Senior Social Worker (CSP-Clinical Assessor)

Full Job Description

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

You must meet specific individual eligibility requirements in accordance with VHA policy and submit your EDRP application within four months of appointment.

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

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements within 30 days of the closing date of this announcement.

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.

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

PLEASE NOTE: A COPY OF YOUR TRANSCRIPTS WITH CONFERRAL DATE IS REQUIRED WITH YOUR APPLICATION PACKAGE. 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/. PLEASE NOTE: A COPY OF YOUR CURRENT, UNEXPIRED LICENSE IS REQUIRED WITH YOURAPPLICATION PACKAGE.

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.

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: GS-12 Senior Social Worker 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.

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.

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: Experience with caregiver support. 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-12.

Physical Requirements: light lifting (under 15 pounds), moderate carrying (up to 44 pounds), use of fingers, walking/standing (2 hours), operation of a motor vehicle, near and far vision correctable, both eyes required, use of computer and computer screen, hearing (aid may be permitted), emotional and mental stability, exposure to outside and inside, dry atmospheric conditions, working closely with others, working alone.

Major Duties:

Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional The Caregiver Support Program (CSP) Clinical Assessor/Senior Social Worker for the Program of Comprehensive Assistance for Family Caregivers is assigned to the CSP with responsibility to act as a clinical assessor and subject matter expert (SME) within the CSP team.

Duties will include: Assists in the day-to-day operations of the Caregiver Support Program and ensures compliance and collaboration with local facility and VA Central Office Caregiver Support Program initiatives.

Collaborates with the other members of the CSP team to complete clinical assessments of Veteran and Caregiver applicants to the Program of Comprehensive Assistance for Family Caregivers.

Provides leadership, direction, orientation, coaching, in-service training, staff development, and continuing education programs as assigned.

Serves on committees, work groups, and task forces at the facility, VISN, and national level or in the community as deemed appropriate by the supervisor, Social Work Executive, or Chief of Social Work Services.

Develops and facilitates caregiver support groups and educational programs and distributes educational materials provided by VA, local, state, and national caregiver organizations.

Participates in direct caregiver and Veteran contacts to assess caregiver stress/burden and the development/application of directed clinical treatment interventions.

Provides caregiver and family clinical interventions to facilitate the treatment of caregiver stress, psychiatric illness, emotional distress, and social needs.

Responsible for conducting regular home visits to Veterans and Caregivers participating in the PCAFC, responds to calls from the National Caregiver Support Hotline, responds to other phone calls and general inquiries regarding the CSP, and assists with general tasks associated with the program.

Advises and collaborates with interdisciplinary teams throughout the medical center on caregiver issues.

Responsible for creating educational tools, developing programs, and implementing training focused on specific caregiver needs/issues and providing education and in-service training to VAMC employees, Veterans, families, and caregivers.

Provide ongoing consultation and support to colleagues regarding caregiver support services and issues facing Veterans, families and their caregivers.

Demonstrates skill in communication and can develop positive, effective relationships with all CSP stakeholders including Veterans, caregivers, local, state, and federal agencies, as well as non-governmental organizations.

Provide referrals to VA medical and mental health treatment and to other VA services including VA benefits, as well as community-based social services and other non-VA entitlement programs.

Responsible for serving as a consultant for navigating the complex processes caregivers, Veterans, and their families encounter when interacting with government and community agencies.

Serve as a liaison between the VA and community agencies.

Participate in caregiver support activities in the local community and state to promote and recognize the role of the caregiver and participates on state and local caregiver support committees.

Assists in coordinating events and programs for the annual National Family Caregivers Month in November, which includes announcements and advertising of month-long activities, mobilization of participants, educational sessions, caregiver recognition events, and caregiver support programs.

Assist program leadership in maintaining a data monitoring system to measure the efficacy of the program and assists in collecting and analyzing local data for reports to local management, the VISN Caregiver Support Program Lead, and the National Caregiver Support Program, Care Management and Social Work Service, Office of Patient Care Services.

Work Schedule: Monday-Friday, 8am-4:30pm Recruitment Incentive (Sign-on Bonus): Authorized Permanent Change of Station (Relocation Assistance): Not Authorized EDRP Authorized: Former EDRP participants ineligible to apply for incentive.

Contact VHAEDRPProgramSupport@va.gov, the EDRP Coordinator for questions/assistance. Learn more Telework: Ad-Hoc Only Virtual: This is not a virtual position.

Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not authorized