The incumbent is a social worker and serves in a full-time capacity within the Mental Health Service (MHS) at the John D Dingell VA Medical Center in Detroit, including affiliated community-based outpatient clinics (CBOCs). The social worker will work as a member of a BHIP (Behavioral Health Interdisciplinary Program) team, providing care to this population.

Duties

Duties include: The incumbent will mainly provide case management, psychoeducational services, and individual supportive psychotherapy to their BHIP's patient panel. Care will be expected to be delivered mainly in person and through VA Video Connect (VVC) to the Veteran's home or other safe location. Patients will be presenting with a broad spectrum of mental health, emotional, and behavioral presentations. Provides case management interventions, at times at an advanced level, used in the treatment of Veterans with mood, anxiety, psychotic, trauma, substance, and other mental health, emotional and behavioral disorders Provides patient, family, and caregiver education, both in individual and group formats Provides supportive psychotherapy to patient and family in individual format Liaisons/advocates on behalf of the BHIP and/or Veteran/caregiver between settings of care, both internal and external to the VA Consults, collaborates, and coordinates with other staff who provide care to Veteran Performs routine brief assessments as appropriate Provides brief mental health and behavioral interventions as appropriate Assesses the need for referral for more intensive and/or specialty mental health services Independently identifies high-risk patients and connects with needed resources and services, as needed Completes comprehensive Veteran-centered, recovery-focused treatment plans and updates as appropriate/required Completes clinical reminders Monitors the efficiency, effectiveness, timeliness, quality of services offered within the program area Reviews relevant data, assesses the data, develops, and implement ideas for improvement Serves as social work champion for treatment planning, discharge planning, and psychosocial and psychotherapeutic needs Provides clinical supervision to social work trainees Involvement in the training of medical students, medical and psychiatric residents, nursing students, fellows and other graduate or post-graduate trainees, as appropriate. Serves on Medical Center or Healthcare System, VISN, and/or National VA committees or task forces, as assigned by the Supervisor or the Associate Chief of Staff for Mental Health. Represents social work on decision-making committees at the Medical Center or Healthcare System, as assigned by the Supervisor or the Associate Chief of Staff for Mental Health Represents the Medical Center or Healthcare System at professional/program community group/events and committees. Work Schedule: 8:00 am to 4:30 pm Telework: Ad hoc considered depending upon assignment and service needs Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Functional Statement #: 1407A Financial Disclosure Report: Not required

Requirements

Qualifications

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. 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. Licensure. Persons hired or reassigned to social worker positions in the GS-185 series in VHA must be licensed or certified by a state to independently practice social work at the master's degree level. Exception. VHA may waive the licensure or certification requirement for persons who are otherwise qualified, pending completion of state prerequisites for licensure/certification examinations. This exception only applies up to the full performance level. English Language Proficiency. Social workers must be proficient in spoken and written English in accordance with VA Regulations. Grade Determinations (GS-9), Entry Level Experience, Education and Licensure. GS-9 is the entry level grade for the GS-185 social work series and is used for social workers with less than one year of post-MSW experience and for social workers who are not yet licensed or certified at the independent practice level. Social workers at the GS-9 level are working toward completion of prerequisites for licensure or certification. Assignments. Individuals assigned as GS-9 social workers are considered to be at the entry level and are closely supervised, as they are not yet functioning at the independent practice level conferred by independent licensure or certification. Social workers at the GS-9 entry level are typically assigned to VHA program areas that do not require specialized knowledge or experience. Since these social workers are not practicing at an independent level, they should not be assigned to program areas where independent practice is required, such as in a CBOC, unless there is a licensed social worker in the program area who can provide supervision for practice. GS-9 social workers provide psychosocial services in the assigned area under supervision. Grade Determinations (GS-11, Full Performance Level) Experience, Education and Licensure. Promotion to the GS-11 full performance level requires completion of a minimum of I year of post-MSW degree experience in the field of health care social work (VA or non-VA experience) and licensure or certification in a state at the independent practice level. OR, In addition to meeting basic requirements, a doctoral degree in social work from a school of social work may be substituted for the required 1 year of professional social work experience in a clinical setting. Assignments. This is the full performance level for social workers. GS-11 social workers are licensed or certified to independently practice social work. They are assigned to all program areas, including inpatient or outpatient medicine, surgery, mental health, neurology, rehabilitation medicine, and geriatrics. Employees provide professional, independent social work services in the assigned area. Preferred Experience: Mental health outpatient or experience working with individuals with severe mental illness preferred References: VA Handbook, Part II, Appendix G39The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-11. The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is in the range of GS 9 to GS 11. Physical Requirements: Ability to physically access various treatment settings within the facility. Ability to use computers frequently/continuously throughout the day for data input and communication. Ability to use phone. Position is primarily sedentary, and incumbent must be able to sit for prolonged periods of time. May require light lifting and carrying (under 10 pounds) and climbing stairs as needed.

Education

IMPORTANT: A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education.

Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/. If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit: http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ous/international/usnei/us/edlite-visitus-forrecog.html.

Contacts

• Address John D Dingell Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center 4646 John R Street Detroit, MI 48201 US
• Name: Janice Uselton
• Phone: 313 942 5488
• Email: [email protected]