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

This psychologist will be a member of the Behavioral Health Integrated Program, Mental Health Service Line providing direct psychological services, and participate on a comprehensive, interdisciplinary treatment planning in the context of an interdisciplinary treatment team. This individual may also provide coverage in other geriatrics and extended care settings. Specific duties include: 1. Providing screening, assessment, diagnosis, and treatment of depressive and anxiety-related disorders, as well as other mood conditions, with an emphasis on the application of time-limited, evidence based approaches. 2. Assessing and providing treatments for subclinical symptoms of dysphoria and anxiety, adjustment difficulties, and excessive use or misuse of alcohol or other drugs (for which the patient may have a lower than-normal tolerance due to their medical conditions and the potential for negative interactions with prescribed medication). 3. Providing psychological prevention services to patients at significant risk for psychological problems. 4.Providing services to the families of Veterans with dementia, when such care is directly related to the overall treatment plan for the Veteran and will allow better care for the Veteran and allow the family to sustain the Veteran in the home environment. 5.Providing clinical services through the use of tele-mental health/tele-home technology. 6. Providing screening for cognitive deficits to address specific functional questions or to determine if a referral for a complete neuropsychological evaluation or dementia assessment is needed. 7. Performing capacity/competency assessments when there are questions about a patient's ability to make medical decisions, perform other specific functions, or live independently. 8. Assessing patients' understanding of advanced directives and other forms of consent and assisting staff in determining how to present treatment options and other such material to patients in a format they can understand. 9. Providing individual and group interventions to support patients that are coping with feelings of grief and loss associated with disability and other life transitions. 10. Providing psychoeducational and supportive interventions for spouses, family members/caregivers, and others that are crucial to keeping the Veteran at home 11. Providing effective interventions with couples or families, when appropriate, to relieve relationship difficulties, provide support to caregivers of Veterans with dementia or other significant frailty, and/or promote collaboration, for the benefit of the Veteran. 12. Facilitating transition and adjustment to new living situations (e.g., nursing home, assisted living facility), and providing seamless intervention services, as appropriate. 13. Providing behavioral medicine interventions to manage pain, disability, address sleep problems, facilitate weight loss, promote smoking cessation, and enhance medical compliance. 14. Provides consultation to other staff, nursing and primary care physicians, and mental health professionals concerning assessment findings and treatment plans for patients. This consultation is in the service of ensuring that care is coordinated, collaborative, and integrated within the provider team in the primary care setting. 15. Assists the supervisors, MHSL Chief in the design, development, and implementation of clinical programs for a team of treatment providers. 16. Assists supervisors, MHSL Chief in the execution of ongoing program evaluation and data-driven quality improvement projects to monitor the effectiveness of the clinical program. 17. Facilitates liaisons with other health care programs in order to effectively coordinate services. 18. Complies with national and local performance measures and clinical reminders, including timely health care screening and completion of clinical reminders for all patients. 19. Complies with all CPRS documentation procedures, including timeliness standards for documentation and proper patient check out procedures 20. Provides crisis intervention when indicated including evaluation, assessment, triage, initiation of / support in Emergency Detention procedures, and disposition of patients experiencing behavioral health emergencies. 21. Provides supportive counseling in the development and utilization of community resources. 22. Is required to maintain current BLS and/or First Aid certification and remain current on all licensures. Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 8:00am - 4:30pm Compressed/Flexible:May be considered with supervisory review and approval Telework: May be considered with supervisory review and approval Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Functional Statement #: PD53358A Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized EDRP Authorized: Contact [email protected], the EDRP Coordinator for questions/assistance. Learn more Permanent Change of Station (PCS): 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: Citizenship: Be a citizen of the United States. Non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy. Basic Education. 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. Currently, APA accredits doctoral programs in the specialty areas of clinical psychology, counseling psychology, school psychology, or combinations of two or more of those areas. PCSAS accredits doctoral programs in psychological clinical science. CPA accredits doctoral programs in clinical psychology, counseling psychology, clinical neuropsychology, and school psychology. There are no job assignments in VHA that require the skills of a school psychologist; therefore, an applicant with a degree in the specialty area of school psychology is not eligible for appointment. Strictly for the purpose of determining eligibility for appointment as a psychologist in VHA, there is no distinction between the specialty areas (with the exception of school psychology). OR Have a doctoral degree in any area of psychology and, in addition, successfully complete a re-specialization program (including documentation of an approved internship completed as part of the 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 the applicant is retrained must be consistent with the assignment for which the applicant is to be employed. NOTE: The applicant must provide an official transcript and/or certificate documenting the completion of the re-specialization program, which includes completion of an APA or CPA internship. Psychologists who have successfully completed a re-specialization program as described above and who were employed by the Department of Veterans Affairs prior to the implementation of this standard are considered to have fully met the educational requirements of these qualification standards. OR Have a doctoral degree awarded between 1951 and 1978 from a regionally accredited institution, with a dissertation primarily psychological in nature. AND Internships 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. OR 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. NOTE: Psychologists who meet the requirements of this revision and who were employed by the Department of Veterans Affairs prior to the implementation of this standard are considered to have fully met the requirements of this qualification standard. Licensure. 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. Exception. Non-licensed applicants who otherwise meet the eligibility requirements may be given a temporary appointment as a "graduate psychologist" at the GS-11 or GS-12 grade Grade Determinations: 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. Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate 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. Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate 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. References: VA HANDBOOK 5005/103, PART II, APPENDIX G18 The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-13. The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected is in the range of GS-11 to GS-13. Physical Requirements: This position requires potentially long periods of continued walking; standing; sitting, bending; carrying of light items such as papers, books, small parts; or driving an automobile; etc. Use of fingers, both hands required, ability for rapid mental and muscular coordination simultaneously, near vision correctable at 13" to 16", hearing (aid permitted), clear distinctive speech.

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 Cheyenne VA Medical Center 2360 East Pershing Boulevard Cheyenne, WY 82001 US
• Name: Tiffany Mansell
• Phone: 407-631-8640
• Email: [email protected]