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. Program 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

Total-Rewards-of-an-Allied-Health-VA-Career-Brochure.pdf Social Work: vacareers.va.gov/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/Total-Rewards-of-a-Social-Worker-Career-Flyer.pdf The Senior Social Worker-Justice Outreach Social Worker whose primary responsibilities are to provide psychosocial assessments, case management services, continuous quality improvement activities, evaluation/consultation, placement services, and referral and linkage to various community agencies for Veterans who are within 6 months of release from correctional institutions and/or are being monitored by the courts, including treatment or problem solving courts. The Justice Outreach Social Worker is administratively responsible for clinical programming and daily operation of the program, as well as the management of program data. Duties include, but not limited to: Conduct active outreach to Veterans involved with the justice system, including those who may be participants, or candidates for participation, in treatment court programs, including Veterans Courts. Meets with judges, officers of the court, correctional administrators and staff on a regular basis to design and/or maintain appropriate policies and procedures required for each setting. Attends justice system staff trainings relevant to working with offenders and high risk populations and represents the VA at community meetings, seeking or maintaining membership on relevant boards, councils and task forces. Conducts justice-related staff development programs for mental health and other program staff, and provides opportunities for staff to update their mental health professional knowledge and practice skills. Assesses high risk factors, acuity, and the need for services. Establishes a relationship with correctional medical and psychiatric leadership and personnel, where appropriate, to ensure continuity of care and for appropriate back up, if needed, when encountering Veterans in a correctional institution. Functions as an ongoing case manager for justice involved Veterans who are being monitored by treatment courts (and as needed for Veterans released from correctional institutions) by performing duties to facilitate independent community living by coordinating mental health and community care. Collaborates with parish probation officers, prosecutors, public defenders, retained defense counsel, and parole officers as appropriate to develop a post-release plan and/or community-based alternatives to incarceration. Responsible for the assessment, identification, facilitation, referral and linkage to appropriate medical and psychiatric services for Veterans identified as eligible for services. Conducts individual and family clinical interventions to facilitate the identification of substance abuse, psychiatric illness, and social needs as treatment issues. Stays abreast of current theory and treatment modalities by reading professional journals and other relevant publications, and attending conferences, clinic seminars and teleconferences. Provides input into treatment planning to the court and reports on treatment progress in VA services as needed, including, if indicated, treatment-related toxicology testing. Work Schedule: Monday - Friday; 8:00am - 4:30pm, subject to change based on the needs of the facility. Recruitment Incentive (Sign-on Bonus): Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (Relocation Assistance): Not Authorized EDRP Authorized: Former EDRP participants ineligible to apply for incentive. Contact [email protected], the EDRP Coordinator for questions/assistance. Learn more Pay: Competitive salary and regular salary increases When setting pay, a higher step rate of the appropriate grade may be determined after consideration of existing pay, higher or unique qualifications, or special needs of the VA (Above Minimum Rate of the Grade). Paid Time Off: 37-50 days of annual paid time offer per year (13-26 days of annual leave, 13 days of sick leave, 11 paid Federal holidays per year) Selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual, based on prior [work experience] or military service experience. Parental Leave: After 12 months of employment, up to 12 weeks of paid parental leave in connection with the birth, adoption, or foster care placement of a child. Child Care Subsidy: After 60 days of employment, full time employees with a total family income below $144,000 may be eligible for a childcare subsidy up to 25% of total eligible childcare costs for eligible children up to the monthly maximum of $416.66. Retirement: Traditional federal pension (5 years vesting) and federal 401K with up to 5% in contributions by VA Insurance: Federal health/vision/dental/term life/long-term care (many federal insurance programs can be carried into retirement) Telework: Not Available Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Functional Statement #: 502-00510-F 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: 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. 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. 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: 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. Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. In addition to the experience above, candidates 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. (KSAs must be clearly reflected in resume under description of duties in order to be found qualified for this position/grade level). Preferred Experience: None References: VA Handbook 5005 Appendix G39 The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-12. Physical Requirements: May require standing, lifting, carrying, sitting, stooping, bending, pulling, and pushing. May be required to wear personal protective equipment and undergo annual TB screening or testing as conditions of employment.

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: Teri Bankhead
• Phone: 2057719942
• Email: [email protected]