This position is located within VHA Vocational Rehabilitation Service (VHA Voc Rehab) at the Anchorage VA Medical Center (VAMC), which is part of the Alaska VA Health Care System (HCS). VHA Voc Rehab Service programs are recovery-oriented clinical vocational rehabilitation services that offer an array of vocational, educational, training, employment, and therapeutic work services.

Duties

Provide a variety of professional rehabilitation counseling services such as personal adjustment counseling, therapeutic rehabilitation interventions and case coordination services, utilizing evidence-informed and evidence-based modalities and professional counseling practices to aid Veterans with severe disabilities in achieving competitive employment and educational and independent living goals. Uses effective counseling skills to promote self-awareness, adjustment to disability, enhanced job retention and successful integration to the community. Conduct biopsychosocial assessments using medical records, pertinent disability documentation, observation and interviews with Veterans and their support systems to generate personal, vocational, and educational histories. Selects, administers, and interprets vocational and other psychometric instruments to evaluate abilities, transferrable skills, functional capacity, labor market analyses, aptitudes, interests, values, preferences, and overall work resilience and synthesize into an interpretive data report. Customizes vocational exploration activities to identify self-determined rehabilitation needs and goals. Administers Measurement Based Care instrument to track progress throughout treatment and adjust goals and services as needed. Consult with interdisciplinary teams to enhance coordination of care, ensure medical clearance, and provide for optimal timing of further interventions. Synthesize assessment information to identify barriers to employment and their vocational implications. Completes various quality assurance and improvement activities to improve services provided. Determine clinical need for and capacity to benefit from therapeutic and rehabilitation services to include work restoration/resilience treatment, transitional work placement and/or competitive employment, assistive technology, financial benefits counseling and potential benefits protections. Develop patient-centered treatment plans utilizing Specific, Measurable, Agreed upon, Realistic, and Time-based (SMART) goals and provides ongoing assessment of Veteran's progress. Procures and manages transitional work agreements from community, state, and federal agencies. Monitors worksite compliance with agreements to ensure Veterans are appropriately trained and evaluated consistent with industry standards. Devises solutions to reduce and/or eliminate barriers and meet Veterans' placement needs which may require substantial modification to environmental or functional demands within a work setting. Provide psychoeducational and/or psychotherapeutic groups to facilitate effective job search skills, employer-desired soft skills, work and life skills fostering independence and recovery. Provides job development, customized employment, job carving, job coaching, job accommodation, advocacy, and adaptation services to both Veterans with severe disabilities and to educate and support employers. Uses marketing strategies to develop collaborative partnerships/Memorandums of Agreement within the VA and the local business community to enhance employment and/or work opportunities. Establishes and maintains a liaison between the Medical Center and organizations within the community which provide competitive employment opportunities for Veterans. Provide disability education and program-specific training to staff and stakeholders. Communicates appropriately with community health care professionals to provide useful input to other team members and employers concerning the Veteran and the family's psychosocial needs. Provides supervision to graduate level rehabilitation counseling students from an accredited affiliated educational institution, including educational experiences, and in-service education for trainees, rehabilitation staff, and other disciplines. Uses rehabilitation counseling theory, medical and psychiatric terminology, and symptomology and signs of suicidal and homicidal ideations to provide effective services. Provides professional recommendations and guidance regarding the career development processes and job analysis methodology to determine essential functions of jobs, worksite modifications and/or alternative vocational goals given the work history and residual functional capacities of individuals with disabilities. Utilizes knowledge of the military culture, military transition to civilian occupations, and specific factors and dynamics associated with Veterans, particularly combat Veterans, to advise those who are returning to the community, and community-based work. Adheres to the professional rehabilitation standards of the Joint Commission and CARF. Work Schedule: 8AM - 4:30PM, Monday - Friday Telework: Available (Ad-hoc) Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Functional Statement #: 00000 Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Not required

Requirements

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements within 30 days of the closing date of this announcement. 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: Candidates must be a citizen of the United States. Non-citizens may be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified candidates in accordance with 38 U.S.C. 7407(a). 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: Rehabilitation Counselor, GS-09 Experience. None beyond the basic requirements. Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills and Abilities (KSAs). In addition to meeting the experience or educational requirements for this grade level, the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSAs: (a) Knowledge of human development and behavior, medical, psychosocial, and vocational aspects of disability and differential influences of environmental and cultural factors to assist persons with disabilities in determining suitable vocational goals. (b) Knowledge of history, philosophy and disability rights legislation in the field of rehabilitation to apply in the practice of rehabilitation counseling. (c) Ability to synthesize assessment and diagnosis information in conjunction with labor market trends and community/educational resources to develop an effective individual service delivery plan. (d) Knowledge of caseload management strategies to maximize an individual's independent functioning from assessment through provision of post-employment services. (e) Ability to employ person-centered job development strategies to facilitate successful job placement. (f) Knowledge of assessment tools and methods, functional capacity evaluations and specific vocational preparation to evaluate transferrable skills, residual capacities and needs for accommodations and assistive technology. Rehabilitation Counselor, GS-11 Experience. Completion of one year of professional experience equivalent to the next lower grade level directly related to the position being filled. OR, Education. A doctoral degree in rehabilitation counselor education or related field (e.g. rehabilitation psychology) from a CACREP accredited institution or from an institution accredited by a national or regional accrediting body accredited by CHEA. Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills and Abilities. In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSAs: (a) Knowledge of physical and psychological disabilities, appropriate accommodations and assistive technology principles to mitigate and reduce or eliminate barriers to integrate into the community. (b) Knowledge of counseling theory, medical and psychiatric terminology and signs and symptomology of suicidal and homicidal ideations, to communicate appropriately with community health care professionals to provide useful input to other team members and employers in relation to the Veteran and/or his/her family's psychosocial needs and to recommend and help implement suitable treatment plans. (c) Ability to use evidence-based and evidence informed vocational and professional counseling practices to include individual placement and support (IPS), customized employment and supported employment models and motivational interviewing skills to promote self-awareness, adjustment to disability, enhanced job retention and successful integration to the community. (d) Knowledge of career development processes and job analysis methodology to determine essential functions of jobs, worksite modifications and/or alternative vocational goals given the work history and residual functional capacities of individuals with disabilities. (e) Ability to administer and interpret a wide variety of assessment methods including transferrable skills and labor market analyses to evaluate for individual interests, aptitudes and abilities and to identify suitable vocational goals for the development of an effective individual service delivery plan. (f) Knowledge of marketing strategies to develop collaborative partnerships/Memorandums of Agreement within VA and local business community to enhance employment and/or work opportunities. (g) Knowledge of military culture and specific factors and dynamics associated with Veterans, particularly combat Veterans, to assist those who are returning to community and community based-work. Preferred Experience: Experience with supportive employment and experience with substance use disorder populations References: VA Handbook 5005/133, Part II, Appendix G62, July 21, 2020 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: Light lifting (under 15 lbs.), moderate carrying (15 - 44 lbs.), use of fingers, walking, standing, operation of motor vehicle, near vision correctable at 13" to 16" to Jaeger 1 to 4, far vision correctable in one eye to 20/20 and to 20/40 in the other, both eyes, hearing (aid may be permitted), and emotional/mental stability. Environmental factors include working outside and inside, dry atmospheric conditions, working closely with others, and working alone.

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 Anchorage VA Medical Center 1201 North Muldoon Road Anchorage, AK 99504 US
• Name: Gabriel Johnson
• Phone: (503) 220-8262 X53014
• Email: [email protected]