Senior Social Worker - Home Based Primary Care Service

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

To qualify for this position - applicants must meet all requirements within 30 days of the closing date of this announcement.

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
• 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: 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
• Loss of Licensure or Certification: Once licensed or certified - social workers must maintain a full - valid - and unrestricted independent license or certification to remain qualified for employment
• Loss of licensure or certification will result in removal from the GS-0185 social worker series and may result in termination of employment
• Grade Determinations: GS-12 (Senior Social Worker) 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: 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
• Reference: For more information on this qualification standard - please visit
• The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-12
• Physical Requirements: Light lifting (under 15 pounds) - Use of fingers - See computer screen - Hearing (aid may be permitted) Environmental Factors: Working closely with others - Working alone

Duties

• Patients served under the HBPC Program typically are those who have impaired mobility due to disability or functional limitation - inability to cope with the clinic environment due to cognitive - physical - or psychiatric impairment - and the need for frequent coordinated interventions from multiple disciplines
• Incumbent utilizes advanced practice skills - specialized knowledge - and judgment in developing and measuring effectiveness of social work practice and services - utilizing outcome evaluations to improve treatment services
• FUNCTIONS OR SCOPE OF ASSIGNED DUTIES - Incumbent provides a specialized comprehensive psychosocial assessment and integrates it into an overall plan of care in collaboration with the interdisciplinary treatment team - the veteran - family members and significant others - whenever possible
• The goal of the assessment is to highlight the veteran's strengths - limitations - and internal/external support and service needs to optimize the veteran's functional status and safely maintain the veteran in his/her home
• The assessment requires a home visit
• - Incumbent can incorporate complex multiple causations in differential diagnosis and treatment of veteran patients - including making psychosocial and psychiatric diagnoses within approved clinical privileges or scope of practice
• - Incumbent demonstrates advanced and expert 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 interventions used in the treatment of veterans with polytraumatic injuries - spinal cord injuries - traumatic brain injuries - visual impairment - post­traumatic stress disorder - etc
• - Incumbent can coordinate community-based services - including information and referral for additional services from other VA programs - other government programs and community agency programs
• Has expert knowledge of veterans' benefits and services relating to special programs - service-connected compensation - non-service-connected pension
• Facilitates and prioritizes referrals based upon veteran's needs and eligibility
• Social worker provides education related to VA and community resources - entitlements - Advance Directives/Living Will and will refer veterans/families to the appropriate interdisciplinary team members for identified health education needs
• - Independently identifies and prioritizes high-risk patients and provides case management services
• Provides crisis intervention services - seeking to address the cause as well as the presenting complaint - coordinates family conferences and serves as liaison to family members
• - Incumbent provides initial and annual caregiver burden assessment and provides individual counseling - resources - respite and general caregiver support as needed on a case by case basis
• - Social worker is experienced in making rapid assessments and developing crisis management plans to maintain patients in their home - for admission to acute - short term and/or long-term placements
• Social worker utilizes advanced practice skills - professional judgment and expertise regarding the veteran's self care capability - family support system - and the veteran's health care needs and possible consequences
• - Processes advanced knowledge and understanding of the laws and processes that protect the vulnerable elderly population - provide emergency mental health care and serve as liaison to community agencies charged investigating suspected abuse and neglect
• Work Schedule:Monday-Friday - 8:00am-4:30pm 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 View email address on careers.biausa.org - the EDRP Coordinator for questions/assistance
• Learn more 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)
• 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: Ad-hoc only
• Virtual: This is not a virtual position.

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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.

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