The Health Care for Homeless Veterans (HCHV) Outreach Social Worker is responsible for monitoring Veterans that are homeless, at risk of homelessness, as well as initiating and coordinating services to ensure housing retention for those at-risk Veterans in need of ongoing HCHV Case Management and/or disengaged from VA services or not enrolled.

Duties

VA Careers - Social Work: https://youtube.com/embed/enRhz_ua_UU Major Duties: Responsible for assessing all Veterans that enter into the HCHV program. This includes identifying all psychosocial needs of the Veteran and determining the appropriate services required. Verifies the veteran's status, eligibility for VA medical care, and eligibility of program participation. Conduct a thorough clinical assessment of Veteran, offer treatment recommendations, and place consults/referrals to such as needed. Performs community-based outreach activities as directed by the Homeless Programs Coordinator. Responsible for following and maintaining a process for referrals and admissions into any HCHV Programs and ensures that Veterans in HCHV are considered primary participants for program acceptance. Responsible for collecting and submitting HOMES assessments as indicated. Responsible for working with the local Continuum of Care (COC), COC subcommittees and Homeless Housing Task Forces committees, along with ensuring VA is in compliance with COC. 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. Actively participates in the HCHV clinical meetings and offers insight into Veterans clinical care needs. Actively participates in program planning and development, advising the supervisor of shifting trends with caseloads and identifying the need for and making recommendations on program procedure or policy changes based upon work experiences. Provides comprehensive case management/placement services to veterans and their families. Conduct psychosocial assessments to determine needs of veterans and family members. Provide individual, family and group counseling as appropriate. Provide consultation/education to veterans and families on community resources, advance directives and VA benefits. Provide case management to veterans and families, as needed, throughout the continuum of care. Provide a full range of case management services within commonly accepted standards of practice which includes case work, individual, family and group counseling, discharge planning, case management and other services as appropriate. Maintain data and statistical compilations to comply with JCAHO, CARF, VA and medical center policy and procedures. Assist patients and their significant others with coping and dealing with the loss and grief experiences in disability, terminal illness and death. Performs assessment, evaluation, and treatment for patients individually, in group and/or in family therapy. Provides crisis intervention, social work case management, education on Advance Directives, grief counseling, guidance, advocacy, supportive counseling, and recovery focused counseling and other treatment approaches that may be necessary. Assess patient's apparent level of intelligence, behavior, and personality variable. Responsible for selection of a recovery intervention modality, monitoring the patient's safety and assess progress in all indicated treatment modalities and, with the consultation of the treatment team, termination of services. Works closely with Suicide Prevention Coordinator and REACH Coordinator. Judges effectiveness of techniques and when indicated seeks advice from the clinical treatment team or adjusts practices if therapies seen ineffective. Continually monitors patient's progress. Determines when reassessment is appropriate; adjusts treatment plan. Reviews case files of patients to assess treatment progress, adequacy of record keeping, and fulfillment of rehabilitation and recovery guidelines. Meets with inter-disciplinary treatment team members to discuss adjustment in treatment. Respond quickly and comprehensively to psychiatric emergencies developing an appropriate action plan and monitoring for safe outcome. Reviews assessments/assists patients with the development of recovery goals/needs/interventions. Completes discharge/transition and progress notes in a timely manner. Assist other disciplines in identifying cases in which a veteran could benefit from social work treatment of intervention. Supervise training activities of student Social Work interns and participates in the Social Work Student committee. Develops and maintains appropriate communications, rapport and positive relationships with colleagues and a variety of institutions, organizations and service providers within and outside of the organization. Provides consultation on the impact of psychosocial problems on health care and adherence to treatment plans. Other duties as assigned. Work Schedule: M-F 8:00 am - 4:30 pm Telework: Not Available Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Functional Statement #: 000000 Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Not require

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. 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/. 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 at the GS-9 grade level. 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). Grandfathering Provision. The following is the standard grandfathering policy for all title 38 hybrid qualification standards. Please carefully review the qualification standard to determine the specific education and/or licensure/certification/registration requirements that apply to this occupation. (1) All persons employed in VHA in this occupation on the effective date of this qualification standard are considered to have met all qualification requirements for the title, series and grade held, including positive education and licensure or certification that are part of the basic requirements of the occupation. For employees who do not meet all of the basic requirements in this standard, but who met the qualifications applicable to the position at the time they were appointed to it, the following provisions apply: (2) Such employees in an occupation that requires a licensure or certification, may be reassigned, promoted up to and including the full performance (journey) level, or changed to lower grade within the occupation, but may not be promoted beyond the journey level or placed in supervisory or managerial positions. (3) Employees who are appointed on a temporary basis prior to the effective date of the qualification standard may not have their temporary appointment extended or be reappointed, on a temporary or permanent basis, until they fully meet the basic requirements of the standard. (4) Employees initially grandfathered into this occupation, who subsequently obtain additional education and/or licensure/certification/registration that meet all of the basic requirements of this qualification standard must maintain the required credentials as a condition of employment in the occupation. (5) If an employee who was retained in an occupation listed in 38 U.S.C. 7401(3) under this provision leaves that occupation, the employee loses protected status and must meet the full VA qualification standard requirements in effect at the time of reentry to the occupation. NOTE: If social workers covered under the grandfathering provision of the 1991 Federal law regarding licensure or certification of VHA social workers leave the GS0185 social work series, they lose the grandfathering protection. If they choose to return at a later date to the GS-0185 series, they must be licensed or certified to qualify for employment as a social worker. Grade Determinations: GS-9 Experience, Education, and Licensure. None beyond the basic requirements. Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSAs: (a) Ability to work with Veterans and family members from various socioeconomic, cultural, ethnic, educational, and other diversified backgrounds utilizing counseling skills. (b) Ability to assess the psychosocial functioning and needs of Veterans and their family members, and to formulate and implement a treatment plan, identifying the Veterans problems, strengths, weaknesses, coping skills, and assistance needed. (c) Ability to implement treatment modalities in working with individuals, families, and groups to achieve treatment goals. This requires judgment and skill in utilizing supportive, problem solving, or crisis intervention techniques. (d) Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships and communicate with clients, staff, and representatives of community agencies. (e) Fundamental knowledge of medical and mental health diagnoses, disabilities, and treatment procedures. This includes acute, chronic, and traumatic illnesses/injuries; common medications and their effects/side effects; and medical terminology. GS-11 Experience and Licensure. Appointment to the GS-11 grade level requires completion of a minimum of one year of post-MSW experience equivalent to the GS-9 grade level in the field of health care or other social work-related settings, (VA or non- VA experience) and licensure or certification in a state at the independent practice level. OR Education. In addition to meeting basic requirements, a doctoral degree in social work from a school of social work may be substituted for the required one year of professional social work experience in a clinical setting. Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. In addition to the experience above, candidates must demonstrate all of the following KSAs: (a) Knowledge of community resources, how to make appropriate referrals to community and other governmental agencies for services, and ability to coordinate services. (b) Skill in independently conducting psychosocial assessments and treatment interventions to a wide variety of individuals from various socio-economic, cultural, ethnic, educational and other diversified backgrounds. (c) Knowledge of medical and mental health diagnoses, disabilities and treatment procedures (i.e. acute, chronic and traumatic illnesses/injuries, common medications and their effects/side effects, and medical terminology) to formulate a treatment plan. (d) Skill in independently implementing different treatment modalities in working with individuals, families, and groups who are experiencing a variety of psychiatric, medical, and social problems to achieve treatment goals. (e) Ability to provide consultation services to new social workers, social work graduate students, and other staff about the psychosocial needs of patients and the impact of psychosocial problems on health care and compliance with treatment. References: VA Handbook 5005 Part II Appendix G39 The 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: See VA Directive and Handbook 5019, Employee Occupational Health Services. 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

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 Bath VA Medical Center 76 Veterans Avenue Bath, NY 14810 US
• Name: Rebekka Fandrey
• Phone: 0000000000
• Email: [email protected]