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

Duties include, but are not limited to: Independently provide mental health and psychosocial assessment and diagnostic services for Veterans with a broad range of mental health issues, including services for patients with a myriad of mental health and psychosocial needs requiring diagnostic and intervention skills. Independently provide a full range of services within the Social Work scope of practice based on Veteran needs, acuity level, and preferences for care. Services may include but are not limited to the following: provision of evidenced based treatments; case management; individual, family, and group therapy; discharge planning; resource linkage; and care coordination. Consult with other disciplines and clinics regarding specialized services. Possess general knowledge of Veteran's benefits and services related to special programs, service-connected compensation, and non-service-connected pension. Develop working relationships with the community and VA providers to whom referrals are most often made and becomes knowledgeable with what community and VA resources are available to Veterans. Independently develop, implement, and document the mental health treatment plan for an assigned caseload of patients. Take responsibility for improving professional competencies by participating in training programs and continuing education. Maintain accurate records of trainings in accordance with VA policies and state licensure requirements. Adhere to all facility and service line policies and practices for delivery of clinical care, including but not limited to risk assessment, means reduction, professional conduct requirements, and electronic medical record conventions. Coordinate community-based services, including information and referral for additional services from other VA programs, other government programs, and community agencies. Able to fulfill ethical responsibilities to Veterans, colleagues, and VA in accordance with NASW Code of Ethics, VHA Code of Ethics, and local ethics policies. Comply with facility and service line policies and expectations concerning administrative practices. Attend and participate in administrative and informational meetings held by facility or service line leadership (or their designee). Maintain current knowledge of, and practices in accordance with, accrediting agency requirements. Collaborate with inpatient treatment providers to support appropriate discharge planning following recommendations for treatment of patients at high risk for suicide. Suicide Prevention specific duties: Serve as a subject matter expert regarding Suicide Prevention. Independently provide consultation and psychoeducation to Veterans, Veteran families on Mental Health conditions, risk reduction, safety planning, and Suicide Prevention. Assure that all veterans assigned to the facility "High Risk for Potential Suicide" list are followed per VACO guidelines. Conduct face to face and/or telephone contact with the veteran to assess their safety and ongoing investment with treatment Track no-show appointments by High-Risk veterans and follow up with the veteran as soon as possible to assess risk and reschedule the appointment Initiate emergency interventions, appropriate to the situation, including but not limited to contacting veteran's identified emergency contact, and /or calling 911 if the safety of a veteran is unable to be established, or if it is determined that the Veteran is at imminent risk for self-harm Contact the veteran's Principal Mental Health Provider to coordinate monitoring activities, tracking appointments and coordinating enhanced care Refer high risk Veterans to appropriate clinical programs within the Service line Develop and present recommendation briefings to the Suicide Risk Reduction Committee for veterans with High-Risk Flag for Suicide Monitor VA Safety Plan completion for high-risk Veterans Collaborate with a Veteran's principal mental health provider to ensure that appropriate behavioral health follow up is in place following activation of a High-Risk Flag. Respond to consults from the VA National Suicide Hotline within 24 business hours Assist with outreach to community resources and programs on a monthly basis to assure that they are aware of how to recognize veterans at risk for suicide and their options for getting these veterans assistance Maintain a caseload of high-risk Veterans. Assist with crisis management of new and existing patients. Work Schedule: Monday - Friday 8:00am - 4:30pm Telework: Available, 3 or more days per pay period. Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Functional Statement #: 000000 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

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements within 30 days of the closing date of this announcement. BASIC REQUIREMENTS: 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). English Language Proficiency. Candidates must be proficient in spoken and written English to be appointed as authorized by 38 U.S.C. § 7403(f). 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. (COPY OF TRANSCRIPT WITH CONFERRED DATE REQUIRED) 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/. Exception. VHA may waive the licensure or certification requirement for persons who are otherwise qualified, pending completion of state prerequisites for licensure/certification examinations. This exception only applies at the GS-9 grade level. For the GS-11 grade level and above, the candidate must be licensed or certified. At the time of appointment, the supervisor, chief social work or social work executive will provide the unlicensed/uncertified social worker with the written requirements for licensure or certification, including the time by which the license or certification must be obtained and the consequences for not becoming licensed or certified by the deadline. (a) For appointments at the GS-9 grade level, VHA social workers who are not licensed or certified at the time of appointment must become licensed or certified at the independent, master's level within three years of their appointment as a II-G39-3 VA HANDBOOK 5005/120 September 10, 2019 PART II APPENDIX G39 II-G39-4 social worker. Most states require two years of post-MSW experience as a prerequisite to taking the licensure/certification exam, and VHA gives social workers one additional year to pass the licensure/certification exam. In states such as California, Washington, and others where the prerequisites for licensure exceed two years, social workers must become licensed at the independent, master's level within one year of meeting the full state prerequisites for licensure. (b) A social worker who does not yet have a license that allows independent practice must be supervised by a licensed independent practitioner of the same discipline who is a VA staff member and who has access to the electronic health record. (c) Different states have different levels of licensure or certification, making it difficult for VHA staff to determine the independent practice level. Each state, Puerto Rico, and the District of Columbia completed surveys identifying the level of licensure or certification allowing independent practice. Copies of the surveys are on file in the VHA Office of Care Management and Social Work Services, and a summary spreadsheet of the levels of licensure or certification is available to social work professional standards board members for purposes of determining whether the social worker's level of licensure or certification meets the VHA qualification standards. All states except California use a series of licensure exams administered by the ASWB. Information can be found at https://www.aswb.org/. The ASWB is the association of boards that regulates social work. ASWB develops and maintains the social work licensing examination used across the country and is a central resource for information on the legal regulation of social work. The ASWB offers three examinations. The master's examination is generally used by states for the independent practice level of licensure or certification, while the advanced generalist and the clinical examinations are used for the advanced practice level of licensure or certification. Differences between the master's and the advanced exams demonstrate the expectation that advanced practice social workers will have a more sophisticated knowledge of practice theory and its application. GRADE DETERMINATIONS: Senior Social Worker, GS-12 Experience/Education. The candidate must have at least two years of experience post advanced practice clinical licensure and should be in a specialized area of social work practice of which, one year must be equivalent to the GS-11 grade level. Senior social workers have experience that demonstrates possession of advanced practice skills and judgment. Senior social workers are experts in their specialized area of practice. Senior social workers may have certification or other post-masters training from a nationally recognized professional organization or university that includes a defined curriculum/course of study and internship or equivalent supervised professional experience in a specialty. Licensure/Certification. Senior social workers must be licensed or certified by a state at the advanced practice level which included an advanced generalist or clinical examination, unless they are grandfathered by the state in which they are licensed to practice at the advanced practice level (except for licenses issued in California, which administers its own clinical examination for advanced practice) and they must be able to provide supervision for licensure. (COPY OF ADVANCE PRACTICE LICENSE REQUIRED FOR GS-12) Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (KSAs). In addition to the experience above, candidates must demonstrate all of the following KSAs: (a) Skill in a range of specialized interventions and treatment modalities used in specialty treatment programs or with special patient populations. This includes individual, group, and/or family counseling or psychotherapy and advanced level psychosocial and/or case management. (b) Ability to incorporate complex multiple causation in differential diagnosis and treatment within approved clinical privileges or scope of practice. (c) Knowledge in developing and implementing methods for measuring effectiveness of social work practice and services in the specialty area, utilizing outcome evaluations to improve treatment services and to design system changes. (d) Ability to provide specialized consultation to colleagues and students on the psychosocial treatment of patients in the service delivery area, as well as role modeling effective social work practice skills. (e) Ability to expand clinical knowledge in the social work profession, and to write policies, procedures, and/or practice guidelines pertaining to the service delivery area. REFERENCES: VA Handbook 5005/120, Part II, Appendix G39, September 10, 2019 The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-12. PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS: Sitting for long periods of time, working closely with others, and working alone.

Education

This position is eligible for the Education Debt Reduction Program (EDRP). If selected for this position, you are encouraged to apply for EDRP within four (4) months of appointment and must meet specific individual eligibility criteria in accordance with VHA Policy 1021. Final award amount and program start date is determined after review of a complete EDRP application, supporting documentation, and final approval by the VHA Education Loan Repayment Services office. Please contact the EDRP Coordinator @ [email protected]

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: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/.

Contacts

• Address VA Puget Sound Health Care System 1660 South Columbian Way Seattle, WA 98108 US
• Name: Randi Tran
• Phone: 509-434-7000 X6680
• Email: [email protected]