The Senior Social Worker is essential in the provision of health and mental health services across the continuum of care. In addition, VA Social Workers facilitate case management services for Veterans who are severely injured or ill, require discharge planning or affected by severe and persistent mental illness, homelessness, suicidal ideation and other risk factors.
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: Citizenship. Be a citizen of the United States. (Non-citizens may be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with chapter 3, section A, paragraph 3g this part). English Language Proficiency. Candidates must be proficient in spoken and written English to be appointed as authorized by 38 U.S.C. § 7403(f). 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 http://www.cswe.org/Accreditation 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 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: In addition to meeting the basic requirements Senior social workers must have: 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. (Example of GS-11 Experience: This is the full performance level. Social workers at this level are licensed or certified to independently practice social work. Incumbents are assigned to all program areas, including but not limited to: inpatient or outpatient medicine, surgery, mental health, neurology, rehabilitation medicine, and geriatrics. Employees provide professional, independent social work services in the assigned area. Duties include but are not limited to: assessing and documenting identified behaviors or symptoms of abuse, neglect, exploitation and/or intimate partner violence; use of clinical social work skills and knowledge to maintain Veteran privacy and confidentiality per policies, handbooks or directives; and acts as an advocate with appropriate VA and community service providers and agencies when it serves the best interest of the Veteran and family members/caregiver.) 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. Knowledge, Skills and Abilities (KSAs). In addition to meeting the experience requirements for this grade level, the candidate must fully demonstrate the following KSAs: (a) 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. (b) Ability to incorporate complex multiple causation in differential diagnosis and treatment within approved clinical privileges or scope of practice. (c) 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. (d) 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. (e) 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: Licensed or certified by a state to practice social work at the advanced practice master's degree levels required. Mental Health experience working with patients with acute, chronic and traumatic illnesses/injuries, and an ability to formulate effective treatment plans preferred. Case Management experience providing community resources and referral services to patients with multiple & complex psychosocial/mental health issues or persistent challenges preferred. Experience working as a member of a interdisciplinary team & utilizing a team-based approach preferred. Incumbent will be required to maintain a valid drivers license in order to operate a government vehicle. 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: The physical demands of this position involve active listening, reading, observing and evaluating verbal and nonverbal behavior, walking, speaking, bending, carrying light items such as paper, books, small parts, writing reports, writing clinical notes, using office equipment such as computers, telephones, fax machines, photocopy machines, and possibly driving an automobile. The work is performed in an urgent care clinical setting that exposes the incumbent to the communicable disease common to the diseases that are present within the Emergency Department. Strenuous physical activity is not required.
The CRRC Social Worker Assigned to the HealthCare for Homeless Veterans Program and reports to the HCHV Coordinator. The incumbent is assigned to the Washington DC VA Community Resource and Referral Center and provides comprehensive social worker services to Veterans and their families. Duties include, but are not limited to: Verifies the Veterans' status, eligibility for VA Medical Care, and eligibility for program participation. Ensures that homeless Veterans are considered as primary participants for program acceptance. Collects and submits data as outlined by NEPEC/HOMES evaluation procedures. Responsible for completing independent clinical assessments. Responsible for providing case management. Case Management is defined as the provision of services by VA Clinical staff to homeless Veterans and includes all activities to provide appropriate treatment and maintain Veterans in permanent and/or transitional housing. Actively participates in the VA Conference calls and attends trainings offered by the Homeless Program and other organizations. Follows local policy and SOP for the HCHV Programs, Social Work Service and Mental Health Service Lines. This includes following policies and documentation required by CARF and JCC Accreditation. Responsible for improving professional skills, participating in planning, and executing specific staff development projects, attending seminars and institutes, and participating in training programs of other disciplines as requested. Performs accountability functions: 1) documents all contacts with Veterans/Families in the Medical charts: 2) Completes statistical and other reports in accordance with VA Medical Center, National Homeless Program, and respective professional discipline service policies. Works with VA Medical Center multi-disciplinary teams and community agencies to strive for developing more effective and efficient ways of delivering healthcare services to homeless Veterans. Incumbent performs specialized treatment of complex physical or mental illness. Incumbent incorporates complex multiple causation in differential diagnosis and treatment of veteran patients, including making psychosocial and psychiatric diagnoses within approved clinical privileges or scope of practice. Provides individual, group, and family psychotherapy and advanced level case management interventions used in the treatment of veterans with polytrauma injuries, homeless services, employment issues, traumatic brain injuries, visual impairment, post-traumatic stress disorder, addictions, and other serious disorders. Develops and implements methods for measuring effectiveness of social work practice and services in specialty areas, utilizing outcome evaluations to improve treatment services. Incumbent demonstrates the ability to design changes based on empirical findings. Offers consultation to colleagues and students on the psychosocial treatment of patients treated in specialty areas, rendering professional opinions based on experience and expertise and role modeling effective social work practice skills. Demonstrates the ability to teach and mentor staff and students in the special area of practice and to provide supervision for licensure or specialty certifications. The incumbent coordinates care including serving as an advocate on behalf of the Veterans to ensure comprehensive service delivery and linking and referring Veterans to the VA Medical Center, VA Regional Offices and/or community agencies. Functions as a Medical Center's Contract Emergency Residential Services Program Liaison for VA's Health Care for Homeless Veterans Programs. The social worker is responsible for monitoring and coordination of services provided by community-based programs funded under VA's Homeless Providers Contract Emergency Residential Services (CERS) Program. Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 8:00am - 4:30pm EST Telework: Not Authorized. Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Functional Statement #: 000000 Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized. Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized.