Job opening: Psychologist
Salary: $82 513 - 152 882 per year
Published at: Jan 24 2024
Employment Type: Full-time
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 for the position may include but are not limited to:
Provides comprehensive psychological assessment and diagnostic services for Veterans with a broad range of psychopathology receiving care, including services for patients with complex psychopathology requiring advanced psycho-diagnostic skills.
Demonstrates expertise in using and contemporary interview and psychometric assessment methods for mental disorders and/or behavioral health conditions.
Provides education to patients and family members regarding mental disorders and best practices approaches to treatment.
Provides evidence-based psychotherapeutic interventions as indicated and appropriate for the specific job setting and duties of the Psychologist, which may include individual, family, and group psychotherapy and psychoeducation.
Provides consultation to health care providers about assessment findings and treatment plan for patients to ensure that care is coordinated, collaborative, and integrated within the Martinsburg VA Medical Center footprint.
Develops, implements, and documents the mental health treatment plan for an assigned caseload of patients, as indicated and appropriate for the specific job setting and duties of the Psychologist.
Complies with all Mental Health Service documentation requirements, including standards for timely completion of CPRS patient contact notes, use of required documentation templates, clinical reminders, treatment plans, and risk assessment protocols.
Adheres to all MVAMC and MHS policies and practices for delivering clinical care, including but not limited to risk assessment and reduction practices for potentially dangerous behavior (suicide and violence), timeliness of care and access standards, professional conduct requirements, and CPRS documentation conventions.
Achieves minimal clinical workload expectations as established by MHS Leadership.
Assists the section, program, or discipline lead in the design, development, and implementation of clinical assessment and/or intervention programs.
Adheres to operational policies and procedures for the treatment team, established by the section, program, or discipline lead or service chief.
Assists the section, program, or discipline lead in the execution of ongoing program evaluation and data-driven quality improvement projects to monitor the effectiveness of the clinical program.
Liaisons with other health care programs in order to effectively coordinate services
Complies with national and local performance measures and facilitates organizational success on these measures at the section or program level
Complies with all MVAMC and MHS policies and expectations concerning administrative practices, including but not limited to leave authorization, responding to suspense items, and completing TMS educational requirements
Attends and participates in administrative and informational meetings held by the Chief of Psychology, the Chief of MHS (or designee), the Chief of Staff, and/or MVAMC leadership.
Attends and participates in monthly Psychology section staff meetings, Psychology training faculty meetings, Psychology section biannual competency review process (OPPE and FPPE), and periodically serves on the Psychology clinical pertinence review committee.
Maintains current knowledge of and practices in accordance with The Joint Commission (TJC), Commission on the Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF), or other accrediting or governing body requirements.
Protects printed and electronic files containing sensitive data in accordance with provisions of Federal privacy acts and confidentiality statutes. Follows regulations and instructions regarding release of sensitive or protected patient or employee information
Other duties as assigned.
Work Schedule: Full time. Monday through Friday 8:00am - 4:30pm.
Telework: Available. Ad-hoc.
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.
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.
Licensure. Applicants 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-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.
Education. Applicant 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 applicants are 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; 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. OR
Have a doctoral degree awarded between 1951 and 1978 from a regionally-accredited institution, with a dissertation primarily psychological in nature.
AND
Internships. Applicants 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. 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.
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 (Entry Level) Requirements:
Experience & Demonstrated KSAs: None beyond the basic requirements.
GS-12 (Developmental Level) Requirements:
Experience: Applicants must have at least 1 year of experience as a professional psychologist equivalent to the next lower grade level (GS-11). In addition, 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.
GS-13 (Full Performance Level) Requirements:
Experience: Applicants must have at least 2 years of experience as a professional psychologist, with at least one year equivalent to the GS-12 level. 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.
The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is in the range of GS-11 to GS-13.
References: VA Handbook 5005, Part II, Appendix G18- Psychologist Qualification Standard, Veteran Health Administration
Physical Requirements: See VA Directive and Handbook 5019, Employee Occupational Health Services.
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:
https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/.
Contacts
- Address Martinsburg VA Medical Center
510 Butler Avenue
Martinsburg, WV 25405
US
- Name: Joseph Hannan
- Phone: 304-268-9384
- Email: [email protected]
Map