The PCMHI Co-located, Collaborative Care Senior Social Worker position is administratively aligned within the Birmingham Mental Health Service Line, with primary assignment to the Primary Care-Mental Health Integration program, located within primary care. The PCMHI CCC Senior Social Worker functions as part of a multidisciplinary primary care team, and delivers brief, consultation- based services to Veterans, primary care providers, and allied Patient Aligned Care Team members.
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. In accordance with 38 U.S.C. 7402(d), no person shall serve in direct patient care positions unless they are proficient in basic written and spoken English. 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. 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. Licensed or certified by a state to independently practice social work 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. Grade Determinations: In addition to the basic requirements stated above, the following qualification criteria must be met for each grade. The candidate's qualifications must clearly demonstrate the level of competence required for the grade. Experience: 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 and 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. 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/. Physical Requirements: See VA Directive and Handbook 5019, Employee Occupational Health Services.
SUD-Specific Clinical Practice & Interdisciplinary Consultation - Participate in PACT huddles, meetings, and/or other functions to represent and champion SUD-specific care considerations within primary care. - Enhance transitions between PACT and Specialty SUD clinics. - Promote engagement of Veterans with substance misuse who may be reluctant to begin care within PCMHI or Specialty SUD services. - Increase PACT, Veteran, and family/caregiver awareness of SUD-related community resources. - Assist PACT in streamlining procedures for standard screening (e.g., AUD-C) and referral (e.g., same day warm handoffs). - Utilize proactive patient identification and outreach activities related to substance misuse for the PACT population. - Provide education and training to PACT about SUD recovery and interventions. - Offer formal or curbside consultation regarding the treatment of SUD within primary care. - Support and/or deliver PCMHI Collaborative Care Management for Veterans with substance misuse concerns. - Deliver SUD-specific, brief, evidence-based, individual or group interventions appropriate for the PACT setting and in collaboration with PCPs. - Support Medication Assisted Treatment (MAT) and Clinical Practice Guideline-concordant care of SUD within primary care. PCMHI CCC Clinical Practice Management - Collaborates with PCPs and the interdisciplinary PACT to support high quality, effective, and coordinated service delivery at the patient and programmatic levels - Maintains daily open access slots and encourages same day warm handoffs within PACT - Completes most individual appointments (e.g., 75%) within 30 minutes - Uses Measurement Based Care (MBC) in accordance with nationally recommended guidelines for PCMHI - Conducts initial functional assessments that are focused on the main reason(s) for referral and are less extensive than traditional mental health intake evaluations (e.g., 30 minutes vs. 60 or 90 minutes). - Supports Stepped-Care principles and refers Veterans with more severe or complex needs to the appropriate general or specialty mental health program - Provides time-limited, brief, evidence-based, individual or group interventions (e.g., approximately 1-6 sessions) for a broad range of mental health and health behavior concerns within the primary care setting - Utilizes intermittent visits and flexible patient contact strategies to support brief but longitudinal PCMHI care as part of PACT - Ensures quality of care by successfully completing the national VA PCMHI Competency Training Program (or approved equivalent) and associated ongoing education modules Documentation Skills - Writes clear, concise notes that are optimized for collaboration within PACT based on the PCMHI CCC functional assessment and follow-up visit guidelines - Notes document important elements for team collaboration (e.g., MBC, curbside consultation/team care discussion, liaison with specialty care providers) as appropriate - Notes are completed same day or within 24 hours Consultation and Interdisciplinary Team Based Skills - Provides education to PACT on mental health and health behavior issues, as well as tips to promote effective patient communication, motivational enhancement, and behavior change - Integrates self into routine workflow of Primary Care and seeks opportunities to offer expertise or direct patient care services to support team-based care - Tolerates interruptions, demonstrates flexibility and adaptability, and maintains availability for ad hoc team discussion - Routinely provides feedback (verbal and/or written) to PCP and other PACT members same day as referral - Works collaboratively with other team members in PCMHI to ensure high quality, effective, Veteran-centered services at the patient and programmatic levels Administrative Responsibilities - Shares responsibility for the coordination of clinical operations within the PCMHI team. - Assists in the design, development, and implementation of clinical assessment and/or intervention programs. - Adheres to operational policies and procedures for the treatment team. - Assists in the execution of ongoing program evaluation and data-driven quality improvement projects to monitor the effectiveness of the clinical program. - Facilitates liaisons with other health care programs in order to effectively coordinate services. - Complies with national and local performance measures and facilitates organizational success on these measures at the team level. - Complies with all Facility and Service Line policies and expectations concerning administrative practices. Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 8:00 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. Telework: Not Available. Travel: None. Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized.