Psychology Technician - Neuropsychology

Full Job Description

The Psychology Technician position is located in the Mental Health Product Line at the Audie L.

Murphy Memorial Veterans' Hospital in San Antonio, TX, and involves the performance of technical work in a program of research and direct services in neuropsychology (NP).

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.

You must be proficient in basic written and spoken English in order to meet the requirements of this position.

BASIC EDUCATION REQUIREMENT: A bachelor's (or higher) degree 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.

(TRANSCRIPT REQUIRED) ADDITIONAL QUALIFICATION REQUIREMENTS: In addition to meeting the above requirements, you must also meet one of the requirements listed below to qualify for this position: EXPERIENCE: At least one (1) full year of technical work under the direction of a professional psychologist in a program of professional services, training or research of which at least six (6) months is comparable in difficulty and responsibility to the next lower grade level (GS-6) in the Federal service, or one (1) year is comparable to the second lower grade level(GS-5).

(This experience must be documented in your resume to be considered.) Examples of qualifying experience include: Performing one or more of a variety of technical tasks in a program of research or other professional services in psychology; Assisting in research as in systematic collection of psychology research data, recording and collecting of data, preparing tabular or graphic presentation of data, in accordance with a predetermined research plan; Assisting counseling psychologists in contacting potential employers for 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; Assisting neuropsychologist in administering and scoring of selected tests of a neuropsychology battery in accordance with clearly defined procedures; Assisting psychologists in completing behavior rating scales or in conducting behavior modification.

~OR~ EDUCATION: One full year of graduate study (or 18 semester hours) in Psychology at an accredited college or university that provided the knowledge, skills and abilities necessary to do the work of this position.

(TRANSCRIPT REQUIRED) ~OR~ COMBINATION OF EXPERIENCE AND EDUCATION: An equivalent combination of specialized experience and graduate-level education as described above which meets the total experience requirements for this grade level (GS-7).

(TRANSCRIPT REQUIRED) ~OR~ SUPERIOR ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT (SAA): SAA at the baccalaureate level in the coursework detailed above is fully qualifying.

Applicants who wish to apply under this provision must submit proof from their educational institution that they meet one of the criteria listed below.

To qualify for SAA, applicants must have completed all the requirements for a bachelor's degree in a curriculum that is qualifying for the position to be filled and meet one of the following: Rank in the upper one-third of your class in the college, university or major subdivision.

A grade-point average of "B" (a GPA of 2.95 or higher out of a possible 4.0) for all completed undergraduate courses, or those completed in the last two years of undergraduate study.

A grade point average of "B+" (a GPA of 3.45 or higher out of a possible 4.0) for all courses in your major field of study, or those courses in your major completed in the last two years of undergraduate study.

Membership in a national honor society (other than freshman honor societies) recognized by the Association of College Honor Societies.

For a list of recognized honor societies please visit http://www.achsnatl.org/quick_link.asp.

For more information regarding SAA please visit http://www.opm.gov/qualifications/SEC-II/s2-e5.asp#e4f PREFERRED COMPETENCY: Proficiency in basic written and spoken Spanish You will be rated on the following Competencies as part of the assessment questionnaire for this position: Communication Manages and Organizes Information Psychological Assessment Psychology 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: The work is primarily sedentary, conducted in an office setting.

The stress involved in dealing frequently with persons who are emotionally or physically distressed, cognitively impaired, communication-impaired, or who may be uncooperative, poorly motivated, obstreperous, or possible assaultive, makes this position appreciable more demanding than most sedentary lines of employment.

Dexterity, proficient handwriting speed, and specific physical agility, visual and auditory acuity are required, as are physical exertion (i.e., moderately heavy lifting of test supplies, records and equipment up to 40 pounds), walking, listening, and writing and sitting for prolonged periods.

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/.

Major 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 a variety of clinical and technical tasks.

Independently administers and scores neuropsychological assessment instruments, including complex standardized tests of intelligence, academic achievement, attention, memory, speech language functions, visuospatial/constructional skills, motor skills, and executive functions, as well as cognitive screening tools and extended batteries designed to assess neuropsychological abilities.

The instruments used include specialized, complicated neuropsychological assessment techniques, beyond introductory assessment knowledge, requiring more extensive training and skill in administration and scoring.

Conducts a comprehensive battery of standardized neuropsychological tests, during in-person/face-to-face appointments.

Provides services to a subset of patients who exhibit complex diagnoses, such as patients with severe neurological disorders, including traumatic brain injuries, stroke, seizure disorders, aphasia, neurosyphilis, Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, Huntington's disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, multiple sclerosis, and severe mental health conditions, such as bipolar disorder, posttraumatic stress disorder, and substance misuse disorders.

Administers tests to patients of diverse backgrounds, with awareness of cultural and linguistic factors that may impact test validity.

This may include further assessment of language preferences, administration of tests that aid the neuropsychologist in determining language proficiency, and/or administration of a comprehensive battery of neuropsychological and psychological tests in Spanish, if fluent.

Administers and scores measures for purposes of assessment of emotional status, personality, and/or functional capability.

Measures used for these purposes include complex measures such as the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory, Behavioral Rating Inventory of Executive Functions, Geriatric Depression Scale, and Beck Depression Inventory.

May have limited responsibility for and oversight of the administrative and programmatic resources of various clinical programs that are specialized/complex and significantly impact the delivery of health care service to veterans in the Neuropsychology Program.

Oversees all neuropsychology caseload organization and scheduling of referrals in a manner to provide timely assessment and expeditious handling of priority referrals. Schedules patients for testing.

Performs other related duties as assigned.

Work Schedule: Monday-Friday, 8:00am to 4:30pm Recruitment & Relocation Incentives: Not authorized Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not approved Telework: This position may be authorized for ad hoc telework.

Telework eligibility will be discussed during the interview process.