The psychologist in the mental health clinic provides comprehensive mental and behavioral health treatment to Veterans and their families. This position is located in the Newington, Connecticut VA Mental Health Clinic.

Duties

This position is eligible for the Education Debt Reduction Program (EDRP), a student loan payment reimbursement program. You must meet specific individual eligibility requirements in accordance with VHA policy and submit your EDRP application within four months of appointment. Approval, award amount (up to $200,000) and eligibility period (one to five years) are determined by the VHA Education Loan Repayment Services program office after complete review of the EDRP application. The psychologist in the mental health clinic provides comprehensive mental and behavioral health treatment to Veterans and their families. These services often focus on, but are not exclusive to PTSD, mood disorders, depression, anxiety disorders, complicated grief, other stress-related disorders, and co-occurring conditions such as substance use. The psychologist also screens for mental health issues, diagnoses mental disorders, provides brief or more extensive behavioral interventions that address chronic disease management, and within the capacity of the Veteran, makes referrals or connections to appropriate VA and non-VA services and supports. Duties include but are not limited to: A. Clinical Responsibilities: Provides treatment for a full range of mental health disorders through a variety of modalities, including individual, couples, and group treatment formats. Within the scope of privileges granted, provide adjunctive interventions for the treatment of psychological disorders associated with medical problems. Conducts initial screenings of referred patients, either in a primary care setting, a walk-in clinic, or a mental health clinic, to assess current symptoms and level of psychosocial functioning, and make referrals based on VA guidelines, policies, and the patient's ability to benefit from various programs. Consults with medical center staff on a wide variety of patient care issues. Responsible for timely completion of all clinical charting and documentation required by the VA Healthcare System. When appropriate, consults with, and educates other professional staff about how mental health issues may be impacting a patient's medical condition(s) and treatment adherence. Functions independently as a member of the VACHS Medical Staff, with full clinical privileges. B. Academic/Teaching/Training: May hold faculty appointment at affiliated university, Yale and/or University of Connecticut. Provides clinical supervision to various trainees, including pre-doctoral psychology interns, postdoctoral psychology fellows, unlicensed psychology staff, and, at times, psychiatry residents. Involved in Psychology Training Programs and Training Committee and presents relevant educational seminars to trainees. Serves as a consultant to other medical center staff and trainees to help them understand the psychological characteristics of their patients that impact treatment adherence and medical outcomes. Provides training to other professional and non-professional staff within and outside the medical center via lectures or presentations when requested. C. Other Significant Responsibilities: Represents the Medical Center or Healthcare System at professional/program community group/events and committees, as designated by the Chief, Psychology Service, Chief, Mental Health Care Line, and/or Hospital Director. Maintains competency as a psychologist in his/her areas of specialization through continuing education and other activities as required for the position. Represents the Medical Center or Healthcare System at professional/program community group/events and committees including efforts to reduce stigmatization against individuals with mental illness. Other duties as assigned (e.g., Employee Assistance Program, as designated by the Chief, Psychology Service). Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 8:30 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. Telework: Available. Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Functional Statement #: F03353 Financial Disclosure Report: Not required

Requirements

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 Requirement: Per VA Handbook 5005, Part II, Chapter 3, Section A, Paragraph 3j: No person will be appointed under authority of 38 U.S.C., chapter 73 or 74, to serve in a direct patient-care capacity in VHA who is not proficient in written and spoken English. Education Requirement: You must have a doctoral degree in psychology from a graduate program in psychology accredited by the American Psychological Association (APA), the Psychological Clinical Science Accreditation System (PCSAS), or the Canadian Psychological Association (CPA) at the time the program was completed. The specialty area of the degree must be consistent with the assignment for which the applicant is to be employed. OR, have a doctoral degree in any area of psychology and, in addition, successfully completed a re-specialization program meeting both of the following conditions: the re-specialization program must be completed in an APA or a CPA accredited doctoral program; and the specialty in which you were retrained is consistent with the assignment you are am applying for; OR, have a doctoral degree awarded between 1951 and 1978 from a regionally-accredited institution, with a dissertation primarily psychological in nature. AND Internship Requirement: You must have successfully completed a professional psychology internship training program that was accredited by APA or CPA at the time the program was completed and that is consistent with the assignment for which the applicant is to be employed. OR, New VHA psychology internship programs that are in the process of applying for APA accreditation are acceptable in fulfillment of the internship requirement, provided that such programs were sanctioned by the VHA Central Office Program Director for Psychology and the VHA Office of Academic Affiliations at the time that the individual was an intern. OR, VHA facilities that offered full-time, one-year pre-doctoral internships prior to PL 96-151 (pre-1979) are considered to be acceptable in fulfillment of the internship requirement. OR, Applicants who completed an internship that was not accredited by APA or CPA at the time the program was completed may be considered eligible for hire only if they are currently board certified by the American Board of Professional Psychology in a specialty area that is consistent with the assignment for which the applicant is to be employed. (NOTE: Once board certified, the employee is required to maintain board certification). NOTE: Applicants who have a doctoral degree awarded between 1951 and 1978 from a regionally-accredited institution with a dissertation primarily psychological in nature may fulfill this internship requirement by having the equivalent of a one-year supervised internship experience in a site specifically acceptable to the candidate's doctoral program. If the internship experience is not noted on the applicant's official transcript, the applicant must provide a statement from the doctoral program verifying that the equivalent of a one-year supervised internship experience was completed in a site acceptable to the doctoral program. Licensure: Candidates must hold a full, current, and unrestricted license to practice psychology at the doctoral level in a State, Territory or Commonwealth of the United States, or the District of Columbia. 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 the basic requirements for employment, the following criteria must be met when determining the grade of candidates: Staff Psychologist, GS-11 (Entry Level) Experience. None beyond the basic requirements. Staff Psychologist, GS-12 (Developmental Level) Experience. At least one year of experience as a professional psychologist equivalent to the next lower grade level (GS-11 ). Psychologists who are not licensed must practice under the supervision of a licensed psychologist but with less intense supervision than at the GS-11 grade level. Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSAs: Knowledge of and ability to apply a wide range of professional psychological treatments or assessment methods to a variety of patient populations. Ability to design and implement effective treatment strategies. Ability to incorporate new clinical procedures. Ability to conduct research activities, such as designing and implementing clinical research projects (staff psychologists with specified research job duties). Ability to perform basic research tasks of scholarship and research execution within the context of an established research team, including research participant relations, research documentation, data acquisition, maintenance, and collaboration. Staff Psychologist, GS-13 (Full Performance, Level) Experience. At least two years of experience as a professional psychologist, with at least one year equivalent to the GS-12 grade level. Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSAs: Knowledge of, and ability to apply, professional psychological treatments to the full range of patient populations. Ability to provide professional advice and consultation in areas related to professional psychology and behavioral health. Knowledge of clinical research literature. The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-13.The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is GS-11, GS-12 or GS-13. References: VA HANDBOOK 5005/103 PART II APPENDIX G18 Physical Requirements: The incumbent must be able to exercise a high degree of emotional and mental discipline at all times in order to continue to carry out duties effectively. This is especially necessary during time periods when the incumbent encounters significant or extreme duress as a result of interactions with patients.

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 West Haven VA Medical Center 950 Campbell Avenue West Haven, CT 06516 US
• Name: Joyce Jarrett
• Phone: 413-584-4040 X6703
• Email: [email protected]