctoral level in a State - Territory - or Commonwealth of the United States - or the District of Columbia
• Exception
• Non-licensed applicants who otherwise meet the eligibility requirements may be given a temporary appointment as a "graduate psychologist" at the GS-11 or GS-12 grade under the authority of 38 U.S.C. § 7405 [(c)(2)(B)] for a period not to exceed two years from the date of employment on the condition that such a psychologist provide care 4 only under the supervision of a psychologist who is licensed
• Failure to obtain licensure during that period is justification for termination of the temporary appointment
• Board Certification
• Persons hired to psychology positions in the VHA who completed an internship that was not accredited at the time the program was completed must be board certified by the American Board of Professional Psychology in a specialty area that is consistent with the assignment for which the applicant is to be employed
• The board certificate must be current and the applicant must abide by the certifying body's requirement for continuing education
• Grandfathering Provision
• All persons employed in VHA as a psychologist on the effective date of this qualification standard are considered to have met all qualification requirements for the title - series and grade held
• GRADE DETERMINATIONS: GS-11 Graduate Psychologist Experience
• None beyond the basic requirements
• GS-12 Graduate Psychologist Experience
• In addition to the basic requirements - candidates must possess at least one year of creditable experience as a professional (postdoctoral) psychologist equivalent to the next lower grade level (GS-11) AND can demonstrate the following Knowledge - Skills - and Abilities: Knowledge of and ability to apply a wide range of professional psychological treatments or assessment methods to a variety of patient populations
• Ability to design and implement effective treatment strategies
• Ability to incorporate new clinical procedures
• Ability to conduct research activities - such as designing and implementing clinical research projects (staff psychologists with specified research job duties)
• Ability to perform basic research tasks of scholarship and research execution within the context of an established research team - including research participant relations - research documentation - data acquisition - maintenance - and collaboration
• GS-13 Staff Psychologist Experience
• In addition to the basic requirements - candidates must possess at least two years of experience as a professional (postdoctoral) psychologist - with at least one year equivalent to the GS-12 grade level AND can demonstrate the following Knowledge - Skills - and Abilities: Knowledge of - and ability to apply - professional psychological treatments to the full range of patient populations
• Ability to provide professional advice and consultation in areas related to professional psychology and behavioral health
• Knowledge of clinical research literature
• Reference: For more information on this qualification standard - please visit Psychologist Qualification Standard
• The full performance level of this position is 13
• The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is in the range of 11 to 13
• Physical Requirements: Light lifting (under 15 pounds)
• light carrying (under 15 pounds)
• reaching above shoulder
• hearing (aid permitted)
• emotional stability
• The Staff Psychologist should be capable of prolonged movement and be physically capable of reading patient records/reports - documenting all clinical encounters in the patient computerized record system (CPRS)
• and to speak/communicate clearly and efficiently in English.

Duties

• VA Careers - Mental Health Professionals: This position is eligible for 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 your start date
• 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
• Contact View email address on careers.biausa.org for questions/assistance
• Duties include - but are not limited to: Assisting with urgent mental health assessment of patients who present to Homeless Patient Aligned Care Team (HPACT) with elevated risk factors and (when authorized by LA County and upon receiving LPS privileges at GLA) assisting with writing holds for patients to be transported to the Emergency Department for further evaluation and possible admission
• Utilizing knowledge and experience working with individuals living with a broad range of mental health conditions and applies training in assessment and treatment to address psychotic disorders - depressive disorders - bipolar disorders - PTSD - substance use disorders - anxiety-related disorders - and other mental health conditions to appropriately serve the needs of unhoused and housing-insecure veterans
• Utilizing best practices - following practice guidelines - and delivering evidence-based treatment protocols to the extent feasible in all therapeutic interventions - including CBT - DBT - ACT - CPT - PE - WET - IPT - MI - etc
• Collaborating with other team members and tailoring treatments to meet the needs of individual patients - specifically regarding treating predominating symptoms
• assessing - monitoring - and addressing risk factors
• and engaging in routine assessment of diversity factors to inform assessment and treatment
• Identifying and helping leverage patient strength and resources
• Attending daily team huddle - weekly case conference - and biweekly HPACT All Staff - Mental Health - and Psychology meetings
• Work Schedule: Monday-Friday - 8:00a-4:30p Compressed/Flexible: May be authorized at Supervisory discretion
• Telework: May be authorized at Supervisory discretion
• Virtual: This is not a virtual position
• Functional Statement Title/#: Psychologist (HPACT)/000000 EDRP Authorized: Former EDRP participants ineligible to apply for incentive
• Contact View email address on careers.biausa.org for questions/assistance
• Learn more

The Veterans Health Administration (VHA) is the largest integrated health care system in the United States, providing care at 1,321 health care facilities, including 172 VA Medical Centers and 1,138 outpatient sites of care of varying complexity (VHA outpatient clinics) to over 9 million Veterans enrolled in the VA health care program. VHA Medical Centers provide a wide range of services including traditional hospital-based services such as surgery, critical care, mental health, orthopedics, pharmacy, radiology and physical therapy. In addition, most of our medical centers offer additional medical and surgical specialty services including audiology & speech pathology, dermatology, dental, geriatrics, neurology, oncology, podiatry, prosthetics, urology, and vision care. Some medical centers also offer advanced services such as organ transplants and plastic surgery.