The Mental Health Integration (MHI) Social Worker position is administratively aligned with the Mental Health Service and is assigned as a co-located, collaborative and integrated care mental health provider in Oncology. The MHI Social Worker provides brief, evidence-based interventions, education, and consultation services to Veterans, and education and consultation for Specialty Medical Providers and allied team members.

Duties

The MHI Social Worker provides functional assessment, triage, intervention, education, and consultative services regarding a wide range of possible concerns. Consistent with the VA Whole Health philosophy, the MHI Social Worker promotes collaboration in support of the Veteran's Mission/Aspiration/Purpose and awareness of the mental and behavioral aspects of health and well-being. Treat or provide direct patient care within the requirements of practice/privileges/licensure Participate in CDT training activities and demonstrate readiness to apply professional skills to a range of emergency situations Ensure qualifications and required certifications are maintained, including Basic Life Support (BLS), Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS), or Advanced Trauma Life Support (ATLS) certification Maintain CDT physical readiness requirements, vaccinations, and safety precautions related to infection control. The Senior Social Worker selected for this position will need to have experience that demonstrates possession of advanced practice skills and judgment, especially in crisis intervention and working with an interdisciplinary team. They will be using short-term, solution focused counseling with individuals and families who may be in crisis as well as providing education and referral for resources and benefits, case management, and post-intervention follow-up. Duties for the position may include but are not limited to:

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. English Language Proficiency. In accordance with 38 U.S.C. 7402(d), no person shall serve in direct patient care positions unless they are proficient in basic written and spoken English. 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. Note: 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. Licensed or certified by a state to independently practice social work 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. 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: In addition to the basic requirements stated above, the following qualification criteria must be met for each grade. The candidate's qualifications must clearly demonstrate the level of competence required for the grade. Grade Determination: GS 12 Senior Social Worker Licensure/Certification. 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 must be able to provide supervision for licensure. Experience: 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 and 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. 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. Preferred Experience and Certifications Basic Life Support (BLS), Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS), or Advanced Trauma Life Support (ATLS) certification Full independent licensure at the advanced practice level At least two years should be in an area of specialized social work practice. Experience in conducting visits to impacted areas and emergency shelters, possibly in conjunction with VA Disaster Emergency Medical Personal System (DEMPS) or other Emergency Management response protocols Reference: VA Regulations, specifically VA Handbook 5005, Part II, Appendix G-39 Social Worker Qualification Standard. This can be found in the local Human Resources Office. Physical Requirements: See VA Directive and Handbook 5019 Employee Occupational Health Service.

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 Las Vegas VA Medical Center 6900 North Pecos Road North Las Vegas, NV 89086 US
• Name: Lorraine Johnson
• Phone: 918-351-9697
• Email: [email protected]