Social Worker - Home Based Primary Care

Full Job Description

The Home-Based Primary Care (HBPC) Social Worker position is located in the HBPC Program section of the Rehab and Extended Care Integrated Clinical Community (REC-ICC) at the Chillicothe VAMC, Chillicothe, Ohio, providing high quality case management, psychosocial support, advocacy, and linkage with appropriate VA and community service providers/agencies as needed.

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.

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.

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.

For appointments at the GS-9 grade level, VHA social workers who are not licensed or certified at the time of appointment must become licensed or certified at the independent, master's level within three years of their appointment as a social worker.

Most states require two years of post-MSW experience as a prerequisite to taking the licensure/certification exam, and VHA gives social workers one additional year to pass the licensure/certification exam.

In states such as California, Washington, and others where the prerequisites for licensure exceed two years, social workers must become licensed at the independent, master's level within one year of meeting the full state prerequisites for licensure.

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, Education, and Licensure: None beyond the basic requirements.

Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities: In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSAs: Ability to utilize a Veteran centric approach when providing interventions and counseling for Veterans, their family members, caregivers, and survivors.

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) and licensure or certification in a state at the independent practice level.

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 patient/family member/caregiver advocate with community service providers/agencies; assessing the psychosocial functioning and needs of patients and their family members.

In collaboration with the patient, family, and interdisciplinary treatment teams, identifying strengths, weaknesses, coping skills and psychosocial acuity.

Maintaining a current network of internal and external resources to educate the patient and/or family members/caregivers and assist with appropriate referrals.

OR Education: 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.

AND 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, educational, and other 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.

Preferred Experience: Licensed Independent Social Worker (LISW) with homecare experience.

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.

The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is in the range of GS-9 to GS-11. Major Duties:

Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional Duties and responsibilities include but are not limited to: Psychosocial Assessment - Develop an assessment of the Veteran, family, economic, community, and psychosocial support systems.

Treatment Planning/Goal Setting - Contributing to the treatment plan and setting achievable treatment goals with the Veteran/family in collaboration with the CLC interdisciplinary treatment team members.

Referral to service providers - Collaborate with other service providers in reassessing the Veteran's needs for non-institutional, institutional services/programs and entitlements.

Resource Development - Developing a resource file of VA and community social service programs and will refer the Veteran to needed services.

Advocacy - Act as an advocate when it serves the best interest of the Veteran/family. Crisis Intervention - Making rapid assessments and developing crisis management plans.

Education/Health promotion and prevention - Provide education related to VA and community resources, entitlements, Advance Directives/Living Will and will refer Veterans/families to the appropriate interdisciplinary team member for identified health education needs.

Coordination of non-institutional and institutional services - Coordination of the referrals of non-institutional services such as ADHC/CADHC, home hospice, skilled and non-skilled homecare services in collaboration with the interdisciplinary treatment team members.

Supportive counseling - Provide the Veterans and their caregivers with ongoing supportive counseling.

Documentation & Administrative Requirements - Understand and adhere to documentation requirements in the electronic medical record using appropriate content, formats and templates.

Work Schedule: Monday through Friday, 7:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Recruitment Incentive (Sign-on Bonus): Not Authorized. Permanent Change of Station (Relocation Assistance): Not Authorized.

Pay: Competitive salary and regular salary increases.

When setting pay, a higher step rate of the appropriate grade may be determined after consideration of higher or unique qualifications or special needs of the VA (Above Minimum Rate of the Grade).

Paid Time Off: 37-50 days of annual paid time offer per year (13-26 days of annual leave, 13 days of sick leave, 11 paid Federal holidays per year).

Selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual, based on prior [work experience] or military service experience.

Parental Leave: After 12 months of employment, up to 12 weeks of paid parental leave in connection with the birth, adoption, or foster care placement of a child.

Child Care Subsidy: After 60 days of employment, full time employees with a total family income below $144,000 may be eligible for a childcare subsidy up to 25% of total eligible childcare costs for eligible children up to the monthly maximum of $416.66.

Retirement: Traditional federal pension (5 years vesting) and federal 401K with up to 5% in contributions by VA Insurance: Federal health/vision/dental/term life/long-term care (many federal insurance programs can be carried into retirement) Telework: Available.

Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Functional Statement #: 93142-0; 93143-0 Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized. Physical Requirements: The work is sometimes sedentary.

Typically, the employee will sit to perform administrative work. However, other position duties include but are not limited to, long periods of walking; standing; reaching; bending and carrying.

The work will involve travel between clinic sites and into Veterans, homes. The incumbent is occasionally asked to travel to a distant VA, training site or conference location.

This position requires the operation of a government-owned or leased motor vehicle to properly carry out assigned duties.

A valid state-issued driver license is required, along with medical clearance by Employee Occupational Health. Employee would be considered an Incidental Driver.

Incidental operators are "employees, other than those occupying a position officially classified as a motor vehicle operator, who are required to operator a government owned/-leased motor vehicle to properly carry out their assigned duties.