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

Major duties include but not limited to: Provides a full range of psychotherapeutic service, crisis intervention, or other psychological intervention to guarantee the highest quality of psychological care as appropriate. Highly qualified candidates will have experience providing Evidence Based Practice modalities to treat PTSD and related diagnoses. Particular emphasis will be placed upon the evidence-based treatments for PTSD, especially Prolonged Exposure Therapy (PE) and Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT). Must be able to provide individual, couples and group treatment including consultations with spouses, partners, and families, and/or psychoeducational services. Provides diagnostic psychological assessment, general psychological evaluations for the assessment of basic cognitive functioning, current emotional status and/or personality structure, diagnostic clarification, as well as evaluations in specific areas such as risk of harm to self or others, and substance abuse/chemical dependency and or assessment of severe mental illness. Engages as an active member of the multidisciplinary TSRP clinical team, meeting or exceeding direct service hours expectations and regularly contributing to team goals, morale, and interpersonal relationships among members of the team. Assumes a collaborative role with other providers and clinics within Mental Health Service, providing consultation in the area of PTSD concerning clinical assessment findings and appropriate treatment plans; Consults with other Medical Center and CBOC staff to address the impact of psychological areas of functioning on broader health care issues. Completes all treatment-related and case management administrative duties within the identified standards of quality and timeliness established within the facility. Accepts additional short-term clinical duties as assigned for the benefit of the team or larger mental health clinic - (e.g., irregular travel to Guam, Saipan, American Samoa, etc.) May perform initial screening and diagnostic assessments for veterans with the full spectrum of mental health disorders to include psychotic disorders, affective disorders, anxiety disorders including PTSD, substance use disorders, and/or with a dual diagnosis. Focus will be on assessing for dangerousness and determining the appropriate initial treatment. Consults with other Medical Center staff to address the impact of psychological areas of functioning on broader health care issues. Fully accountable for practice, including entering patient visits, completing encounters, resolving consults, appropriate clinical documentation, measuring outcomes to interventions, and meeting productivity standards. Utilizes tele-mental health as a medium for delivering psychological services as appropriate, consultation and education as needed and appropriate. Consults with medical center staff on a wide variety of patient care issues; routinely provides recovery-oriented consultation to Mental Health and other medical center staff. Serve as an active participant in the Psychology Training Program as needed with special emphasis on providing supervision of trainees working within TSRP. May supervise the clinical work carried out by interns and/or postdoctoral fellows. Participates in the Psychology training programs as a clinical supervisor, mentor or advisor, preceptor, and/or member of the Psychology Training Committee. Will be involved as appropriate in the implementation of Psychology training policies and procedures, assessing the competency of psychology trainees, and participating in continuous improvement of the Psychology training program including aspects related to the self-study and/or site visit for renewal of APA Accreditation. Work Schedule: Monday - Friday 7:30 AM - 4:00 PM Telework: Telework, if approved, will be on an Ad-Hoc basis only. Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: May be authorized to highly qualified applicants. EDRP Authorized: Contact [email protected], the EDRP Coordinator for questions/assistance. Learn more

Requirements

Qualifications

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: Must be proficient in written and spoken English 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. The specialty area of the degree must be consistent with the assignment for which the applicant is to be employed. For the purpose of meeting this requirement, the term "specialty area" refers to the specific specialty areas recognized by the accrediting body and not to specific job duties that might require special skills. 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. 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. 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 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: Staff Psychologist, GS-11 Experience: None beyond the basic requirements. Staff Psychologist, GS-12 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. Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate all of 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 Experience: At least two years of experience as a professional psychologist, with at least one year equivalent to the GS-12 grade level. Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate all of 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. Preferred experience: Experience in evidence-based treatments for PTSD (e.g., PE, CPT, EMDR, WET) preferred. Experience with veteran patients preferred. 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 for this vacancy is in the range of GS-11 to GS-13. Physical Requirements: Work is primarily sedentary. May require prolonged standing, moderate walking, and manual dexterity. Requires carrying light items such as books, files, or laptop computer.

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 Spark M Matsunaga Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center 459 Patterson Road Honolulu, HI 96819 US
• Name: Omar Smith
• Phone: 9155647517
• Email: [email protected]