The incumbent serves as a Supervisory Chaplain professional performing supervisory and senior clinical assignments for the VHA. The incumbent provides comprehensive religious, spiritual, and pastoral care to all persons that are commensurate with the needs, desires, and voluntary consent of the Veteran, caregiver, or staff.

Duties

Robert J Dole VA Medical Center committed to Diversity and Inclusion. Together, we strive to create and maintain a working and learning environment that promotes professional growth and teamwork. We offer an inclusive, equitable, and welcoming environment where we celebrate our individual differences and unite as a team toward a common goal of providing outstanding service to our Nation's Veterans. Duties include, but are not limited to: Supervise subordinate chaplains and/or visiting assistants. Provides extended and intensive pastoral counseling with patients facing complex, ethical, moral, and spiritual issues. Ensures program effectiveness and modification of service pattern, which includes research and leadership of clinical teams. Practices typically in a specialized clinic/program area, that may include intensive and extended pastoral counseling as an integral part of the treatment program, with patients facing complex moral, ethical, or spiritual problems. Serves as a Chaplain representative and a fully recognized member of an interdisciplinary treatment team (IDT). Provides leadership, direction, orientation, coaching, in-service training, staff development, and continuing education programs. Conducts comprehensive religious services and worship, pastoral ministry, and administration of Chaplain services. Leads various complex and sensitive projects, task groups, and assignments to obtain pertinent high-level information needed for Chaplain Service management officials. Engages as a spiritual leader, a compassionate listener, and counselor, especially during times of crisis. Provides emotional support and counseling using empathy and strong interpersonal skills to effectively connect with people of all ages. Ensures various complex assignments are carried out in a pluralistic environment, which encompasses sensitivity to the religious needs of many separate religious denominations and faith groups. Provides thorough spiritual leadership, offers prayers, and provides overall religious services for Veteran patients, patient families, staff, and community. Conducts regular rounds of hospital wards where patients are critically ill. . Provides advance care planning education, information, and counsel for patients and their families. Provides pastoral ministry to patients with respect to the patient's faith group.. Builds strong interpersonal relationships with patients and ensures all patients are provided opportunities for the free exercise of religion. Provides chaplain service expertise to exchange information relative to the background and current condition of patients. Work Schedule: Monday-Friday 8:00am-4:30pm Telework: Ad-Hoc Telework may be available at supervisory discretion. Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Functional Statement #: FS#/000000 Financial Disclosure Report: Not required

Requirements

Qualifications

Basic Requirements: Citizenship. Citizen of the United States (U.S.). Non-citizens may be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with 38 U.S.C. § 7407(a). Education. Applicants must possess a Master of Divinity degree or equivalent educational qualifications as evidenced by a graduate-level theological degree from a college, university or theological school accredited by a member of the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA) or Association of Theological Schools (ATS) and recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. OR Foreign Education. To be creditable, theological or related education completed outside the U.S. must be submitted to a current affiliate agency of the National Association of Credential Evaluation Services (NACES) listed at https://www.naces.org/members. Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE). Applicants must have completed four units of CPE from a CPE center that is accredited by an organization recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. Ecclesiastical Endorsement. In accordance with 38 C.F.R. § 17.655, ecclesiastical endorsement is a condition of employment as a VA chaplain. An individual must possess and maintain a full and active ecclesiastical endorsement to be employed as a VA chaplain. Applicants must have an ecclesiastical endorsement, dated within the past 12 months. Ecclesiastical endorsements must be from the official national endorsing authority of the applicant's/employee's faith group or denomination. Ecclesiastical endorsement is a written official statement, by the official national endorsing body of the faith group or denomination, certifying that the applicant is in good standing with the applicant's faith group or denomination; and stating that the individual is, in the opinion of the endorsing body, qualified to perform the full range of ministry required in the VA pluralistic setting. Loss of endorsement will result in removal from the GS-0060 Chaplain series and may result in termination of employment. The National Chaplain Service maintains a list of approved endorsing organizations that can be found here: https://www.patientcare.va.gov/chaplain/Employment_Information_and_Resources.asp Board Certification. Applicants must be a Board Certified Chaplain certified by the Board of Chaplaincy Certification Inc. (BCCI) ® or nationally recognized certification body that utilizes the BCCI ® Common Qualifications and Competencies for Professional Chaplaincy or a certifying organization that has a reciprocity agreement with BCCI ®. Physical Requirements. See VA Directive and Handbook 5019, Employee Occupational Health Service. Physical requirements listed below. English Language Proficiency. Chaplains must be proficient in spoken and written English to be appointed as authorized by 38 U.S.C. § 7403(f). GS-12 Chaplain (Supervisory) Experience: In addition to basic requirements, you must possess at least one year of creditable experience equivalent to the next lower grade level GS-11 that is directly related to the position to be filled. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: provides advance care planning education, information, and counsel for patients and their families; provides guidance and/or support for patients to express values through processes such as life review, oral history, and end of life preparation and documentation; develops pastoral care programs that are measurable, outcome-driven, and evidence-based in coordination with the department guidelines; provides pastoral counseling on medical and ethical matters, including but not limited to, moral injury, problems of conscience, family or marital difficulties, justice or confinement matters, terminal diagnoses, or crisis; supports the development of staff resiliency by providing emotional and spiritual support and compassionate presence and develops programs for staff development and wellness; provides education and equips other healthcare staff and trainees to screen for spiritual and religious needs, and the importance of appropriate referrals to chaplains for complex spiritual distress; coordinates with community organizations to ensure the provision of comprehensive spiritual care, and engaging community resources to meet religious needs of patients that cannot be met by chaplain staff. Must demonstrate the following Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (KSAs): Knowledge of administrative, personnel, resource management and strategic planning for chaplaincy and chaplain pastoral education programs. Ability to provide the full range of supervisory duties which include responsibility for assignment of work, performance evaluations, selection of staff and recommendation of awards, advancements, and disciplinary actions. Skill in interpersonal relationships including conflict resolution and ability to work collaboratively with managers from other departments. Ability to develop local policy, productivity, and clinical practice standards. Ability to align local chaplaincy services and programming with the strategic goals and objectives of all levels of the agency, department, or organization. Ability to ensure compliance with chaplaincy practice, policy, and accreditation standards across the continuum of health care. Skill in providing consultation to facility leadership, managers and other staff on all religious expression and spiritual care. References: VA Handbook 5005, Part II, Appendix G67 Supervisory Chaplain Qualification Standard GS-0060. Physical Requirements: This position requires the Chaplain to meaningfully engage with Veteran patients and family members by walking and moving within the healthcare setting or with the incumbent using an assistive device. The Chaplain is required to speak, hear (hearing aid permitted) and work closely with others.

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 Robert J Dole VA Medical and Regional Office Center 5500 East Kellogg Drive Wichita, KS 67218 US
• Name: Brett Schmalstieg
• Phone: 913-682-2000
• Email: [email protected]