Social Worker - Non-Institutional Care

Full Job Description

The Social Worker in this position serves as Coordinator for the Non-Institutional Care (NIC) programs within Social Work Service.

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.

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements within 30 days of the closing date of this announcement. BASIC REQUIREMENTS: Citizenship. Be a citizen of the United States.

(Non-citizens may be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with chapter 3, section A, paragraph 3g this part). 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.

(COPY OF TRANSCRIPT WITH CONFERRED DATE REQUIRED) Licensure/Certification.

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/. (COPY OF LICENSE REQUIRED FOR GS-11) 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.

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-9 Experience, Education, and Licensure. None beyond the basic requirements. Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (KSAs).

In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSAs: (a) Ability to work with Veterans and family members from various socioeconomic, cultural, ethnic, educational, and other diversified backgrounds utilizing counseling skills.

(b) 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.

(c) 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.

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

(e) 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. 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, 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.

(COPY OF TRANSCRIPT WITH CONFERRED DATE REQUIRED) Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities.

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

(b) 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.

(c) 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.

(d) 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.

(e) 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: Attention to detail and experience working with geriatric population.

REFERENCE: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://department.va.gov/employees/va-qualifications-standards/. 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. PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS: Light lifting (under 15 pounds) and ability to drive GOV.

Environmental factors include working outside & inside and working closely with others. Major Duties:

Conduct comprehensive psychosocial assessments of Veterans and their families to identify strengths, needs, coping skills, and risk factors.

Coordinate Non-Institutional Long-Term Care (NILTC) programs, providing technical and administrative leadership for Homemaker/Home Health Aide, Respite, Veteran Directed Care, Adult Day Health, and other home and community-based services.

Plan, develop, and implement program policies, procedures, goals, and objectives while monitoring operations, performance measures, and patient/caregiver satisfaction to improve efficiency, effectiveness, timeliness, and quality of services.

Educate Veterans and families about VA benefits, community resources, advance directives, and coping strategies related to illness, disability, and reintegration.

Act as a liaison between Veterans, their families, the VA medical team, and community partners to support continuity of care and successful transitions.

Ensure program compliance with VHA directives, Joint Commission and other accrediting bodies, state licensure standards, and VA-OIG expectations through ongoing reviews, quality indicators, and corrective action.

Provide clinical social work and case management, for NILTC Veterans and caregivers, consulting with interdisciplinary staff and filling in for social work clinicians across the medical center as needed.

Develop and maintain strong relationships with internal service chiefs and community agencies, serving as liaison and professional representative of the VA Medical Center for NILTC programs and community education.

Recruit, evaluate, and collaborate with community agency providers, contributing to contract development for homemaker, home health aide, respite, and other services that meet Veterans' long-term care needs.

Lead program evaluation and quality management efforts by gathering and analyzing data, preparing written and verbal reports for leadership and oversight committees, and serving on facility committees related to NILTC.

Support education and workforce development by serving as field instructor/preceptor for social work students, and by promoting adherence to safety, infection control, privacy, and computer security requirements in all NILTC activities.

Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional Work Schedule: Monday - Friday 7:30am-4:00pm or 8:00am-4:30pm Recruitment Incentive (Sign-on Bonus): Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (Relocation Assistance): Not Authorized Pay: Competitive salary and regular salary increases.

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) 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, Ad-Hoc Virtual: This is not a virtual position.

Functional Statement #: 000000 Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized