Job Description

Summary

This position serves as Senior Social Worker in the Mental Health Residential Recovery and Treatment Program (MHRRTP) at the Alexandria VA Health Care System (AVAHCS) main campus.

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: 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 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 Grade Determinations: In addition to the basic requirements for employment - the following criteria must be met when determining the grade of candidates: (KSAs must be clearly reflected in resume under description of duties in order to be found qualified for this position/grade level)
• GS12: Experience/Education
• The candidate must have at least two years of experience 9 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 - the candidate 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
• The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-12
• Physical Requirements: Physical aspects associated with work required of this assignment are typical for the occupation - see Duties section for essential job duties of the position
• May require standing - lifting - carrying - sitting - stooping - bending - puling - and pushing
• May be required to wear personal protective equipment and undergo annual TB screening or testing as conditions of employment
• Work Environment: Work is performed in an office/clinic setting with minimal risks that requires normal safety precautions
• the area is adequately lighted - heated - and ventilated
• However - the work environment requires someone with the ability to handle several tasks at once in sometimes stressful situations.

Duties

• Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional Duties performed include - but are not limited to the following: Collaborates with the other members of the interdisciplinary treatment team in the provision of comprehensive mental health services to Veterans - ensures equity of access - service - and benefits to this population and ensures the care provided is of the highest quality
• In conjunction with the healthcare team - identifies and assesses risk - safety - supports and implements appropriate interventions/treatment for those who are experiencing abuse - neglect - exploitation or are experiencing domestic or intimate partner violence
• Adheres to VA and mandated reporter requirements
• Advises and collaborates with interdisciplinary teams throughout the medical center on abuse - neglect - exploitation and intimate partner violence issues
• Possesses advanced knowledge of and mastery of theories and modalities used in the specialized treatment of SUD and co-occurring conditions
• Ability to incorporate complex multiple causation in differential diagnosis and treatment of veteran patients - including making psychosocial and psychiatric diagnoses within approved clinical privileges
• Provides Advanced Directive information and education including but not limited to the following: Durable Power of Attorney for Health Care - Living Will - Health Care Directive - and/or treatment preferences document to Veteran and families
• Also assists the Veteran in preparing such documents - as requested
• Assists the interdisciplinary team with identifying appropriate decision makers if Veteran is unable to make own decision (Next of Kin - HCPOA - Legal Guardian)
• Performs comprehensive suicide risk screenings and assessments and develops and integrates safety planning and safety goals into the Veteran's collaborative - individualized treatment plan
• Ability to determine priority for services and provide specialized treatment service
• Provides case management services for Veterans in residential treatment at AVAHCS
• Completes post discharge follow up appointment calls for those discharged from residential care at AVAHCS and other VA facilities
• Provides clinical services on weekends as part of a rotation with other clinical providers
• Work Schedule: Monday - Friday 8:00am - 4:30pm (subject to change based on the needs of the facility) Recruitment Incentive (Sign-on Bonus): Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (Relocation Assistance): 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: Ad-hoc Virtual: This is not a virtual position
• Functional Statement #: 00490F Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized

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About Veterans Affairs, Veterans Health Administration

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.

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Holiday work, Permanent employment, Full time, Work experience placement, Internship, Remote job, Relocation package, Weekend work, Monday to Friday,

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