Supervisory 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.

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Duties

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The Behavioral Health Integrated Program (BHIP) Supervisor oversees BHIP Mental Health service delivery, within the BHIP Program at the Montana VA Healthcare System and its Community Based Outpatient Clinics (CBOCS). The incumbent is responsible for the administrative and personnel functions related to all the members on the BHIP team.

VA Careers - Social Work :

Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional

Duties and skills needed to be successful in this position include, but are not limited to:

Program Management Responsibilities

• Provides program management and oversight of BHIP teams to ensure effective and efficient delivery of mental health services.
• Maintains administrative and supervisory responsibility of the BHIP Team Leads.
• Fosters a cohesive interdisciplinary team environment.
• Assists facility leadership in overseeing compliance with the successful execution of Mental Health Performance Measures, SAIL, workload, VERA capture, Veteran patient satisfaction, and quality assurance.
• Uses sound judgement in the interpretation of trends and patterns; provides application of guidelines and the recommendations for the purposes of general outpatient mental health enhancements.
• Monitors and distributes provider-specific workload reports to team leaders and ensures provider adherence to workload standards. Plans work to be accomplished by team leaders, including establishing priorities, timelines for completion, and necessary adjustments therein.
• Ensures timely access to care of patients assigned to each team, in accordance with local and national policies. Initiates and maintains liaisons with associated VA health care programs to effectively coordinate services.
• Sets productivity targets, monitors progress, and creates action plans when appropriate. Provides clinical supervision, as appropriate, to assigned team leaders and members regarding adherence to Montana VA Health Care System medico-legal stands and policies, documentation of CPRS procedures, and the clinical management of difficult, complex, and dangerous patients.

Clinical Responsibilities

• Diagnoses mental disorders, conducts biopsychosocial assessments and measurement based screenings, treat mental disorders through a variety of modalities and provide adjunctive interventions for treatment of medical disorders.
• Consults with and serves as a resource for other professional personnel concerning the need for and development of mental health services.
• Resolves work related interdisciplinary treatment concerns and problems of a complex clinical nature.
• Provides education to both Veterans and family members regarding relevant mental health concerns and treatment interventions.
• Practices consistent with the recovery model including provision of episodes of care and utilization of EBPs.
• Adheres to all Facility and Service Line policies and practices for delivering clinical care, including but not limited to suicide risk reduction practices, timeliness of care and access standards, professional conduct requirements, and CPRS documentation conventions.
• Fully licensed and functions independently as a member of the MTVAHCS Medical Staff with full clinical privileges. Assumes complete professional responsibility for their clinical assessment findings, patient care decisions, and documentation.

Education and Training

• Responsible for providing direct clinical supervision, consultation, and instruction to interns, trainees, or practicum students.
• May hold a faculty appointment at a local college or university, requiring accomplishments in clinical supervision, training, and education.

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 click.appcast.io, the EDRP Coordinator for questions/assistance. Learn more

Pay: Competitive salary and regular salary increases.

Pa id 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)

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 # : 60519A

Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

• You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job.
• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959.
• Must be proficient in written and spoken English.
• Subject to background/security investigation.
• Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements ( Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued identification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.
• Must pass pre-employment physical evaluation/examination.
• Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP).
• Complete all application requirements detailed in the "Required Documents" section of this announcement.

As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1 or 2-year trial period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may consider:

• your performance and conduct;
• the needs and interests of the agency;
• whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and
• whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service.

Upon completion of your trial period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.

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 :

• 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 & 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: 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 SW Licensure Summary by State.

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 :

Supervisory Social Worker, GS-12

Experience/Education: One year of experience equivalent to the GS-11 grade level. Experience must demonstrate possession of advanced practice skills in a specialty area or in administration demonstrating progressively more professional competency and judgment. 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 Supervisory Social Workers must belicensed or certified at the advanced practice level, and must be able to providesupervision for licensure.

Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities: In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSAs:

• Ability to independently organize work, set priorities, and meet multiple deadlines.
• Knowledge of supervisory duties which includes clinical supervision, consultation, negotiation with other departments and quality improvement.
• Ability to ensure provision of clinical social work services.
• Ability to provide staff training and development.
• Skill in interpersonal relationships in dealing with employees, team leaders, and managers.

Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit

The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-12. The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy isGS-12.

Physical Requirements: The work is primarily sedentary. Some work may require movement between offices, hospital, warehouses, and similar areas for meetings and to conduct work. Work may also require walking/standing, in conjunctions with travel to and attendance at meetings and/or conferences away from the work site. Incumbent may carry and lift light items weighing less than 15 pounds. The incumbent must possess a current Driver's License and drive a government vehicle in carrying out professional duties when deemed necessary.

Education

Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit:

Additional information

During the application process you may have an option to opt-in to make your resume available to hiring managers in the agency who have similar positions. Opting in does not impact your application for this announcement, nor does it guarantee further consideration for additional positions.

This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies.

This position is in the Excepted Service and does not confer competitive status.

VA encourages persons with disabilities to apply. The health-related positions in VA are covered by Title 38, and are not covered by the Schedule A excepted appointment authority.

If you are unable to apply online or need an alternate method to submit documents, please reach out to the Agency Contact listed in this Job Opportunity Announcement.

Under the Fair Chance to Compete Act, the Department of Veterans Affairs prohibits requesting an applicant's criminal history prior to accepting a tentative job offer. For more information about the Act and the complaint process, visit Human Resources and Administration/Operations, Security, and Preparedness (HRA/OSP) at The Fair Chance Act.

Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.

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A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.

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Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.