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Posted: February 24, 2026 (1 day ago)

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Social Worker (Suicide Prevention Case Manager)

Veterans Health Administration

Department of Veterans Affairs

Fresh

Location

Salary

$67,570 - $106,285

per year

Closes

March 6, 2026More VA jobs →

GS-1 Pay Grade

Base salary range: $21,996 - $27,534

Typical requirements: No experience required. High school diploma or equivalent.

Note: Actual salary includes locality pay (15-40%+ depending on location).

Job Description

Summary

This job involves working as a social worker to help Veterans at risk of suicide by assessing their needs, creating support plans, and connecting them with resources in a healthcare setting.

It focuses on counseling individuals and families from diverse backgrounds to improve mental health and prevent crises.

A good fit would be someone with a passion for veteran care, strong empathy, and experience in mental health support who enjoys collaborating with teams and community partners.

Key Requirements

  • U.S. citizenship (or qualifying non-citizen status)
  • Master's degree in social work from a CSWE-accredited program
  • State licensure or certification for independent social work practice at the master's level
  • Proficiency in spoken and written English
  • For GS-9: Ability to assess psychosocial needs, implement treatment plans, and use counseling techniques with diverse Veterans and families
  • For GS-11: At least one year of post-MSW experience in health care or social work settings, plus advanced knowledge of community resources and crisis intervention
  • Fundamental knowledge of medical and mental health diagnoses, treatments, and terminology

Full Job Description

The position is located in the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), Veterans Health Administration (VHA), and Mid-Atlantic Health Care Network (VISN 6), in any of the VA Medical Centers (VAMC) or their satellite facilities located within North Carolina, and Virginia.

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. The basic requirements for employment as a VHA social worker are prescribed by statute in 38 U.S.C.

§ 7402(b)(9), as amended by section 205 of Public Law 106-419, enacted November 1, 2000. To qualify for appointment as a social worker in VHA, all applicants must meet the following: 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). 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/. Physical Requirements. See VA Directive and Handbook 5019, Employee Occupational Health Services.

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

Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/. GS-9: Experience, Education, and Licensure.

None beyond the basic requirements.

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

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. 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.

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.

In addition to the experience above, candidates must demonstrate all of the following: 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, cultural, ethnic, educational and other diversified 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.

??????Quality of Experience.

Experience is only creditable if it is obtained following graduation with a master's degree in social work and if it includes work as a professional social worker directly related to the position to be filled.

Qualifying experience must also be at a level comparable to social work experience at the next lower level. 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:

- Responsible for coordination and monitoring of services provided to Veterans designated as being at a high risk for suicide and acts as the transitional coordinator of care for these patients.

- Determination of risk level is based on clinical evaluation and assessment of a Veteran by an appropriate mental health care provider.

- Responsible for coordinating the care of high-risk patients, providing case management-based services (directly or through referral) necessary to ensure that Veteran care is coordinated within the VA medical center, Community Based Outpatient Clinics (CBOC's) and/or appropriate community agencies.

- Performs other directly related duties as assigned.

Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 8am - 4:30pm Telework: Ad Hoc - as determined by the agency policy Recruitment/Relocation Incentives: 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)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) VA Careers - Licensed Clinical Social Worker: https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/U_xC25QsN0w Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional

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Posted on USAJOBS: 2/24/2026 | Added to FreshGovJobs: 2/25/2026

Source: USAJOBS | ID: CBTA-12894041-26-TDM