Social Services Assistant

Full Job Description

This position is located in the Social Work Service at VA Puget Sound Health Care System - Seattle VA Medical Center in Seattle, WA.

The Social Services Assistant is responsible for providing administrative support to varying professional disciplines and trainees who comprise the Community Housing and Outreach Services (CHOS) program.

Minimum Requirement: The following are minimum requirements for appointment as a Social Services Assistant in the Veterans Health Administration (VHA), which all applicants must met.

Specialized Experience (GS-07): You must have one (1) year of specialized experience that equipped you with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSA's) to perform successfully the duties of the position, and that is typically in or related to the position to be filled.

To be creditable, specialized experience must have been equivalent to at least the next lower grade level (i.e., GS-06).

Example of qualifying specialized experience include: Group leader in community or residential recreation or training programs; Counselor in a youth summer camp; Instructor in a training program for the development of job skills; Work that demonstrated the ability to be responsible for and to lead and train members of a job crew; Group activities leader in the Armed Services; Unit leader-monitor-proctor for a dormitory group in a boarding school or other residential facility; Aid or assistant to professional or specialist staff in such fields as personnel (private or government), employment guidance in a vocational or academic institution, social service, or manpower development; Aid or assistant to professional or associate staff engaged in work of a social services nature in private, public welfare, government program, or community organizations, or in voluntary activities; Aid or assistant to professional or specialist staff working with individuals who are addicted to or abuse alcohol and/or drugs.

(CLEAR DETAILS OF EXPERIENCE REQUIRED: Your resume must show complete information for each job entry, such as beginning and ending dates of employment, duties performed, and/or total hours worked per week.) OR, Education (GS-07): Applicants may substitute education for the required experience.

To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have one (1) full year of graduate education only in those instances where it is directly related to the work of the position.

NOTE: One year of full-time graduate education is considered to be the number of credit hours that the school attended has determined to represent 1 year of full-time study.

If that information cannot be obtained from the school, 18 semester hours should be considered as satisfying the 1 year of full-time study requirement.

Part-time graduate education is creditable in accordance with its relationship to a year of full-time study at the school attended.

(UNOFFICIAL TRANSCRIPT REQUIRED: If you do not submit your transcript, your application may not be reviewed.) OR, Combination (GS-07): Applicants may also combine education and experience to qualify at this level.

You must have a combination of specialized experience and education as described above.

(UNOFFICIAL TRANSCRIPT REQUIRED: If you do not submit your transcript, your application may not be reviewed.) AND 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.

AND SELECTIVE PLACEMENT FACTOR: This position includes a Selective Placement Factor (skill, knowledge, ability, or other worker characteristic basic to - and essential for - satisfactory performance of the job).

Selective Placement Factors are a prerequisite to appointment and represent minimum requirement for a position. Applicants who do not meet it are ineligible for further consideration.

The Selective Placement Factor for this position is: Experience making an assessment of clients' needs, identifying problems, and informing them of social work services or benefits available.

You will be rated on the following Competencies as part of the assessment questionnaire for this position: Communication Compliance Critical Thinking Veteran and Customer Focus 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 mainly sedentary with occasional carrying of items such as papers and files, boxes of paper, driving government vehicles.

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*** Serving as the principal point of contact for Veterans and families from diverse backgrounds including women and homeless Veterans Assessing needs, identifying problems, informing clients of VA services/benefits, providing supportive counseling, and referring to appropriate programs Assisting Veterans in linking with Social Workers or housing programs as needed Responding to crises, de-escalating situations, and ensuring ethical and legal standards, including confidentiality Educating and assisting with Advance Directives (Living Will/Health Care Power of Attorney) Triaging calls, providing referrals to homeless programs, and advising on community resources Liaising with Voluntary Service to distribute donated items and manage resources for Veterans Participating in staff, clinical, and in-service meetings Maintaining updated resource files and referral information for community programs Supporting VA integration with community Coordinated Entry Systems (CES) for homeless Veterans and participating in related training Providing administrative support for regional homeless Stand Down events Participating in formulation and assessment of CHOS policies and procedures Providing administrative support across multiple CHOS programs Using software (MS Word, Excel, Access, Outlook, VISTA, HOMES, VATAS, SharePoint, Gerner) to review, analyze, and evaluate services Preparing reports (monthly, quarterly, annual) for program leadership, VISN, and VACO Coordinating with Fiscal and Voluntary Services to manage fund control points Maintaining Training Management System (TMS) records and completing required courses/exams Supporting regulatory compliance (Joint Commission, CARF) and participating in program planning and development Performing other assigned duties as needed Work Schedule: Monday to Friday; 08:00 a.m.

to 04:30 p.m. Recruitment & Relocation Incentives: Not authorized Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not Approved