Staff Psychologist (Centralized Eligibility and Appeals Teams)

Full Job Description

The psychologist is part of the Caregiver Support Program's (CSP) Centralized Eligibility and Appeals Team (CEAT) at VISN 15.

The Caregiver Support Program is one of the Veterans Health Administration's most rapidly growing service areas, as a result of infrastructure modernization, programming innovation, and expansion of population-served by the Program of Comprehensive Assistance for Family Caregivers under MISSION Act.

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.

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).

Education: (1) Have a doctoral degree in psychology from a graduate program in psychology accredited by the American Psychological Association (APA), the Psychological Clinical Science Accreditation System (PCSAS), or the Canadian Psychological Association (CPA) at the time the program was completed.

The specialty area of the degree must be consistent with the assignment for which the applicant is to be employed.

OR (2) Have a doctoral degree in any area of psychology and, in addition, successfully complete a re-specialization program (including documentation of an approved internship completed as part of the re-specialization program) meeting both of the following conditions: (a) the re-specialization program must be completed in an APA or a CPA accredited doctoral program; and the specialty in which the applicant is retrained must be consistent with the assignment for which the applicant is to be employed.

AND (b) Have successfully completed a professional psychology internship program that was accredited by APA or CPA at the time the program was completed and that is consistent with the assignment for which the applicant is to be employed.

(3) New VHA psychology internship programs that are in the process of applying for APA accreditation are acceptable in fulfillment of the internship requirement, provided that such programs were sanctioned by the VHA Central Office Program Director of Psychology and the VHA Office of Academic Affiliations at the time that individual was an intern; OR (4) VHA facilities that offered full-time, one-year pre-doctoral internships prior to PL 96-151 (pre-1979) are considered to be acceptable in fulfillment of the internship requirement; OR (5) Applicants who completed an internship that was not accredited by APA or CPA at the time the program was completed may be considered eligible for hire only if they are currently board certified by the American Board of Professional Psychology in a specialty area that is consistent with the assignment for which the applicant is to be employed.

(NOTE): Once board certified, the employee is required to maintain board certification) Licensure: Hold a full, current unrestricted license to practice psychology at the doctoral level in a State, Territory, Commonwealth of the US, or the District of Columbia English Language Proficiency: Psychologists must be proficient in spoken and written English in accordance with VA Handbook 5005, Part II, chapter 3, section A, paragraph 3j.

Grade Determinations: In additional to meeting the basic requirements as stated above, you must have the following: GS-13 Staff Psychologist (Full Performance Level) Experience: At least 2 years of experience as a professional psychologist, with at least one year equivalent to the GS-12 level.

Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities: In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate the following KSAs: 1.

Knowledge of, and ability to apply, professional psychological treatments to the full range of patient populations. 2.

Ability to provide professional advice and consultation in areas related to professional psychology and behavioral health. 3. Knowledge of clinical research literature.

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-13.

Physical Requirements: potentially long periods of continued walking, standing, and sitting.

Must be a mature, flexible, sensible individual capable of working effectively in stressful situations, able to shift priorities based on patient needs.

Must complete annual Employee Health requirements, such as annual TB screening or testing, as a condition of employment. Major Duties:

Reviews dispositions of PCAFC initial eligibility decisions; reassessments; and appeal decisions for clinical eligibly determination as timeframes indicated in the final rule.

This is done from a psychological perspective.

Analyzes mental health data obtained from VHA electronic health record and collateral records for use in determining PCAFC clinical eligibility and documents findings in approved CSP PCAFC templated notes.

Works with inter-professional team members at Regional, VISN and facility levels to ensure PCAFC eligibility determinations are delivered objectively with strong, consistent inter-rater agreement and with documentation and communication of outcomes in a direct and coordinated manner.

Utilizes knowledge of PCAFC clinical eligibility to coordinate with other regional CEATs the transfer of appeals for inter-VISN evaluation.

Brings a knowledge of and ability to administer, score and interpret the widest array of psychometric psychological assessments (e.g., attention/concentration, memory, executive functioning, intelligence, reasoning and judgment) to assist CEAT with case disposition and team's recommendations.

Conducts Peer Reviews from a psychological standpoint, which may occur at the regional level, to aid in achieving consistency nationally.

Collaborates with and contributes knowledge to a community of practice across VISN's and Regions with CSP CSC's and CEAT members. Work Schedule: Monday - Friday 8:00 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.

CST Telework: Ad-Hoc Virtual: This is a virtual position.

Functional Statement #: 000000 Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): No Authorized PCS Appraised Value Offer (AVO): Not Authorized