This position is eligible for the Education Debt Reduction Program (EDRP), a student loan payment reimbursement program. You must meet specific individual eligibility requirements in accordance with VHA policy and submit your EDRP application within four months of appointment. Program Approval, award amount (up to $200,000) and eligibility period (one to five years) are determined by the VHA Education Loan Repayment Services program office after complete review of the EDRP application.
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 accreditation standards for a Master 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/. 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 for GS-12: Experience/Education: The candidate must have at least two years of experience 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. 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: 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. Ability to incorporate complex multiple causation in differential diagnosis and treatment within approved clinical privileges or scope of practice. 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. 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. 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. 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). Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/. Physical Requirements: See VA Directive and Handbook 5019, Employee Occupational Health Services.
This Senior Social Worker position functions as an advance practice mentor and expert in Pain Social Work. The incumbent is assigned to the Integrated Pain Care Service Line to provide comprehensive social work services. The incumbent will provide psychosocial and case management services to eligible veterans and their family members to meet biological, psychological, social and environmental needs of veterans receiving care at VA Manchester Medical Center (VAMMC). Their health care and psychosocial problems and needs are complex and require a high degree of clinical oversight and creative problem- solving. The Senior Social Worker possesses advanced practice skills and judgment and at least two years in an area of specialized social work practice. The incumbent practices at the independent level and must be licensed at the advanced practice level and will perform other duties as assigned. The Senior Social Worker is assigned administrative responsibilities for clinical program and intervention development, evaluation, and modification. Services provided include participation in local committees and workgroups and/or serving as the facility's point of contact (POC) for VISN and National initiatives, as assigned by supervisor. The Social Worker will serve in a consultative capacity as part of the Integrated Pain Care team, assisting with comprehensive pain management patients, as well as those struggling with complex clinical needs, providing consultation and case management to veterans referred for social work services. Through the consultation request process, the incumbent will provide professional social work services to address the specialty psychosocial needs of veterans consulted for specific psychosocial issues from the healthcare providers within VAMC and referred through the Integrated Pain Care system. The scope of these services will vary and depend upon the nature of the psychosocial issues for which the veteran has been referred. The incumbent will provide psychosocial services in a timely fashion and will modify approach to the needs presented. Employees across the facility may consult with the senior social worker as the subject matter expert related to pain-related psychosocial issues. The incumbent is responsible to provide direct clinical services, resolve problems that arise regarding patient care issues, and requires specialized knowledge of issues related to mental health and psychosocial aspects of pain management, and the community resources available to support veterans' return to the community in the least restrictive environment. VA Careers - Social Work: https://youtube.com/embed/enRhz_ua_UU Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional Work Schedule: This position is part time at 20 hours per week, must work on Wednesdays from 8:00am-4:00pm and at least mornings on Thursdays. The current Social Worker's schedule is as followed: Monday: 7:30am-1:00pm Wednesday: 8:00am-4:00pm Thursday: 8:00am-3:30pm. Compressed/Flexible: Not Available. EDRP Authorized: Former EDRP participants ineligible to apply for incentive. Contact Karen Chapman (karen.chapman@va.gov), the EDRP Coordinator for questions/assistance. Learn more 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. 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.