Mental Health Social Worker (Education Debt Repayment Approved)

Full Job Description

This position is eligible for the Education Debt Reduction Program (EDRP), a student loan payment reimbursement program.

You must meet specific eligibility requirements per VHA policy and submit your EDRP application within four months of appointment.

Program Approval, award amount (up to $200,000) & eligibility period (one to five years) are determined by the VHA Education Loan Repayment Services program office after review of the EDRP application.

Former EDRP participants ineligible to apply.

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.

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 http://vaww.va.gov/OHRM/T38Hybrid/. Exception.

VHA may waive the licensure or certification requirement for persons who are otherwise qualified, pending completion of state prerequisites for licensure/certification examinations.

This exception only applies at the GS-9 grade level. For the GS-11 grade level and above, the candidate must be licensed or certified.

At the time of appointment, the supervisor, chief social work or social work executive will provide the unlicensed/uncertified social worker with the written requirements for licensure or certification, including the time by which the license or certification must be obtained and the consequences for not becoming licensed or certified by the deadline.

Loss of Licensure or Certification. Once licensed or certified, social workers must maintain a full, valid, and unrestricted independent license or certification to remain qualified for employment.

Loss of licensure or certification will result in removal from the GS-0185 social worker series and may result in termination of employment. English Language Proficiency.

Candidates must be proficient in spoken and written English to be appointed as authorized by 38 U.S.C. 7403(f).

Current employees 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 for employment, the following criteria must be met when determining the grade of candidates.

Social Worker, GS-9 Experience and Licensure: None beyond the basic requirements.

Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities: Ability to work with Veterans and family members from various socioeconomic, cultural, ethnic, educational, and other diversified backgrounds utilizing counseling skills.

Ability to assess the psychosocial functioning and needs of Veterans and their family members, and to formulate and implement a treatment plan, identifying the Veterans problems, strengths, weaknesses, coping skills, and assistance needed.

Ability to implement treatment modalities in working with individuals, families, and groups to achieve treatment goals.

This requires judgment and skill in utilizing supportive, problem solving, or crisis intervention techniques.

Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships and communicate with clients, staff, and representatives of community agencies.

Fundamental knowledge of medical and mental health diagnoses, disabilities, and treatment procedures.

This includes acute, chronic, and traumatic illnesses/injuries; common medications and their effects/side effects; and medical terminology. Social Worker, GS-11 Experience and Licensure.

Appointment to the GS-11 grade level requires completion of a minimum of one year of post-MSW experience equivalent to the GS-9 grade level in the field of health care or other social work-related settings, (VA or non-VA experience).

Examples of specialized experience include but are not limited to: Working under close supervision in program areas that do not require specialized knowledge or experience.

Identifying behaviors or symptoms of abuse, neglect or exploitation; providing education on advance directives and advanced care planning; providing social work case management; acting as an advocate with community service providers/agencies when it serves the best interest of the patient and family members/caregiver; assessing the psychosocial functioning and needs of patients and their family members identifying strengths, weaknesses, coping skills and psychosocial acuity, in collaboration with the patient, family, and interdisciplinary treatment teams; maintaining a current network of internal and external resources to educate the patient and/or family members/caregivers and assist with the appropriate referrals and licensure or certification in a state at the independent practice level.

OR Education.

In addition to meeting basic requirements, a doctoral degree in social work from a school of social work may be substituted for the required one year of professional social work experience in a clinical setting.

GS-11 Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities.

In addition to the experience above, candidates must demonstrate all of the following KSAs: Knowledge of community resources, how to make appropriate referrals to community and other governmental agencies for services, and ability to coordinate services.

Skill in independently conducting psychosocial assessments and treatment interventions to a wide variety of individuals from various socio-economic, cultural, ethnic, educational and other diversified backgrounds.

Knowledge of medical and mental health diagnoses, disabilities and treatment procedures (i.e.

acute, chronic and traumatic illnesses/injuries, common medications and their effects/side effects, and medical terminology) to formulate a treatment plan.

Skill in independently implementing different treatment modalities in working with individuals, families, and groups who are experiencing a variety of psychiatric, medical, and social problems to achieve treatment goals.

Ability to provide consultation services to new social workers, social work graduate students, and other staff about the psychosocial needs of patients and the impact of psychosocial problems on health care and compliance with treatment.

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).

Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/. The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-11.

Physical Requirements: The physical demands of the work are generally minor.

The work is primarily sedentary, although the stress involved in dealing continually with patients in emotional distress, who may be uncooperative and occasionally violent, makes this job notably more demanding than most sedentary jobs.

Major Duties:

VA Careers - Social Work: https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/enRhz_ua_UU Duties of this position include but are not limited to: Assigned to provide evaluations for inpatients and applies evidence-based intervention strategies to a full range of patient problems in this work setting.

They also provide case management services where indicated.

They must have a high level of skill and expertise to establish and maintain effective therapeutic relationships with Veterans in the IMH and/or their families/caregivers.

Work independently with Veterans and their families who are experiencing a wide range of complicated medical, psychiatric, emotional, behavioral, financial, legal and psychosocial problems.

Primary job functions include the provision of direct patient care and of consultation services of difficult or complex cases.

This incumbent interacts and works with clinicians from other disciplines as a member of a multidisciplinary treatment team.

The incumbent is skillful in interpersonal relationships, including conflict resolution and the ability to work collaboratively with staff from other professions.

Determines patients' need for evaluation, diagnostic procedures, individual and group psychotherapy, and case management.

As a fully licensed and privileged social worker, the incumbent provides a full range of comprehensive, efficacious, and evidence-based psychotherapeutic interventions, including individual, couples, family, and group psychotherapy, as well as interview-based and psychological testing-based assessments as approved and credentialed by the PSB.

Individual and/or group therapy or specialized intervention, for which the incumbent does not have clinical privileges at Battle Creek VAMC, are referred to another team member who is privileged.

Responsible for the timely completion of all clinical charting and documentation required by the VAMC for Veterans for whom the incumbent provides services.

The incumbent will complete all workload entry in compliance with local and national VA requirements, attend Psychiatry Service staff meetings, Social Work Service staff meetings and Medical Staff meetings, complete required continuing education and mandatory training, and participate in program or treatment evaluation activities, as applicable.

May also have limited medical center committee assignments or other limited administrative work within Psychiatry Service or Social Work Service, as requested.

As licensure and privileges permit, the incumbent may provide clinical supervision to Social Work Interns, if mutually agreed upon with the IMH Program Manager and Social Work Service Chief.

Likewise, the incumbent may provide educational presentations to staff inside and outside the medical center if mutually agreed upon with the Chief, Psychiatry Service.

Provides education to patients, family members, and significant others regarding relevant psychological material.

Work Schedule: Mon-Fri 8:00am-4:30pm Compressed/Flexible: not available Telework: Not available Virtual: This is not a virtual position.