The incumbent in this social work position is assigned to the Housing Urban Development VA Supportive Housing (HUD VASH) Program, a Social Work program within the Mental Health Service Line (MHSL). This program is a collaborative program with HUD, supported through HUD's Section 8 rental assistance vouchers and VA's provision of intensive case management services. The primary goal of HUD-VASH is to move Veterans out of homelessness and into permanent housing.

Duties

The incumbent is responsible for serving as the program's lead coordinator with 6 partnered local Public Housing Authorities (PHAs) to ensure Veterans remain house. The incumbent will work primarily with the HUD VASH intake team to ensure Veterans who are homeless are housed quickly. Primary duties are to coordinate with the intake team and PHA's to ensure Veterans who are homeless are issued "vouchers" timely. The incumbent will develop and maintain relationships with community landlords to assist in locating open units and provide supporting services to Veterans living in their homes. The social worker will work closely with the primary care clinicians and the interdisciplinary teams that assist veteran consumers in meeting their goals and objectives within a psychosocial rehabilitation framework that allow for successful reintegration into community living. Clients tend to have frequent and severe crises, and lack a family or community support network. Clients also may be poor at self-monitoring, and frequently fail to comply with medical or legal instructions. They may have significant deficits in coping skills, and require continuing professional support. Plans, develops and maintains a network of relationships with community resources and other advocates for the homeless to effectively screen and identify veteran members of the homeless population. Depending upon need, the Social Worker makes VA or community based referrals, advocates for scarce resources, confirms referrals are completed and provides intensive follow-up and coordination with these agencies. Serve as the main point of contact for the Housing Authority of Cook County and 5 other local public housing authorities within Hines catchment area. Serves as point of contact for Public Housing Authorities not partnered with Hines VA Hospital. Remain available to both HCHV staff and Veterans regarding questions, concerns or consultation with respect to HUD-VASH and any housing related needs. Coordinate attendance of monthly eligibility and moves briefings with the Housing Authority of Cook County. Interviews potential clients, interprets VHA guidelines and eligibility requirements and completes a psychosocial history and assessment. Develops an appropriate treatment plan. Using known available resources and the initial assessment makes initial and continuing decisions regarding the services available and referrals needed. Decisions are based upon the employee's professional judgment with regards to the individual's rehabilitative potential and possible consequences of less controlled rehabilitative efforts. Other duties as assigned Work Schedule: M-F DAY SHIFT Compressed/Flexible: 9 Day Compressed Schedules may be considered Telework: Some telework may be suitable for qualified candidate Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized 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. 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 SW Licensure Summary by State English Language Proficiency. Candidates must be proficient in spoken and written English to be appointed as authorized by 38 U.S.C. ? 7403(f). 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: GS 12 Social Worker 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. 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. References: VA Handbook 5005 Part II Appendix G39

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 Edward Hines Junior Hospital 5000 South 5th Avenue Hines, IL 60141 US
• Name: Vanessa Houliston
• Phone: 725-210-2766
• Email: [email protected]