Clinical Psychologist - PCHMI

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.

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
• Psychologists must be proficient in spoken and written English in accordance with VA Handbook 5005 - Part II - Chapter 3 - section A - paragraph 3j
• Education Have a doctoral degree in psychology from a graduate program in psychology accredited by the American Psychological Association (APA) - the Psychological Clinical Science Accreditation System (PCSAS) - or the Canadian Psychological Association (CPA) at the time the program was completed
• The specialty area of the degree must be consistent with the assignment for which the applicant is to be employed
• For the purpose of meeting this requirement - the term "specialty area" refers to the specific specialty areas recognized by the accrediting body and not to specific job duties that might require special skills
• Currently - APA accredits doctoral programs in the specialty areas of clinical psychology - counseling psychology - school psychology - or combinations of two or more of those areas
• PCSAS accredits doctoral programs in psychological clinical science
• CPA accredits doctoral programs in clinical psychology - counseling psychology - clinical neuropsychology - and school psychology
• OR Have a doctoral degree in any area of psychology and - in addition - successfully complete a re- specialization program (including documentation of an approved internship completed as part of the re- specialization program) meeting both of the following conditions: The re-specialization program must be completed in an APA or a CPA accredited doctoral program
• and the specialty in which the applicant is retrained must be consistent with the assignment for which the applicant is to be employed
• NOTE: The applicant must provide an official transcript and/or certificate documenting the completion of the re-specialization program - which includes completion of an APA or CPA internship
• [Psychologists who have successfully completed a re-specialization program as described above and who were employed by the Department of Veterans Affairs prior to the implementation of this standard are considered to have fully met the educational requirements of these qualification standards.] OR Have a doctoral degree awarded between 1951 and 1978 from a regionally-accredited institution - with a dissertation primarily psychological in nature.] AND Internships Licensure
• Hold a full - current - and unrestricted license to practice psychology at the doctoral level in a State - Territory - or Commonwealth of the United States - or the District of Columbia
• (1) Exception
• Non-licensed applicants who otherwise meet the eligibility requirements may be given a temporary appointment as a "graduate psychologist" at the GS-11 or GS-12 grade under the authority of 38 U.S.C. § 7405 [(c)(2)(B)] for a period not to exceed two years from the date of employment on the condition that such a psychologist provide care only under the supervision of a psychologist who is licensed
• Failure to obtain licensure during that period is justification for termination of the temporary appointment
• Have successfully completed a professional psychology internship training program that was accredited by APA or CPA at the time the program was completed and that is consistent with the assignment for which the applicant is to be employed
• OR New VHA psychology internship programs that are in the process of applying for APA accreditation are acceptable in fulfillment of the internship requirement - provided that such programs were sanctioned by the VHA Central Office Program Director for Psychology and the VHA Office of Academic Affiliations at the time that the individual was an intern
• OR VHA facilities that offered full-time - one-year pre-doctoral internships prior to PL 96- 151 (pre- 1979) are considered to be acceptable in fulfillment of the internship requirement
• OR Applicants who completed an internship that was not accredited by APA or CPA at the time the program was completed may be considered eligible for hire only if they are currently board certified by the American Board of Professional Psychology in a specialty area that is consistent with the assignment for which the applicant is to be employed
• (NOTE: Once board certified - the employee is required to maintain board certification.) OR (e) Applicants who have a doctoral degree awarded between 1951 and 1978 from a regionally- accredited institution with a dissertation primarily psychological in nature may fulfill this internship requirement by having the equivalent of a one-year supervised internship experience in a site specifically acceptable to the candidate's doctoral program
• If the internship experience is not noted on the applicant's official transcript - the applicant must provide a statement from the doctoral program verifying that the equivalent of a one-year supervised internship experience was completed in a site acceptable to the doctoral program
• 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: Clinical Psychologist - GS-11 (Entry Level) Experience
• None beyond the basic requirements
• Psychologists who are NOT licensed must practice under the supervision of a licensed psychologist Clinical Psychologist - GS-12 (Developmental Level) Experience
• At least one year of experience as a professional psychologist equivalent to the next lower grade level (GS-11)
• Psychologists who are not licensed must practice under the supervision of a licensed psychologist but with less intense supervision than at the GS-11 grade level
• Psychologists who are NOT licensed must practice under the supervision of a licensed psychologist - but with less intense supervision than at the GS-11 grade level
• Demonstrated Knowledge - Skills - and Abilities (KSAs) - In addition to the experience above - the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSAs: Knowledge of and ability to apply a wide range of professional psychological treatments or assessment methods to a variety of patient populations
• Ability to design and implement effective treatment strategies
• Ability to incorporate new clinical procedures
• Clinical Psychologist - GS-13 (Full Performance - Level) Experience
• At least two years of experience as a professional psychologist - with at least one year equivalent to the GS-12 grade level
• Licensed to practice independently
• Demonstrated Knowledge - Skills - and Abilities (KSAs) - In addition to the experience above - the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSAs: Knowledge of - and ability to apply - professional psychological treatments to the full range of patient populations
• Ability to provide professional advice and consultation in areas related to professional psychology and behavioral health
• Knowledge of clinical research literature
• Preferred Experience: Primary Care Mental Health Integration experience Reference: For more information on this qualification standard - please visit
• The full performance level of this vacancy is 13
• The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is in the range of 11 to 13
• Physical Requirements: See VA Directive and Handbook 5019.

Duties

• VA Careers - Psychologist: Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional Clinical Responsibilities: Provides immediate access to clinical assessment and appropriate collaborative care and treatment for those experiencing mental health symptoms or behavioral health issues
• Practices collaborative - stepped and measurement-based care - including appropriate longitudinal follow-up - to address common mental health and complex behavioral health conditions for the primary care population
• Enables optimal functioning of PACT teams through collaborative decision support and interdisciplinary consultation with co-located mental health providers
• Prevents the development of more severe symptoms through early recognition and intervention
• Performs psychological evaluations for patients on units to which the psychologist is assigned to provide coverage
• Provides a full range of therapeutic interventions to units/programs in the Medical Center to which the psychologist is assigned and has clinical privileges to practice including individual psychotherapy and/or counseling - vocational counseling - group therapy and/r counseling - family therapy and/or counseling - crisis intervention - administration and interpretation of psychometric tests (objective) - administration and interpretation of psychometric tests (projective) - program evaluation - psychological research - consultation - biofeedback - hypnotherapy - neuropsychological assessment - sexual dysfunction therapy - specified atypical psychotherapy
• Administrative responsibilities: Attends and participates in administrative and informational meetings held by the Chief of Service - Chief of Staff and Director (or duly appointed designees)
• Attends monthly Psychological Service staff meetings and complies with Psychology Service peer review procedures
• Completes assigned Performance Improvement activities at the program - service line - and medical center level
• Attends regularly scheduled treatment team meetings to ensure efficiency and continuity of service delivery to specialized patient population
• Case Management Responsibilities: Timely completion of all clinical charting and documentation required by the Medical Center or healthcare system - as appropriate
• Respond to patients request for release of records
• return telephone calls - linking of services - and appropriate referrals as needed in a timely fashion
• With permission from patient - collateral consultation with significant others/ support systems to aid in the facilitation of patients' treatment
• Additional Responsibilities: Attends annual training programs sponsored by the VISN - VAMC and other APA recognized training programs to enhance knowledge - skills - and abilities in area of specialization
• Work Schedule: Monday-Friday - 8:00am-430pm Telework: Ad-Hoc - will be discussed during interview
• Virtual: This is not a virtual position
• Functional Statement #: 000000 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.