Summary

The Senior Social Worker is assigned as a member of the Mental Health Service Line - located in the Behavioral Health Interdisciplinary Program (BHIP). Incumbent provides screenings and a full range of psychological assessments for diagnosis and treatment planning - individual and group psychotherapy - treatment plans - case management - and other clinical services for veterans with co-occurring mental disorders and medical problems.

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:

• 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 and written English to be appointed as authorized by 38 U.S.C. 7403(f)
• Experience/Education
• You must possess 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
• Note: A doctoral degree in Social Work may NOT be substituted for the master's degree in Social Work
• Licensure/Certification
• 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 http://vaww.va.gov/OHRM/T38Hybrid/
• 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 Specialized experience: 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
• Reference: For more information on this qualification standard - please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/
• The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-12
• Physical Requirements: See VA Directive and Handbook 5019 - Employee Occupational Health Services.

Duties

• VA Careers - Social Work: https://youtube.com/embed/enRhz_ua_UU Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional Duties include but are not limited to: Provides a full range of psychosocial assessment services and psychiatric diagnoses of mental disorders - particularly for complex or unusually difficult patients in a variety of treatment settings - including tale-mental health
• Provides education to patients - family members - and significant others
• Provides comprehensive - evidence-based psychotherapeutic interventions - including individual - family - and group psychotherapy
• Provides clinical supervision to interns and post-doctoral fellows in areas related to behavioral health and social services provision to attain goals and objectives of recovery programs
• Provides consultation to professional staff within VA Medical Center at Memphis and to community providers - concerning clinical assessment findings and appropriate treatment plans for patients
• Develops - implements - and documents the psychotherapeutic treatment plan for an assigned caseload of patients - including prompt completion of clinical reminders
• Implements 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
• Functions independently at the VA Medical Center at Memphis and assumes complete professional responsibility for his/her clinical assessment findings - patient care decisions - and documentation
• Is responsible for clinical social work practice in the area or program to which assigned - including promotion of social work services as a key component of treatment
• Evaluates his/her practice as an experienced social worker on an on-going basis through participation in professional peer review - case conferences - research studies or other organized means
• Is active in and accepts responsibility for the development and maintenance of professional standards of treatment
• Facilitates liaisons with other medical center programs to effectively coordinate services
• Complies with national and local performance measures - including timely health care screening and completion of clinical reminders for all patients
• Attends and participates in administrative and informational meetings held by the Chief of Mental Health Service - Director of MHC - Chief of Social Work Service - and other meetings as assigned to participate
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• Coordinates with the Telehealth Coordinator and the Mental Health Service TMH Coordinator for the purpose of setting up TMH clinics - profiles - and operations for TMH services
• Provides clinical supervision to interns and post-doctoral fellows in areas related to behavioral health and social services provision to attain goals and objectives of recovery programs - as well as role modeling effective social work practice skills
• Provides teaching on selected mental health topics to community organizations - provides leadership - direction - orientation - coaching - in-service training - staff development - and continuing education programs for assigned social work staff
• Additional duties as assigned
• Work Schedule: Monday-Friday - 8:00am-4:30pm Recruitment Incentive (Sign-on Bonus): 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
• Functional Statement #: Senior Social Work (BHIP)/ 50212-F Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized