Supervisory Social Worker - Behavioral Health Interdisciplinary (BHIP)

Summary

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) & eligibility period are determined by the VHA Education Loan Repayment Services program office after review of the EDRP application. Former EDRP participants ineligible to apply.

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
• 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
• Current state requirements may be found by going to
• 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 for employment - the following criteria must be met when determining the grade of candidates
• Supervisory Social Worker - GS-13 Experience/Education
• One year of experience equivalent to the GS-12 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 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) Ability to independently organize work - set priorities - and meet multiple deadlines
• (b) Skill in a range of supervisory duties which includes clinical supervision - consultation - negotiation with other departments and quality improvement
• (c) Ability to ensure provision of clinical social work services by supervised social workers
• (d) Ability to delegate authority - manage priorities - coordinate work - and follow up on pending issues to complete duties in an accurate and timely fashion
• (e) Ability to analyze organizational and operational problems - develop and implement solutions that result in efficient operations - and use data effectively to manage workload - quality - performance - and productivity within the service
• (f) Ability to provide staff training and development
• Reference: For more information on this qualification standard - please visit
• The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-13 Physical Requirements: See VA Directive and Handbook 5019.

Duties

• The Behavioral Health Interdisciplinary Program (BHIP) Supervisor is a clinical and administrative position that provides direct supervisory responsibilities over the clinical - training and administrative areas of the BHIP staff within the Outpatient Behavioral Health Division
• Supervisory Responsibilities (approximately 25%) Supervises BHIP teams and provides management of the team's daily operations and adheres to national standards
• Performs comprehensive staff management by setting clear guidelines and expectations - monitoring performance - providing feedback - resolving grievances - developing improvement plans - advising employees - handling disciplinary actions - approving leave requests - and ensuring compliance with safety regulations
• Responsible for promoting equal employment opportunity by supporting affirmative action - ensuring nondiscriminatory practices in merit promotion - recruitment - fair treatment - recognizing achievements - fostering career development - and utilizing employees' skills
• Manages resources - staffing - recruitment - space planning - and equipment needs
• interviews and selects candidates
• recommends appointments or disciplinary actions
• and develops position descriptions and functional statements
• Clinical Responsibilities (approximately 70%) Actively participates in the Psychology Training Program Committee Meetings - and Didactics - and assists in the ongoing improvement of the Psychology Training Program (at least 15% of Clinical time.) The BHIP Supervisor serves as the primary supervisor for the BHIP internship rotation in conjunction with other GS 13 BHIP Psychologists when available
• The supervisor is responsible for providing clinical supervision and instruction for psychology interns
• Provides a full range of diagnostic and evaluation services - especially in the areas of psychological evaluation and suicide assessment
• Provides a full range of psychological interventions consistent with training and expertise - with special emphasis on evidenced-based treatments
• Develops - implements - and documents the psychotherapeutic treatment plan for an assigned caseload of patients - including prompt completion of clinical reminders
• Provides administrative duties including: Scheduling of Veterans and related issues - returning Veterans' phone calls and secure messages - writing reports - and attending organizational meetings
• Attends and participates in administrative and informational meetings held by the Chief of Behavioral Health Service Line - Chief of Outpatient Behavioral Health/Chief Psychologist - Chief of Staff - and facility Director
• Other collateral duties as assigned
• Work Schedule: Moday-Friday - 8:00am-4:30pm Telework: Ad-hoc only
• Virtual: This is not a virtual position
• Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: 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 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.