Summary

This position is based in Inpatient Medicine Social Work division at the Richard L. Roudebush VA Medical Center. The incumbent assists with the administrative responsibilities related to clinical program development - clinical program effectiveness and modification of service patterns. The Senior Social Worker provides leadership - direction - orientation - coaching - in-service training - staff development - and continuing education programs for Social Work staff.

Qualifications

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 3 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
• 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: Senior Social Worker - GS-12: Experience/Education
• The candidate must have at least two years of experience 8 post advanced practice clinical licensure and should be in a specialized area of social work practice of which - one year must be equivalent to the GS-11 grade level
• Examples of specialized experience include - but are not limited to: assessing and documenting identified behaviors or symptoms of abuse - neglect - exploitation and/or intimate partner violence
• use of clinical social work skills
• maintaining patient privacy and confidentiality per policies - handbooks or directives
• acting as an advocate with appropriate community service providers and agencies when it serves the best interest of the patient and family members/caregiver
• independently assessing the psychosocial functioning and needs of patients and their family members - identifying the patient's strengths - weaknesses - coping skills - and psychosocial acuity
• Senior social workers have experience that demonstrates possession of advanced practice skills and judgment
• Senior social workers are experts in their specialized area of practice
• Senior social workers may have certification or other post-masters training from a nationally recognized professional organization or university that includes a defined curriculum/course of study and internship or equivalent supervised professional experience in a specialty
• Licensure/Certification
• Senior social workers must be licensed or certified by a state at the advanced practice level which included an advanced generalist or clinical examination - unless they are grandfathered by the state in which they are licensed to practice at the advanced practice level (except for licenses issued in California - which administers its own clinical examination for advanced practice) and they must be able to provide supervision for licensure Demonstrated Knowledge - Skills - and Abilities
• In addition to the experience above - candidates must demonstrate all of the following KSAs: (a) Skill in a range of specialized interventions and treatment modalities used in specialty treatment programs or with special patient populations
• This includes individual - group - and/or family counseling or psychotherapy and advanced level psychosocial and/or case management
• (b) Ability to incorporate complex multiple causation in differential diagnosis and treatment within approved clinical privileges or scope of practice
• (c) Knowledge in developing and implementing methods for measuring effectiveness of social work practice and services in the specialty area - utilizing outcome evaluations to improve treatment services and to design system changes
• (d) Ability to provide specialized consultation to colleagues and students on the psychosocial treatment of patients in the service delivery area - as well as role modeling effective social work practice skills
• (e) Ability to expand clinical knowledge in the social work profession - and to write policies - procedures - and/or practice guidelines pertaining to the service delivery area Reference: For more information on this qualification standard - please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/
• This position is above the full performance level
• Physical Requirements: The physical demands of the position involve standard office requirements such as using the telephone - retrieving files - writing reports - data entry and maintenance of computer databases - etc
• Work is typically performed sitting at a desk and using a computer
• This position may require occasional travel
• The position requires periods of walking - standing - sitting - and bending.

Duties

• VA Careers - Licensed Clinical Social Worker: https://youtube.com/embed/U_xC25QsN0w Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional Duties of the position include but are not limited to: The incumbent is responsible for trending barriers to discharge - monitoring long stays - managing the facilities post discharge clinic - and exploring opportunities to optimize the psychosocial care and discharge planning
• Provide education and guidance to the inpatient medical Social Work team and serve on committees and improvement projects related to the medical social work and discharge planning
• Screens and assesses the veteran's psychosocial needs and barriers in order to facilitate his or her family/caregiver from the hospital Arrange referrals to needed VA and/or community resources (e.g
• home health care - assisted living facilities/nursing homes - services available through area agencies on aging - community support groups - hospice care - community-based extended care)
• Sere as a subject matter expert on the services and resources available to Veterans through both VA and the community - monitor patterns of resource availability - identify unmet needs and the resultant impact on the veteran's transition from the inpatient hospital setting
• Assess and intervene in any medical or psychiatric crises presented by the Veteran and participate in developing crisis management and safety plans to minimize the event of future crisis
• Work Schedule: 0730 - 1600 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) 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: Not Available Virtual: This is not a virtual position
• Functional Statement #: 91864-A Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized