Social Worker (Program Coordinator) - Acute Psychiatry

Summary

The Social Worker Program Coordinator - Acute Psychiatry position is located at the Eastern Kansas Health Care System in Topeka - KS. The incumbent provides clinical and team-based services on the acute psychiatric inpatient unit. Clinical services include psychosocial evaluations - psychotherapy - and treatment planning.

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
• 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
• English Language Proficiency
• Candidates must be proficient in spoken and written English to be appointed as authorized by 38 U.S.C. § 7403(f)
• 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: Social Worker (Program Coordinator) - GS-12 Experience and Education
• One year of experience equivalent to the GS-11 grade level
• Experience must demonstrate possession of advanced practice skills and judgment - demonstrating progressively more professional competency
• Candidate may have certification or other post-master's degree training from a nationally recognized professional organization or university that includes a defined curriculum/course of study and internship - or equivalent supervised professional experience
• Licensure/Certification
• Individuals assigned as social worker program coordinator must be licensed or certified at the advanced practice level - and 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: (a) Knowledge of program coordination and administration which includes consultation - negotiation - and monitoring
• (b) Knowledge and ability to write policies - procedures - and/or practice guidelines for the program
• (c) Ability to supervise multidisciplinary staff assigned to the program
• (d) Skill in organizing work - setting priorities - meeting multiple deadlines - and evaluating assigned program area(s)
• (e) Ability to provide training - orientation - and guidance within clinical practice
• Reference: For more information on this qualification standard - please visit
• The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-12
• Physical Requirements: The work required does not inherently include any physical requirements essential for successful job performance that could not otherwise be performed with accommodation or workplace adjustment
• A pre-placement physical examination is not required.

Duties

• VA Careers - Social Work: Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional Duties to include: Clinical Responsibilities: Provides a full range of psychosocial assessment services and diagnoses of mental disorders - particularly for complex or unusually challenging cases
• Provides education to patients - family members - and significant others
• Provides comprehensive - evidence-based psychotherapeutic interventions - including individual - family - and group psychotherapy
• Develops - implements - and documents the psychotherapeutic treatment plan for patients who require such treatment
• Assess Veteran's need for discharge upon admission and throughout the treatment episode
• Places consults and coordinates with VA and community services
• Completes and/or coordinates screenings needed for placement - provides case management services - arranges transportation - and coordinates with the Veteran and family for a safe and appropriate discharge
• Administrative Responsibilities: Oversee programmatic coordination of inpatient clinical services including case management - psychosocial assessment - individual and group psychoeducation and evidence-based psychotherapy in collaboration with the multidisciplinary team to ensure coverage and compliance with inpatient mental health standards
• Develop and coordinate a schedule for therapeutic and educational groups and activities to assure compliance with Mental Health Directive for Acute Care and assumes or assigns coverage for all groups in the absence of scheduled providers
• Ensure that the interdisciplinary treatment team(s) meets regularly and works collaboratively with each Veteran in the development and implementation of a comprehensive inpatient mental health treatment plan
• Develop and implement policies and standard operating procedures for Inpatient Acute Psychiatry to ensure compliance with national VHA directives - accreditation standards - and operational polices of the facility and the Behavioral Health Service Line
• Assist the Behavioral Health Service Line Manager in the execution of ongoing program evaluation and data-driven quality improvement projects to monitor the effectiveness of clinical programming
• monitoring productivity on inpatient clinical staff and reviewing program and individual program measures
• Facilitate liaisons with other health care programs within the VA and with the community to effectively coordinate services for Veterans at step down or discharge
• Responsible for assisting with and coordinating court processes for involuntary court holds
• Tracks court holds and coordination with psychiatric providers and with court personnel to assure paperwork is completed in a timely manner
• Ensure that VA medical facility inpatient mental health staff are educated on applicable regulatory and oversight requirements and other internal oversight responsibilities
• Ensure that all new inpatient mental health non-nursing staff receive appropriate orientation (e.g. - treatment planning processes - unit safety rules - tour of unit)
• Collaborate with the VA medical facility LRC - developing a local SOP addressing the education - staff training and implementation of recovery-oriented care
• Periodic climate assessments and observations of staff interactions with Veterans in the milieu are also recommended
• Work Schedule: Monday - Friday - 8:00am - 4:30pm Recruitment Incentive (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: Ad hoc Virtual: This is not a virtual position
• Functional Statement #: 000000 Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized

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.