This Senior Social Worker serves as the Mental Health Residential Recovery and Treatment Program (MHRRTP) at the Alexandria VA Health Care System main campus. The Senior Social Worker in MHRRTP works closely with an interdisciplinary team in coordinating care for the veteran. He or She completes mental health psychosocial assessments, treatment plans and discharge planning. Provides supportive services to family and caregivers and makes referrals to other clinics or programs at the VA.

Duties

VA offers a comprehensive total rewards package: 2023 VHA Total Reward$ of a Social Worker Career Flyer.pdfThe Mental Health Residential Rehabilitation Treatment Program (RRTP) Staff Psychologist is aligned under the Chief, MHRRTP under Mental Health Product Line (MHPL). The incumbent functions as part of a multidisciplinary team, diagnoses and treats mental disorders, conducts psychological and cognitive assessments, and provides consultation to other providers.Major duties include, but are not limited to: Provide psychoeducation group and individual therapy during residential stay. Assist with discharge planning and coordination of stepped down care. Provide urgent and emergency care to Veterans is expected of all staff members. Collaborates with the other members of the interdisciplinary treatment team in the provision of comprehensive mental health services to Veterans. Identifies and assesses risk, safety, supports and implements appropriate interventions/treatment for those who are experiencing abuse, neglect, exploitation or are experiencing domestic or intimate partner violence. Advises and collaborates with interdisciplinary teams throughout the medical center on abuse, neglect, exploitation and intimate partner violence issues. Performs comprehensive suicide risk screenings and assessments. Develops and integrates safety planning and safety goals into the Veteran's collaborative, individualized treatment plan. Develops and implements methods for measuring effectiveness of psychology practice and services in the specialty area. Provides consultation and education to Veterans/support systems regarding community resources, VA benefits and specialty programs, and advance directives. Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 8:00am-4:30pm Telework: Not Available Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Functional Statement #:502-00490-F Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Not required

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. 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. 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/.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: Social Worker (Senior Social Worker), GS-12 In addition to the basic requirements for employment, the following criteria must be met when determining the grade of candidates Experience and 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. Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSAs: 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. Ability to incorporate complex multiple causation in differential diagnosis and treatment within approved clinical privileges or scope of practice. 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. 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. 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. Reference: VA HANDBOOK 5005/120 September 10, 2019 PART II APPENDIX G39 Preferred Experience: Experience working with those with Substance Abuse Disorders Physical Requirements: Work is primarily sedentary but also demands use of fingers, walking, standing, hearing, light lifting, and carrying light items.

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 Alexandria VA Medical Center 2495 Shreveport Highway Pineville, LA 71360 US
• Name: Rena Hairston
• Phone: 504-521-9608
• Email: [email protected]