The incumbent is assigned to work in the neuropsychological assessment and psychological assessment units of the Psychology Section at the VA Caribbean Healthcare System. The individual provides a variety of technical psychological and psychoeducational services within full and comprehensive programs developed by professional psychologists.

Duties

***THIS IS NOT A VIRTUAL POSITION, YOU MUST LIVE WITHIN OR BE WILLING TO RELOCATE WITHIN A COMMUTABLE DISTANCE OF THE DUTY LOCATION*** Major Duties: Performs psychological and neuropsychological assessment procedures to include conducting structured interviews, evaluation of suicidal and homicidal potential, and administering standard tests of intelligence, and achievement, standard tests of memory and other cognitive functions, and traditional cognitive screening tools. Administers and scores traditional measures for purpose of assessment of emotional status, personality, and/or functional capability. Provides psychoeducation to patients and their families on various psychological issues and their management. Operates equipment such as tape recorders, slide projectors, and specialized assessment equipment, as well as has sufficient computer sophistication for purposes of data entry, scoring, and the like. Organizes the caseload and scheduling of referrals in a manner to provide timely assessment and expeditious handling of priority referrals. Provides patients and/or significant others with a rational for specific testing procedures. Ensures the cooperation of patient during the entire assessment and procedure. Demonstrates sensitivity to disabled patients and the ability to adapt assessment approaches or procedures in a manner to meet any special problems. Provides verbal and/or written observations of patient test behavior and physical characteristics that might have some bearing on test performance. Provides timely and appropriate documentation in accordance with VA policy for purposes of communication of progress in completion of consultation requests and/or for purposes of communication of any pertinent observations of patient status. Provides timely, organized and legible presentation of patient data and, when necessary, tabular or graphic presentations of data. Work Schedule: M-F (8am - 4:30pm) Recruitment & Relocation Incentives: Not authorized

Requirements

Qualifications

ENGLISH AND SPANISH LANGUAGES 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 and Spanish. You must be proficient in basic written and spoken English and Spanish in order to meet the requirements of this position. EDUCATION REQUIREMENT: Completion of a bachelor's degree or higher from an accredited college or university with a major in an appropriate social or biological science, which included or was supplemented by 12 semester hours in psychology. NOTE: You must submit copies of transcripts at the time of application. Education will not be credited without documentation. Please ensure that your transcripts show that a degree was conferred. Display copies of degrees or course listings do not provide the information needed. ~ AND ~ In addition to the above requirement, in order to meet the minimum qualifications for this position at the GS- 9 level you must have: Experience: Two years of technical work under the direction of a professional psychologist. At least 6 months of this experience must be comparable in difficulty and responsibility to the next lower grade in the Federal service (GS-8), or 1 year comparable to the second lower grade (GS-7). Technical duties include experience with one or more of the following: (1) Assisting in research as in systematic collection of psychology research data, recording and collecting data, preparing tabular or graphic presentation of data, in accordance with a predetermined research plan; (2) Assisting counseling psychologists in contacting potential employers for the purpose of making vocational placement, providing follow-up consultation, administering and scoring of interest, achievement and aptitude tests, securing work history and other relevant vocational information; (3) Assisting neuropsychologists in administering and scoring of selected tests of neuropsychology battery in accordance with clearly defined procedures; or (4) Assisting psychologists in completing behavior rating scales or in conducting behavior modification. NOTE: Experience under the direction of a professional psychologist is required and MUST be documented on your resume. Applicants wishing to receive credit for such experience must indicate clearly the nature of their duties and responsibilities in each position and the number of hours a week spent in such employment. ~OR~ Education: Two (2) full years of graduate study in psychology in an accredited college or university may be substituted for 2 years of experience and meets in full the requirements at the GS-9 level. Transcripts must be submitted at the time of application. You will be rated on the following Competencies as part of the assessment questionnaire for this position: CommunicationManages and Organizes InformationPsychological AssessmentPsychology IMPORTANT: A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week. All experience listed on your resume must include the month and year start/end dates. Part-time experience will be credited on the basis of time actually spent in appropriate activities. Applicants wishing to receive credit for such experience must indicate clearly the nature of their duties and responsibilities in each position and the number of hours a week spent in such employment. Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religious; spiritual; community; student; social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. Physical Requirements: Applicants must be physically and mentally able to efficiently perform the essential functions of the position without hazard to themselves or others. Depending on the essential duties of a specific position, usable vision, color vision, hearing, or speech may be required. However, in most cases, a specific physical condition or impairment will not automatically disqualify an applicant for appointment. The loss or impairment of a specific function may be compensated for by the satisfactory use of a prosthesis or mechanical aid. Reasonable accommodation may also be considered in determining an applicant's ability to perform the duties of a position. Reasonable accommodation may include, but is not limited to: the use of assistive devices, job modification or restructuring, provision of readers and interpreters, or adjusted work schedules. For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/.

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: Recognition of Foreign Qualifications | International Affairs Office (ed.gov).

Contacts

• Address San Juan VA Medical Center 10 Calle Casia San Juan, PR 00921 US
• Name: VHA National Recruitment Center
• Phone: (844)456-5208
• Email: [email protected]