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.

Duties

Duties include but are not limited to: -Program Coordination - The social worker will participate in the development, evaluation, and communication of standards, policies and procedures for the H/HHA and/or VD-HCBS programs. The social worker will educate medical center colleagues and/or students regarding the H/HHA and/or VD-HCBS programs and assist with dissemination of program specific information to other VA facilities and community agencies. The incumbent maintains a current list of active participants in the program. The incumbent is responsible for developing a systematic plan for reviewing and appraising the effectiveness of the H/HHA and/or VD-HCBS program in accordance with VA, VISN, VACO, and local facility policies and procedures. -Oversight - The social worker will assume primary responsibility for management of the H/HHA and/or VD-HCBS programs, as well as report to the Program Oversight Committee. He/She will monitor agency performance via multiple community and Federal resources, incident/complaint reports by both staff, as well as the State, and staff reports regarding the status of Veterans, facility staff, and care as outlined in the most recent VHA Handbook and guidance. -Budget and Data Management - The social worker will track H/HHA and/or VD-HCBS data and identify significant findings. Data collected includes, but is not limited to, the following: average hours authorized, timeliness of services provided, types of services provided, consistency between authorizations for staff members, and Unable to Schedule information. The social worker is responsible for the consult management of the program. -Case Management - The social worker will complete an initial screening of Veterans to determine whether they meet eligibility criteria for inclusion in the H/HHA and/or VD-HCBS programs. The social worker will develop an assessment of the Veteran in collaboration with the H/HHA and VD-HCBS staff, the Veteran, family members and significant others, whenever possible. The social worker is responsible for developing a psychosocial treatment plan and setting achievable treatment goals with the Veteran/family. -Supportive counseling - The incumbent will provide Veterans and their caregivers ongoing supportive counseling. The purpose of such counseling is to deal with the psychosocial impact of coping with chronic/disabling illness(es), onset of catastrophic illness and/or dying, need for non-institutional or institutional services as needed during the course of the Veteran's enrollment in the H/HHA and VD-HCBS Programs. -Referral to service providers - The social worker will serve as a liaison between H/HHA and/or VD-HCBS providers, VA staff, and Veteran/family as well as other NIC Coordinators throughout the country. The social worker is the subject matter expert on other VA and/or community resources. The social worker will collaborate with other service providers in reassessing the Veteran's needs for non-institutional, institutional services/programs and entitlements. -Education/Health promotion and prevention - The social worker provides education related to VA and community resources, entitlements, Advance Directives/Living Will and will refer Veterans/families to the HBPC RN or appropriate VA resource for identified health education needs. -Documentation - The social worker will enter all Veteran/family contacts in the electronic record using appropriate formats and templates. -Staff Management- The social worker has the ability to provide direct supervision to employees assigned to the NIC programs and supervises a group of employees performing work at various GS levels up to their own grade and provides administrative, technical, and clinical supervision necessary for accomplishing the work of the unit. - Performs all other duties as assigned Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 0800 - 1630 Telework: Available Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Functional Statement #: 000000 Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized EDRP Authorized: Please contact the EDRP Coordinator @ [email protected]. Financial Disclosure Report: Not required

Requirements

• You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job
• Designated and/or random drug testing may be required
• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959
• You may be required to serve a probationary period
• Subject to a background/security investigation
• Must be proficient in written and spoken English
• Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process
• Must have a valid state issued drivers license.

Qualifications

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 the CSWE website to verify if that social work degree meets the accreditation standards for a master of 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. Current state requirements may be found on the OHRM website. (Advanced practice clinical licensure is required at the GS-12 grade level) English Language Proficiency. Social workers must be proficient in spoken and written English in accordance with VA Handbook 5005, Part II, chapter 3, section A, paragraph 3j, this part. In addition to the basic requirements for employment, the following criteria must be met to qualify for this series at the GS-12 grade level: Social Worker (Program Coordinator), GS-12 (1) Experience and Education. One year of experience equivalent to the GS-11 grade level. Experience must demonstrate possession of advanced practice skills and judgment, demonstrating progressively more professional competency. Candidate may have certification or other post-master's degree training from a nationally recognized professional organization or university that includes a defined curriculum/course of study and internship, or equivalent supervised professional experience. (2) Licensure/Certification. Individuals assigned as social worker program coordinator must be licensed or certified at the advanced practice level, and 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: (a) Knowledge of program coordination and administration which includes consultation, negotiation, and monitoring. (b) Knowledge and ability to write policies, procedures, and/or practice guidelines for the program. (c) Ability to supervise multidisciplinary staff assigned to the program. (d) Skill in organizing work, setting priorities, meeting multiple deadlines, and evaluating assigned program area(s). (e) Ability to provide training, orientation, and guidance within clinical practice. Assignments. For all assignments above the full performance level, the higher-level duties must consist of significant scope, complexity (difficulty), and variety and be performed by the incumbent at least 25% of the time. Program coordinators at the GS-12 grade level are administratively responsible for a clinical program providing treatment to Veterans in a major specialty area, such as but not limited to: Spinal Cord Injury, Homeless Continuum Veteran Program, Hospice and Palliative Care Program, Suicide Prevention Program, Veterans Justice Outreach, Caregiver Support Program and Community Nursing Home Program. The program coordinator may be the sole practitioner in this specialty at the facility and typically provide direct patient care services in the program area. The program coordinator oversees the daily operation of the program, develop policies and procedures for program operation, and prepare reports and statistics for facility, VISN, and national use. They may be responsible for the program's budget, developing and monitoring staff compliance with practice, standards and guidelines on documentation, workload, data entry, ethical practice and service delivery. The program coordinator provides analysis and evaluation of clinical program data and computerized programs to identify system-wide trends and needs to enhance the quality of service. They may be responsible for, or contribute to, the program's resource and fiscal management, monitoring control points developing the annual budget, operating within that budget, and accounting for appropriated funds. The program coordinator is administratively responsible for the clinical programming and prepares reports and statistics for facility, VISN, and national use. They provide leadership, direction, orientation, coaching, in-service training, staff development, and continuing education programs for assigned staff. They initiate and conduct a variety of program or service audits and complete designated clinical practice audits and reports, including productivity assessments. They oversee program operations and evaluations, identifying areas for improvement, gathering relevant data, assessing the data, developing and implementing ideas for improvement and evaluating efficacy of improvement efforts.] References: VA Handbook 5005/50, Part II, Appendix G39, Social Worker Qualification Standard. A copy can by obtained at the local HR office. Physical Requirements: Heavy lifting (45 lbs. or more), straight pulling (6 hours), pushing (2 hours), use of fingers, walking (6 hours), standing (2 hours), repeated bending (6 hours), operation of motor vehicle, ability to distinguish basic colors, Hearing (aid permitted), working with hands in water, working closely with others. The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-12.

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 VA Puget Sound Health Care System 1660 South Columbian Way Seattle, WA 98108 US
• Name: Hector Jebulan
• Phone: (253) 582-8440 X75538
• Email: [email protected]