Senior Social Worker (Acute Psych)

Summary

The Behavioral Health Care Line at the New Mexico VA Health Care System is seeking a full-time Senior Social Worker to provide evidence-based assessments - psychotherapy - and discharge planning for Veterans in the Inpatient Psychiatry Program in Albuquerque - New Mexico. The position requires that the applicants be a Masters-Level Social Worker able to practice independently in their state of licensure.

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: Senior Social Worker - GS-12 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
• References: VA Handbook 5005 - Part II appendix G39 - Social Worker Qualification Standards - GS-185 - Veterans Health Administration
• The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-12
• Physical Requirements: Traveling throughout the medical center and the community is required - as is performing activities involving sitting - walking - and standing - bending and carrying such items as books - papers - and files
• In carrying out responsibilities - it may be necessary to travel into the community where he/she conducts interviews with the Veterans - their families - representative of community health and welfare agencies and law enforcement agencies
• Must possess current driver's license and be able to drive a government vehicle in carrying out professional duties when deemed necessary.

Duties

• Duties Include But Are Not Limited To: Performs program and discharge coordination duties as appropriate and/or requested by the supervisor - MHRRTP Social Worker Supervisor - or designee
• These may include but are not limited to the following: Oversee the daily operations of discharge planning for Veteran in the Acute Psych ward
• Assists in the development of policies and procedures for program operation and prepare reports and statistics for facility - VISN - and VACO use
• May be responsible for the developing and monitoring program compliance with practice - standards - and guidelines on documentation - workload - ethical practice - and Veteran outcomes
• Provides analysis and evaluation of clinical program data and computerized programs to identify system-wide trends to enhance the quality of service
• May be responsible for - or contribute to - the program's resource and fiscal management - assisting with the development of the annual budget - operating within the budget and various other fiscal related matters
• Provide leadership - direction - orientation - coaching - in-service training - staff development - and continuing education programs
• Initiate and conduct a variety of program or service audits or complete designated clinical practice audits and reports - including productivity assessments
• Oversee program operations and evaluations - identifying areas to improve - gathering relevant data - assessing the data - developing and implementing ideas for improvement and evaluating efficacy of improvement
• Develops - implements - evaluations and reports on program performance - including assigned measures - monitors - data and other metrics of interest
• Actively participates in program planning and development - advising the supervisor of shifting trends with caseloads and identifying the need for and making recommendations on programs procedure or policy changes based upon work experiences
• Inputs data into required program databases as appropriate
• Develops monitoring tools to track performance
• submits action plans to address area requiring improvement
• Utilizes recognized process improvement tools to identify areas needing improvement and strategies for improvement
• Incumbent is able to demonstrate the ability to design changes based on empirical findings
• The incumbent provides timely and accurate information both verbally and in wiring for reports to the Medical Center Director - Acute Psychiatric - MHRRTP Social Worker Supervisor - and others as indicated by program requirements
• Ensures that social work practice in assigned settings is evidence-based and in keeping with recognized social work treatment methods
• Work Schedule: Monday - Friday - 8:00 AM - 4:30 PM 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: Not Available Virtual: This is not a virtual position
• Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional

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.