The Social Work position is in Social Work services at the Bedford Healthcare Systems located at the Bedford Massachusetts location. This position is full-time at 40 hours per week. The Social Worker duties and responsibilities are assigned to the care management of Veterans in the Community Nursing Home (CNH) Program. Responsibilities include the management, coordination and provision of social work services to Veterans and their families in community nursing home settings.

Duties

The Social Worker provides comprehensive psychosocial and case management services to Veterans placed in community nursing homes facilities under the auspice of VA paid care. Duties include but are limited to: Assesses and monitors the medical status, psychiatric condition, and behavior of Veterans in the CNH program; Provides comprehensive case management, care coordination, and social work services for Veterans in the CNH program; Provides consultation, education, support, and referrals to the Veterans, their families, and the community nursing homes to ensure optimal functioning of Veterans in the nursing home; Participates as a member of the interdisciplinary treatment team by collaborating with treatment team members both at VA and at the community nursing home; Completes administrative tasks relative to admission and/or discharge for a VA community nursing home placement Serves as a liaison between Veterans, their families, the community nursing homes, and VA to address concerns and challenges encountered while the Veteran is in the community nursing home placement; Acts as primary clinical liaison to VA partnered home and community service providers, and provide ongoing communication, collaboration, and partnership with these VA partnered providers; Assists in completion of annual and/or intermittent quality management tasks, such as customer satisfaction surveys, annual reviews of CMS data for community nursing homes, and nursing home documentation reviews; Develops projects and will participate in projects designed to evaluate, and improve upon, social work activities in the assigned programs; Obtains considerable knowledge in the realm of geriatric services and programs offered by VA, other government programs, and community programs; Possess a working knowledge of medical and mental health diagnoses, disabilities, and treatment procedures, including acute, chronic and traumatic illnesses, common medications and their effects/side effects, and medical terminology; and Other Duties as assigned. VA Careers - Social Work: https://youtube.com/embed/enRhz_ua_UU EDRP Verbiage: 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. Work Schedule: Monday-Friday; 8:00am-4:30pm. Telework: Available/Ad-hoc telework available based upon facility and program needs. Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Functional Statement #: 518-F05672 Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Not required EDRP Authorized: Contact Karen Chapman, the EDRP Coordinator, for questions/assistance, at: [email protected] Learn more Notifications: This position is in the Excepted Service. Due to a critical staffing shortage, 38 U.S.C. § 7412 waives the requirement to apply Veterans' preference for this job announcement. This position is a NAGE Bargaining Unit position. This position is covered by locality-based comparability pay. Narrative responses to the knowledge, skills and abilities (KSAs) may be required from the selectee in order to proceed with the appointment. Incomplete applications will not be considered.

Requirements

Qualifications

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 masters 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/. d. Physical Requirements. See VA Directive and Handbook 5019, Employee Occupational Health Services. e. English Language Proficiency. Candidates must be proficient in spoken and written English to be appointed as authorized by 38 U.S.C. § 7403(f). Grade Determinations: Social Worker, GS-11 (1) Experience and Licensure. Appointment to the GS-11 grade level requires completion of a minimum of one year of post-MSW experience equivalent to the GS-9 grade level in the field of health care or other social work-related settings, (VA or non-VA experience) and licensure or certification in a state at the independent practice level. NOTE: For appointment licensure or certification at this level please refer to paragraph 3c. OR (2) Education. In addition to meeting basic requirements, a doctoral degree in social work from a school of social work may be substituted for the required one year of professional social work experience in a clinical setting. (3) Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. In addition to the experience above, candidates must demonstrate all of the following KSAs: (a) Knowledge of community resources, how to make appropriate referrals to community and other governmental agencies for services, and ability to coordinate services. (b) Skill in independently conducting psychosocial assessments and treatment interventions to a wide variety of individuals from various socio-economic, cultural, ethnic, educational and other diversified backgrounds. (c) Knowledge of medical and mental health diagnoses, disabilities and treatment procedures (i.e. acute, chronic and traumatic illnesses/injuries, common medications and their effects/side effects, and medical terminology) to formulate a treatment plan. (d) Skill in independently implementing different treatment modalities in working with individuals, families, and groups who are experiencing a variety of psychiatric, medical, and social problems to achieve treatment goals. (e) Ability to provide consultation services to new social workers, social work graduate students, and other staff about the psychosocial needs of patients and the impact of psychosocial problems on health care and compliance with treatment. References: VA Handbook 5005, Part II Appendix G39, Social Worker Qualification Standard GS-185 Veterans Health Administration. Physical Requirements: See VA Handbook 5019.

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 Bedford Healthcare System 200 Springs Road Bedford, MA 01730 US
• Name: Jessenia Plaza
• Phone: (781) 473-6094
• Email: [email protected]