This position is organizationally aligned under Social Work Service, Caregiver Support Program, at the Jesse Brown VA Medical Center, Chicago, IL. The Caregiver Support Program Senior Social Worker for the Program of Comprehensive Assistance to Family Caregivers Team Lead is a Senior Social Worker whose primary responsibilities are to provide clinical evidence-based services and interventions; program development; caregiver, Veteran and staff education on caregiver issues and etc.

Duties

The Senior Social Worker Coordinator is capable of practicing independently at the advanced practice level and has specialized knowledge, skills and abilities of practice related to a diagnosis or special veteran population such as the CSP with complex medical and/or mental health conditions requiring an expert level of psychosocial intervention.The incumbent will function in support of caregivers, veterans, and family members throughout the Medical Center and in the community and will support the development and implementation of the PCAFC. Major Duties: Provides leadership, direction, orientation, coaching, in-service training, staff development, and continuing education programs as assigned. Provides clinical support by facilitating huddles and clinical staffing, providing case consultation as needed, and mentoring new and/or less experienced team members within the CSP. Updates program management of any potential shifting trends in workload or programmatic concerns and assists with providing recommendations to enhance program effectiveness. Serves as a liaison between the CSP staff and the Program Management regarding specific clinical issues concerning veterans and caregivers assigned to this incumbent's team. Assists program leadership in maintaining a data monitoring system to measure the efficacy of the program and assists in collecting and analyzing local data for reports to local management, the VISN CSP Lead, and the National CSP, Care Management and Social Work Service, and Office of Patient Care Services. Conducts regular home visits to Veterans and Caregivers participating in the PCAFC, responds to calls from the National Caregiver Support Hotline, responds to other phone calls and general inquiries regarding the CSP, and assists with general tasks associated with the program. Advises and collaborates with interdisciplinary teams throughout the medical center on caregiver issues. Creates educational tools, develops programs, and implements trainings focused on specific caregiver needs/issues and providing education and in-service training to VAMC employees, Veterans, families, and caregivers. Develops positive, effective relationships with all CSP stakeholders including: Veterans, caregivers, local, state, and federal agencies, as well as non-governmental organizations. Provides referrals to VA medical and mental health treatment and to other VA services including VA benefits, as well as community-based social services and other non-VA entitlement programs. Serve as a consultant for navigating the complex processes caregivers, Veterans, and their families encounter when interacting with government and community agencies. Stays informed regarding current federal and state legislation directed at assisting caregivers to continue to provide caregiving in an environment that is safe for both themselves and the Veteran. Participates in caregiver support activities in the local community and state to promote and recognize the role of the caregiver and participates on state and local caregiver support committees. Assists with coordinating events and programs such as the annual National Family Caregivers Month in November, which includes announcements and advertising of month-long activities, mobilization of participants, educational sessions, caregiver recognition events, and caregiver support programs. Provides crisis intervention services, seeking to address the cause as well as the presenting complaint, coordinates family/caregiver conferences and serves as liaison to family members and caregivers. Participates in direct caregiver and Veteran contacts to assess caregiver stress/burden and the development/application of directed clinical treatment interventions. Provides caregiver and family clinical interventions to facilitate the treatment of caregiver stress, psychiatric illness, emotional distress, and social needs. Actively participates in CSP program conference calls and attend trainings offered by CSP. Maintains familiarity and responsibility for all performance measures relating to the CSP. Adheres to national and local policy and Standards Of Operations (SOPs) for the CSP which includes documentation and statistical compilation requirements as required by JCARHO, GARF, VA and medical center policy. Work Schedule: Monday through Friday, 8:00am - 4:30pm. Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Functional Statement #: 000000 Relocation Incentives: Not Authorized

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: 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 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 Master 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/. References: VA Handbook 5005/120 Part II Appendix G39 Social Worker Qualification Standard GS-0185 Veterans Health Administration 09/20/2019. The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-12. Grade Determinations Social Worker (Program Coordinator), GS-12: In addition to the basic requirements for employment, the following criteria must be met when determining the grade of candidates. (1) Experience and Education. One year of experience equivalent to the GS-11 grade level. Experience must demonstrate possession of advanced practice skills and judgment, demonstrating progressively more professional competency. Candidate may have certification or other post-master's degree training from a nationally recognized professional organization or university that includes a defined curriculum/course of study and internship, or equivalent supervised professional experience. (2) Licensure/Certification. Individuals assigned as social worker program coordinator must be licensed or certified at the advanced practice level, and must be able to provide supervision for licensure. (3) Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSAs: (a) Knowledge of program coordination and administration which includes consultation, negotiation, and monitoring. (b) Knowledge and ability to write policies, procedures, and/or practice guidelines for the program. (c) Ability to supervise multidisciplinary staff assigned to the program. (d) Skill in organizing work, setting priorities, meeting multiple deadlines, and evaluating assigned program area(s). (e) Ability to provide training, orientation, and guidance within clinical practice. (4) Assignments. For all assignments above the full performance level, the higher-level duties must consist of significant scope, complexity (difficulty), and variety and be performed by the incumbent at least 25% of the time. Program coordinators at the GS-12 grade level are administratively responsible for a clinical program providing treatment to Veterans in a major specialty area, such as but not limited to: Spinal Cord Injury, Homeless Continuum Veteran Program, Hospice and Palliative Care Program, Suicide Prevention Program, Veterans Justice Outreach, Caregiver Support Program and Community Nursing Home Program. The program coordinator may be the sole practitioner in this specialty at the facility and typically provide direct patient care services in the program area. The program coordinator oversees the daily operation of the program, develop policies and procedures for program operation, and prepare reports and statistics for facility, VISN, and national use. They may be responsible for the program's budget, developing and monitoring staff compliance with practice, standards and guidelines on documentation, workload, data entry, ethical practice and service delivery. The program coordinator provides analysis and evaluation of clinical program data and computerized programs to identify system-wide trends and needs to enhance the quality of service. They may be responsible for, or contribute to, the program's resource and fiscal management, monitoring control points developing the annual budget, operating within that budget, and accounting for appropriated funds. The program coordinator is administratively responsible for the clinical programming and prepares reports and statistics for facility, VISN, and national use. They provide leadership, direction, orientation, coaching, in-service training, staff development, and continuing education programs for assigned staff. They initiate and conduct a variety of program or service audits and complete designated clinical practice audits and reports, including productivity assessments. They oversee program operations and evaluations, identifying areas for improvement, gathering relevant data, assessing the data, developing and implementing ideas for improvement and evaluating efficacy of improvement efforts. Physical Requirements: The work is primarily sedentary. It may require some lifting (10-20 lbs.) occasionally. Reaching above shoulder; Frequent keyboarding (4-7 hours per day); Sitting (4-7 hours per day); Walking up to 6 hours per day); Standing (up to 8 hours per day); Infrequent climbing/descending of stairs; Some bending; Ability for rapid mental and muscular coordination simultaneously; Correctable near sighted and far sighted vision; Hearing (Aid permitted). Reference: 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: If your school has changed names, or is no longer in existence, you must provide this information in your application.

Note: If your school was accredited by http://www.cswe.org/Accreditation at the time of graduation but is no longer listed on the school website, you must provide documentation of accreditation with your application packet.

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 Jesse Brown Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center 820 South Damen Avenue Chicago, IL 60612 US
• Name: Antonio Olgin
• Phone: 2162127241
• Email: [email protected]