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

The Staff Psychologist serves as a Suicide Prevention Program (SPP) Coordinator for Cheyenne, WY, which is assigned concurrently to the Mental Health Service Line (MHSL) and functions as part of the Multidisciplinary Treatment Team comprised of professional and para-professional Mental Health Staff involved in case assessment, treatment, and discharge planning. The incumbent offers Psycho-social Assessment and Treatment to eligible Veterans (Vietnam, WWII, Lebanon, Grenada, Panama, Persian Gulf War, OEF/OIF) and their families and/or significant others. Duties in will include direct service provision and consultation with interdisciplinary staff and other facility leaders. Duties in mental health care settings will include direct service provision. The SPC's contacts with patients and families are to provide professional services in relation to the patient's illness and course of treatment with other professional staff to provide and/or receive consultation and to carry out team functions. Contacts with community agencies are to refer and/or consult in relation to collateral or follow-up services to patients and families, as well as to encourage appropriate case referrals to the SPC. The SPC's functions include but are not limited to: Provides supportive counseling in the development and utilization of community resources. Maintains a list of patients determined to be currently high-risk for suicide and monitor their care to assure that needed services are being received by telephone contact. As needed or appropriate, consults/collaborates with providers of high-risk patients for purposes of education and facilitating best practice. May optionally provide direct patient care for same purpose. Provides training to clinical and non-clinical staff in the Medical Center, Community Based Outpatient Clinics (CBOC's) and community about risk factors, warning signs, treatment options and resources. Promotes the use of evidence-based interventions and strategies for suicide prevention in the Medical Center. Co-chairs with patient safety officer the RCA (Root Cause Analysis) Suicide Team by performing individual case reviews, assisting with preparation of quarterly aggregate summaries, and facilitating recommended system improvements. Responds to consults from the Suicide Prevention Hotline as soon as possible and contacts Veterans to engage them in treatment and reports back to the Hotline Staff about the results of interventions. Facilitates assessment of Suicide in the facility using the Phq 2/9 Suicide Risk Assessment (Pocket Card). Facilitates implementation of reporting high-risk patients through use of the Suicide Behavior Report. Facilitates the implementation of Level II Flags per Central Office Directives. Implements Guide Training throughout CVAHCS, CBOC's, and in the community and sends evaluations to the Center of Excellence. Acts as a liaison to community organizations and Veterans organizations. Provides Tracking Reports to the Center of Excellence for data compilation once a month. Assures that all Veterans on the facility tracking list are being followed closely by the appropriate provider on a regular basis as determined by the coordinator and the provider. Tracks any no-show appointments by these patients and following up with the patient as soon as possible to reschedule the appointment. Maintains awareness of suicide treatment options and making recommendations to the patient's provider when new options become available. Obtains any relevant HIPAA clearances to allow transmittal of facility data on suicide attempts and individuals at risk to the VISN 19 MIRECC for trending and quality assurance purposes; and transmitting the data following cyber security requirements as applicable for this sensitive data. Assures that all these patients have a 24-hour resource number to call and ways to get assistance if an immediate crisis should occur. Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 8:00 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.- Alternate work schedule may be considered with supervisor review and approval, depending on needs of the clinic Compressed/Flexible: May be available with supervisor review and approval, depending on needs of the clinic Telework: Hybrid telework/face to face modality may be considered with supervisor review and approval, depending on needs of the clinic Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Functional Statement #: 58897-A, 58898-A, 58899-A Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized EDRP Authorized: Contact VHA CHY HR Liaisons [email protected] 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: Citizenship: Be a citizen of the United States. Non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy. Basic 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. 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. Psychologists who have successfully completed a re-specialization program as described above and who were employed by the Department of Veterans Affairs prior to the implementation of this standard are considered to have fully met the educational requirements of these qualification standards. OR Have a doctoral degree awarded between 1951 and 1978 from a regionally accredited institution, with a dissertation primarily psychological in nature. AND Internships (See below)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. NOTE: Psychologists who meet the requirements of this revision and who were employed by the Department of Veterans Affairs prior to the implementation of this standard are considered to have fully met the requirements of this qualification standard. 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 Board Certification. Persons hired to psychology positions in the VHA who completed an internship that was not accredited at the time the program was completed must be 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. The board certificate must be current and the applicant must abide by the certifying body's requirement for continuing education. Grandfathering Provision. All persons employed in VHA as a psychologist on the effective date of this qualification standard are considered to have met all qualification requirements for the title, series and grade held, including positive education (i.e. degree and internship requirements), licensure/certification. Grade Determinations: Staff Psychologist, GS-11 (Entry Level) Experience: None beyond the basic requirements. Staff Psychologist, GS-12 (Developmental Level) 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. Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate 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 (Full Performance Level) Experience. At least two years of experience as a professional psychologist, with at least one year equivalent to the GS-12 grade level. Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate 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. 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: Typically, the employee sits comfortably indoors to do the work.

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 Cheyenne VA Medical Center 2360 East Pershing Boulevard Cheyenne, WY 82001 US
• Name: Carrie Konowicz
• Phone: 303-202-8633
• Email: [email protected]