Senior Social Worker (Intensive Community Mental Health Recovery Services)

Summary

This Senior Social Worker role is in VHA VISN 7 at the VA Augusta Health Care System within Social Work Service. The non-supervisory position reports to Social Work leadership and functions independently at the advanced license level - providing psychosocial and case management services to Veterans and their families to meet biological - psychological - social - and environmental needs.

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
• In accordance with 38 U.S.C. 7402(d) - no person shall serve in direct patient care positions unless they are proficient in basic written and spoken English
• 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
• Note: 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
• Licensed or certified by a state to independently practice social work 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
• 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: In addition to the basic requirements stated above - the following qualification criteria must be met for each grade
• The candidate's qualifications must clearly demonstrate the level of competence required for the grade
• Experience: 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 and 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
• 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
• Preferred Experience and Certifications Basic Life Support (BLS) - Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS) - or Advanced Trauma Life Support (ATLS) certification Full independent licensure at the advanced practice level At least two years should be in an area of specialized social work practice
• Experience in conducting visits to impacted areas and emergency shelters - possibly in conjunction with VA Disaster Emergency Medical Personal System (DEMPS) or other Emergency Management response protocols Experience with Veterans with chronic mental illness
• Reference: For more information on this qualification standard - please visit Requirements: Eligible applicants must be physically and mentally able to perform efficiently the essential functions of the position - with or without reasonable accommodation - without hazard to themselves or others
• Depending on the essential duties of a specific position - usable vision - color vision - hearing or speech may be required
• However - in most cases - a specific physical condition or impairment of a specific function may be compensated for by the satisfactory use of a prosthesis or mechanical aid.

Duties

• Work in a high-stress environment - possibly in austere conditions or an emergency setting Treat or provide direct patient care within the requirements of practice/privileges/licensure Ensure qualifications and required certifications are maintained - including Basic Life Support (BLS) - Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS) - or Advanced Trauma Life Support (ATLS) certification The Senior Social Worker must demonstrate advanced practice skills and sound judgment - particularly in crisis intervention and interdisciplinary teamwork
• They will provide short-term - solution-focused counseling to individuals and families in crisis - along with education - resource referrals - case management - and follow-up support
• Provides psychosocial treatment
• Independently assesses the psychosocial functioning and needs of patients and their family members
• Formulates and implements a treatment plan - identifying the patient's problems - strengths - weaknesses - coping skills - and assistance needed - in collaboration with the patient - family - and interdisciplinary treatment team
• Independently provides a full range of assessment and evaluation services appropriate to the care setting
• Works with medical center staff on a wide variety of patient care issues to include patient's decision-making capacity regarding health care
• Develops treatment plans to address the needs of patients
• Creates plans of action to ensuring assessment and crisis intervention services are maximized based on circumstances and availability of resources
• Conducts crisis intervention strategies - including assessment and diagnosis
• Conducts outreach to vulnerable populations - including disadvantaged areas
• Identifies impacted Veterans and connect them with VA and community resources
• Assists with locating family members and loved ones
• Assists with contacting hospitals or other relevant locations to locate medical records or emergency documentation Provide subject matter expertise in all phases of disaster response plans - including mitigation - preparedness - response and recovery
• Work Schedule: Monday - Friday - 8:00AM to 4:30PM Recruitment Incentive (Sign-on Bonus): Not Authorized EDRP Authorized: This position is eligible for the Education Debt Reduction Program( EDRP) - a student loan payment reimbursement program
• You must meet specific eligibility requirements per 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 review of the EDRP application
• Former EDRP participants are ineligible to apply
• 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 #: 61939F Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized PCS Appraised Value Offer (AVO): Not Authorized

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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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