The Columbia Veterans Health Administration is hiring a Senior Social Worker for the Home Based Primary Care Program. The VA Home Based Primary Care (HBPC) program provides comprehensive, interdisciplinary primary care services in the homes of Veterans with complex, chronic, and disabling diseases. In addition to primary care interventions, HBPC provides palliative care, rehabilitation, disease management, and care coordination services.

Duties

Total Rewards: 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 Major duties may include, but are not limited to: Clinical: The Home Based Primary Care (HBPC) Mental Health Senior Social Worker functions as the primary mental health provider of the HBPC team, providing specialized mental health prevention, assessment, treatment, management, and professional consultation services. Provides advanced screening, assessment, diagnosis, and treatment of depressive and anxiety-related disorders, as well as other mental health conditions as outlined in the DMS-5 with the exception to personality disorder, with an emphasis on the application of time-limited, evidence-based approaches. Assesses and provides specialized treatments for subclinical symptoms of dysphoria and anxiety, adjustment difficulties, and excessive use or misuse of alcohol or other drugs (for which the patient may have a lower-than-normal tolerance due to their medical conditions and the potential for negative interactions with prescribed medication). Provides mental health prevention services to patients at significant risk for mental illnesses. Facilitates transitions and adjustments to new living situations (e.g., nursing home, assisted living), and providing seamless intervention services, as appropriate. Provides behavioral medicine interventions to manage pain, sleep problems, facilitate weight loss, promote smoking cessation, and enhance medical compliance. Promotes communication/ interactions between medical team members, patients, and their families to facilitate the medical treatment process. Crisis Intervention: The HBPC Senior Mental Health Social Worker is experienced in making rapid assessments and developing crisis management plans for admission to mental health inpatient programs. Social Worker has access to multiple resource directories in addition to previously developed resources to meet the demands of a crisis. In the event of a medical or psychiatric emergency, staff will follow the protocol of the mental health clinic at the Columbia VAMC. With all alleged abuse cases the Social Worker will process them according to policy. The incumbent will ensure the HBPC Social Work Supervisor or Chief of Social Work Services is kept informed of any concerns within patient and community facilities. At all times the incumbent will represent the VA in the community. Administrative Responsibilities: The HBPC Mental Health Social Worker will enter all Veteran/family contacts in the electronic health records using appropriate formats and templates. This information will be entered in a complete, confidential, and professional manner. Electronic Health Record documentation will be reviewed regularly. The HBPC Senior Social Worker will establish and maintain positive working relationships with employees, volunteers, consumers, and stakeholders within the VA and outside community agencies. The HBPC Senior Social Worker will attend all appropriate staff meetings, HBPC Social Work Monthly Meeting, and HBPC Social Work Monthly Huddles. He/She will also collaborate in the performance improvement process and comply with performance measures as required by the VA for specific populations and/or programs. Work Schedule: Monday - Friday | 8:00am - 4:30pm Recruitment Incentive (Sign-on Bonus): Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (Relocation Assistance): Not Authorized 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) 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: Available Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Functional Statement #:544-55687F 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 SW Licensure Summary by State. 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 (1) 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. (2) 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. (3) Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. In addition to the experience above, candidates must demonstrate all of the following KSAs. (a) 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. (b) Ability to incorporate complex multiple causation in differential diagnosis and treatment within approved clinical privileges or scope of practice. (c) 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. (d) 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. (e) 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: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/. Preferred Experience: Must have a valid drivers license and be able to drive GSA vehicles. Must be able to complete home visits as part of the job requirements. 1-2 years of social work employed experience working in mental health and primary care. The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-11. The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is GS-12. Physical Requirements: See VA Directive and Handbook 5019.

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 Columbia VA Health Care System 6439 Garners Ferry Road Columbia, SC 29209 US
• Name: Greta Kirby
• Email: [email protected]