Summary

The Social Worker in this position serves as Coordinator for the Non-Institutional Care (NIC) programs within Social Work Service. The Social Worker assumes the technical and administrative responsibility for the management of the Homemaker / Home Health Aid (H/HHA) Program - Respite Program and Veterans Direct Home - Adult Day Health - and Community Based Programs.

Qualifications

To qualify for this position - applicants must meet all requirements within 30 days of the closing date of this announcement.

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/
• Loss of Licensure or Certification: Once licensed or certified - social workers must maintain a full - valid - and unrestricted independent license or certification to remain qualified for employment
• Loss of licensure or certification will result in removal from the GS-0185 social worker series and may result in termination of employment
• Grade Determinations: 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
• 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
• In addition to the experience above - the candidate 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 - 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
• Assignment: This is the full performance level
• Social workers at this level are licensed or certified to independently practice social work
• Incumbents are assigned to all program areas - including but not limited to: inpatient or outpatient medicine - surgery - mental health - neurology - rehabilitation medicine - and geriatrics
• Employees provide professional - independent social work services in the assigned area
• Duties 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 and knowledge to maintain Veteran privacy and confidentiality per policies - handbooks or directives
• and acts as an advocate with appropriate VA and community service providers and agencies when it serves the best interest of the Veteran and family members/caregiver
• Incumbent independently assesses the psychosocial functioning and needs of Veterans and their family members - identifying the Veteran's strengths - weaknesses - coping skills - and psychosocial acuity
• In collaboration with the Veteran - family/caregiver - and interdisciplinary treatment team - the social worker facilitates the delivery of health care services
• The social worker identifies family/caregiver stressors - conducts assessment and provides specific interventions
• The incumbent provides case management and care coordination to facilitate appropriate delivery of health care services - incorporates complex multiple causation in differential diagnosis and treatment of Veterans - including making psychosocial and psychiatric diagnoses within approved clinical privileges or scope of practice
• The social worker links the Veteran with services - resources - and opportunities - in order to maximize the Veteran's independence - health - and well-being
• The social worker conducts timely assessment of at-risk Veterans in crisis to identify immediate needs - evaluate risk - and initiate safety plan as appropriate
• The social worker provides interventions independently with Veterans and their families/caregivers who are experiencing a wide range of complicated medical - behavioral health - financial - legal - and psychosocial problems
• They provide a range of interventions and treatment modalities which may include individual - group - and/or family counseling or psychotherapy
• They independently formulate and implement a treatment plan including measurable - achievable goals identifying the Veterans' needs - strengths - weaknesses - coping skills - and psychosocial acuity
• Social workers serve on committees - work groups - and task forces at the facility and VISN level or in the community
• They provide subject matter consultation to colleagues and students on the psychosocial treatment of Veterans offering professional opinions based on experience - expertise and role modeling effective social work practice skills
• The social worker establishes and maintains ongoing education programs for Veterans - community agencies - students - and staff - to facilitate understanding of social work interventions specific to the Veteran/Military population
• 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
• Physical Requirements: This work requires light lifting (under 15lbs) - use of fingers - operation of motor vehicle - near vision correctable at 13" to 16" to Jaeger 1 to 4 - depth perception - hearing (aid may be permitted) - emotional and mental stability - and clear speech
• Environmental factors are working outside and inside - dust - working closely with others - working alone - and protracted or irregular hours of work.

Duties

• Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional This position includes planning - establishing - and implementing policies and procedures - developing program goals and objectives as well as monitoring - operating - evaluating - and coordinating the activities of the programs
• Strong emphasis will be placed on data collection including patient and caregiver satisfaction and feedback and tracking of performance measures for NIC
• Functions or Scope of Assigned Duties Develops and maintains relationships as related to issues within the NIC programs
• The position will function in office and work with community-based agencies and Veterans in their home
• Responsible for working with and advising a team of clinically independent professional practitioners
• Brief the Social Work Supervisor on level of compliance for the Non-Institutional Long-Term Care Programs
• Continuous monitoring and improvement of the efficiency - effectiveness - timeliness - and quality of services
• Prepares - plans - and advises the Social Work Supervisor of anticipated changes in workload - staffing needs - and program developments
• Remain current on clinical aspects of NIC programs and prepare to fill in for the various social work clinicians
• Provide clinical support to the Community Health Nurse Coordinators working with NIC programs and will serve as a consultant with other disciplines
• Provide timely and accurate information to the Social Work Supervisor and others
• Writes program specific guidelines and policies and sees that these policies are implemented
• Recruit new NIC agency providers and establish contracts for numerous services
• Development of policies and operating procedures
• Addresses the relationships with community agencies and contract providers
• Oversees the program operations and program evaluations - identifies areas for improvement - gathers and assesses relevant data - develops - and implements improvement plans - and evaluates the efficacy of improvements
• Prepares reports from available data
• Works to establish quality management monitors for NIC responsibility
• Functions as the professional representative of the VA Medical Center - Social Work Service - and program by providing public relations and community education regarding the NIC Program
• Interacts with Congressional staff and caseworkers regarding Congressional inquiries - investigating the inquiry and preparing a response
• Maintain open lines of communication
• Liaison with community agencies
• May service as a field instructor or preceptor - supervises Social Work graduate students in a practicum setting and oversees their clinical field training
• Regularly assesses student's progress toward training goals and student's overall performance
• Participates in the school of social work's field instructor training programs and the affiliation process and may serve as an adjunct faculty member
• Ensuring curricular and accreditation requirements are met and monitoring HPTs and their supervisors
• Coordinating with the VA medical facility DEO and Sponsoring Institution Program Director
• If not prohibited by conflict-of-interest standards and after consultation with the OGC Ethics Specialty Team - tracking HPT attendance and managing schedules
• Serving as a clinical supervisor/preceptor for HPTs
• Attending APC meetings
• Work Schedule: Monday-Friday - 8am-4:30pm 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: AD-HOC Virtual: This is not a virtual position Functional Statement #: 000000 Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not authorized