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

Psychologists are assigned to any inpatient or outpatient medicine, surgery, mental health., neurology, rehabilitation medicine, and geriatrics. Staff psychologists diagnose mental disorders, conduct psychological and/or neuropsychological assessments, treat mental disorders through a variety of psychotherapeutic modalities and provide adjunctive interventions for treatment of medical disorders. The duties of the Staff Psychologist include, but are not limited to: Provide psychological assessment services to a wide range of Veteran populations, across treatment settings, and for a broad range of psychiatric conditions, including cognitive impairment. Uses measurement-based care in diagnostic decision making, treatment planning, and other decision making. Provides a full range of therapeutic interventions including a commitment to use evidence-based psychotherapies for a wide range of mental health disorders delivered via group and individual psychotherapy modalities, face to face, and via telemedicine equipment. May serve as Mental Health Treatment Coordinator for a panel of Veterans. Conducts evaluations to aid in the differential diagnosis of complex cases. Provides a full range of therapeutic interventions including a commitment to use evidence-based psychotherapies via telemedicine or face-to-face for a wide range of mental health disorders delivered via group and individual psychotherapy modalities. Consults with medical center staff on a wide variety of patient care issues. Is responsible for timely completion of all clinical charting and documentation required by the Medical Center or healthcare system, as appropriate. Serves as a consultant to other medical center staff and trainees and assists in their formulation of the psychological characteristics and appropriate treatment expectations regarding their patients. Assists the Team and/or Service Chief in the execution of ongoing program evaluation and data-driven quality improvement projects to monitor the effectiveness of the clinical program. Adheres to operational policies and procedures f or the treatment team, established by the Service Chief. Participates in duties required by all members of the facility medical staff such as peer review or other duties. Other duties assigned. Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 8:00 am - 4:30 pm Telework: Yes, Suitable for Telework Virtual: This is not a virtual position Functional Statement #: 667-00425F, 667-00426F, 667-00427F 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: United States Citizenship: Non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy. English Language Proficiency Requirement: Per VA Handbook 5005, Part II, Chapter 3, Section A, Paragraph 3j: No person will be appointed under authority of 38 U.S.C., chapter 73 or 74, to serve in a direct patient-care capacity in VHA who is not proficient in written and spoken English. Education Requirement: You must 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. The specialty area of the degree must be consistent with the assignment for which the applicant is to be employed. OR Have a doctoral degree in any area of psychology and, in addition, successfully completed a re-specialization program meeting both of the following conditions: a) the re-specialization program must be completed in an APA or a CPA accredited doctoral program; and b) the specialty in which you were retrained is consistent with the assignment you are am applying for; OR Have a doctoral degree awarded between 1951 and 1978 from a regionally-accredited institution, with a dissertation primarily psychological in nature. Internship Requirement: You must 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. Licensure: Candidates must 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 under the authority of 38 U.S.C. 7405 (c)(2)(B) for a period not to exceed two years from the date of employment on the condition that such a psychologist provide care only under the supervision of a psychologist who is licensed. Failure to obtain licensure during that period is justification for termination of the temporary appointment. 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-11: None beyond basic requirements. Grade Determinations GS-12: Level: at least 1 full year of experience as a professional psychologist equivalent to the GS-11 level. Examples of experience include: diagnose mental disorders, conduct psychological or neuropsychological assessments, treat mental disorders through a variety of modalities, provide adjunctive interventions for treatment of medical disorders, and may conduct research. They may be assigned to any program area.In addition to the experience requirement, candidates must also demonstrate the following Knowledge, Skills and Abilities: 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. Grade Determinations GS-13: At least 2 addition years of experience, with at least one year equivalent to the GS-12 level, as a professional psychologist that was obtained through employment as a psychologist or through participating in a supervised post-doctoral psychology training program that demonstrates.In addition to the experience requirement, candidates must also demonstrate the following Knowledge, Skills and Abilities: Knowledge of, and ability to apply, professional psychological treatments to a 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. Preferred Experience: Preferred experience for the position include: Providing evidence based care for a variety of diagnoses in a general mental health setting. Proficiency with differential diagnosis. Ability to use measurement based care to advance treatment. Use of shared decision making for treatment planning. A commitment to understanding and utilizing research to guide decision making. References: VA Handbook 5005, Part II, Appendix G18.The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-13. The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is in the range of GS-11 to GS-13. Physical Requirements: The work of this position is sedentary in nature and performed in an office setting. It requires the applicant to work closely with others, light lifting (under 15 pounds), light carrying (under 15 pounds), and the ability to hear (hearing aids permitted).

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 New Orleans VA Medical Center 2400 Canal Street New Orleans, LA 70119 US
• Name: Leslie Cruz
• Phone: 228-260-3377
• Email: [email protected]