The VA Liaison for Healthcare (hereinafter referred to as VA Liaison) is seen as the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) representative to the military installation and must represent the VA in all aspects of patient care, transfer and outreach. The primary role of the VA Liaison is to ensure the transfer of health care, both inpatient and outpatient, from the Military Treatment Facility (MTF) to the appropriate VA health care facility.

Duties

Assigned duties but not limited to: Work closely with the MTF treatment team as an independent practitioner; using advanced practice skills and expertise to provide ongoing consultation regarding complex discharge planning issues; and VA health care benefits, resources and facilities. Develop relationships and collaborating with the MTF social workers, nurses, case managers, managed care staff, and discharge planners to identify patients . Identify the patient's health care and psychosocial needs and include requests For VHA health care services to ensure Clinical and Consult Orders or authorizations. Provide education and an overview of VA health benefits and resources, and to address current medical and psychosocial issues identified as part of the service member's treatment plan. Use advanced clinical skills to assess the patient and family's psychosocial situation, their ability to comprehend and comply with VA's treatment plan determined by the MTF staff, and any special needs of the patient and family that may impact reaching optimal psychosocial functioning. Register active-duty service members or enroll Veterans at their facility utilizing the referral information. Collaborate with MTF social workers, nurses and case managers to identify the VA health care facility where care will be transferred to an accepting physician at that facility. Communicate with various agencies and departments at the national, state and local level in ensuring the seamless transition of health care. Develop, gather, and apply new data as needed in order to successfully plan for and implement program goals and projections. Prepare reports, briefs, and presentations for VA staff at all levels, DOD staff, Congressional Staff, Community Organizations, etc., regarding the Seamless Transition process and specific mechanics of their program. Work Schedule: 8:00 am - 4:30 pm, Monday - Friday Compressed/Flexible : Not Available Telework: Not Available Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Position Title/Functional Statement #:Senior Social Worker /53061F Financial Disclosure Report: Not required

Requirements

• You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job
• All applicants tentatively selected for VA employment in a testing designated position are subject to urinalysis to screen for illegal drug use prior to appointment. Applicants who refuse to be tested will be denied employment with VA.
• 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
• Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP)
• Participation in the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Personnel

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: The basic requirements for employment as a VHA social worker are prescribed by statute in 38 U.S.C. § 7402(b)(9), as amended by section 205 of Public Law 106-419, enacted November 1, 2000. To qualify for appointment as a social worker in VHA, all applicants must meet the following: a. Citizenship. Be a citizen of the United States. (Non-citizens may be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with chapter 3, section A, paragraph 3g this part). b. 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 Master of Social Work. c. 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/ 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). Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. In addition to the experience above, candidates must demonstrate all the following KSAs: (a) Skill in a range of specialized interventions and treatment modalities used in specialty treatment programs or with special patient populations. This includes individual, group, and/or family counseling or psychotherapy and advanced level psychosocial and/or case management. (b) Ability to incorporate complex multiple causation in differential diagnosis and treatment within approved clinical privileges or scope of practice. (c) Knowledge in developing and implementing methods for measuring effectiveness of social work practice and services in the specialty area, utilizing outcome evaluations to improve treatment services and to design system changes. (d) Ability to provide specialized consultation to colleagues and students on the psychosocial treatment of patients in the service delivery area, as well as role modeling effective social work practice skills. (e) Ability to expand clinical knowledge in the social work profession, and to write policies, procedures, and/or practice guidelines pertaining to the service delivery area. Grade Determination: Senior Social Worker, GS-12 Experience/Education. The candidate must have at least two years of experience post advanced practice clinical licensure and should be in a specialized area of social work practice of which, one year must be equivalent to the GS-11 grade level. Senior social workers have experience that demonstrates possession of advanced practice skills and judgment. Senior social workers are experts in their specialized area of practice. Senior social workers may have certification or other post-masters training from a nationally recognized professional organization or university that includes a defined curriculum/course of study and internship or equivalent supervised professional experience in a specialty. Licensure/Certification. Senior social workers must be licensed or certified by a state at the advanced practice level which included an advanced generalist or clinical examination, unless they are grandfathered by the state in which they are licensed to practice at the advanced practice level (except for licenses issued in California, which administers its own clinical examination for advanced practice) and they must be able to provide supervision for licensure. Preferred Experience: preferred outpatient mental health experience as a psychotherapist. References: VA Handbook 5005/50, Part II, Appendix G39, SOCIAL WORKER QUALIFICATION STANDARD, dated February 29, 2012. The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-0185-12. Physical Requirements: Satisfactory physical examination as determined by the Employee Health Unit upon appointment only. See VA Directive and Handbook 5019 (http://vaww1.va.gov/ohrm/HRLibrary/Dir-Policy.htm ). Functional requirements include light lifting under 15 lbs, light carrying 15-44 lbs, walking and standing and standing for up to 8 hours, use of rapid mental and muscular coordination simultaneously, ability to read type written characters (glasses permitted), ability to hear the whispered voice (hearing aid permitted), repeated bending for up to 8 hours, etc.

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 Ralph H Johnson Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center 109 Bee Street Charleston, SC 29401 US
• Name: Seve Irby
• Phone: (813) 614 -7811
• Email: [email protected]