The General Caregiver Support Program Social Worker is assigned to the Caregiver Support Program with primary responsibilities to provide clinical evidence-based services and interventions; provide Caregiver, Veteran and staff education on Caregiver issues; engage in community outreach and resource development; continuous quality-improvement activities, and evaluation/consultation.
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. 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 tohttp://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 tohttp://vaww.va.gov/OHRM/T38Hybrid/. Exception. VHA may waive the licensure or certification requirement for persons who are otherwise qualified, pending completion of state prerequisites for licensure/certification examinations. This exception only applies at the GS-9 grade level. For the GS-11 grade level and above, the candidate must be licensed or certified. At the time of appointment, the supervisor, chief social work or social work executive will provide the unlicensed/uncertified social worker with the written requirements for licensure or certification, including the time by which the license or certification must be obtained and the consequences for not becoming licensed or certified by the deadline.] For appointments at the GS-9 grade level, VHA social workers who are not licensed or certified at the time of appointment must become licensed or certified at the independent, master's level within three years of their appointment as asocial worker 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). 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: In addition to the basic requirements for employment, the following criteria must be met when determining the grade of candidates. Social Worker, GS-9: Experience, Education, and Licensure. None beyond the basic requirements. Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSAs: Ability to utilize counseling skills when working with Veterans and family members. 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. 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-9grade 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. NOTE: For appointment licensure or certification at this level please refer to paragraph 3c.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. Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. In addition to the experience above, candidates 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, educational, and other 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. 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. The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is in the range of 09 to 11. Physical Requirements: You will be asked to participate in a pre-employment examination or evaluation as part of the pre-employment process for this position. Questions about physical demands or environmental factors may be addressed at the time of evaluation or examination. Daily intermittent walking, standing, bending, stooping, reaching, and carrying of lightweight items required. Driving is required for this position. A portion of the work is performed outside the VA Health Care setting (including CBOC), where the environment cannot be controlled. The incumbent must be in overall good health, able to sit at a desk working at a computer, engage in light to moderate physical activity including sitting, walking, bending, and carrying supplies. The Social Worker must be able to perform primarily light and sedentary duties with occasionally moderate physical demands, exercise patience, and control emotions, with reasonable accommodation if necessary, without endangering the health and safety of the social worker or others. Position requires walking throughout the clinic and/or Medical Center, standing for extended periods of time, and involves sitting at a computer and in counsel and consultation with Veterans and interdisciplinary teams. Position requires travel into the community to meet with Veterans, caregivers, community agencies and partners who assist and support to the Caregiver Support program, its Veterans and caregivers. This position requires the incumbent to drive a government vehicle and to have a valid driver's license. This position also requires close visual acuity to perform an activity such as: preparing and analyzing data and figures, transcribing, viewing a computer terminal, extensive reading and repetitive motions of the wrists, hands, and/or fingers.
VA Careers - Social Work: https://youtube.com/embed/enRhz_ua_UU Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional Duties include but are not limited to the following: Participate in direct Caregiver and Veteran contacts to identify and assess Caregiver stress/burden and the development and application of directed clinical treatment interventions. Provide clinical case social work management for Caregivers on an ongoing basis, utilizing in-person, virtual, and in-home modalities as indicated by VA Directive, Standard Operating Procedure, and Public Law. Advise and collaborate with interdisciplinary teams throughout the medical center on Caregiver issues. Create educational tools, develop programs and implement training focused on specific Caregiver needs/issues. Distribute educational materials provided by VA, local, state and national Caregiver organizations. Provide education and in-service training to VAMC employees, Veterans, families and Caregivers, and provide ongoing consultation and support to colleagues regarding Caregiver support, and collaborate with the VA Patient Aligned Care Team (PACT), mental health, and geriatric primary care clinicians to provide Veteran and staff education on Caregiver issues. Coordination will include hands-on support group work involvement, and training of patient aligned care team clinical social work staff in the development and facilitation of such groups. Develop and facilitate Caregiver support groups (face-to-face or VANTS telephone line) and educational programs. Respond to calls from the National Caregiver Support Line and other phone calls and general inquiries regarding the Caregiver Support Program, and assist with general tasks associated with the Program. Provide referrals to VA medical and mental health treatment and to other VA services including VA benefits, community-based social services and other non-VA entitlement programs. If appropriate, the incumbent provides referrals or consults, or in some cases facilitates direct admission of a Veteran to other VA programs. Serve as a consultant for navigating the complex processes Caregivers, Veterans, and families encounter when interacting with government and community agencies. Serve as a liaison between the VA and community agencies and participate in Caregiver support activities in the local community and state to promote and recognize the role of the Caregiver and may be involved in state and local Caregiver support committees. Develop and foster relationships with community partners to assist with system navigation, maintain collaboration and coordinate services. Provide outreach presentations to community social service agencies, military Guard and Reserve units, Veteran Service organizations and other groups on VA Caregiver benefits, programs and services. Have a working knowledge of the application process for the Program of Comprehensive Assistance for Family Caregivers to facilitate meeting application process and/or monitoring contact deadlines as needed. The incumbent enters all Veteran/family contacts in the electronic record using appropriate formats and templates. He/she is accurate, literate, and timely in charting, correspondence, and reports. Participates in a rotation of on-call social workers for Emergency Department. Incumbent may have irregular tour of duty. Work Schedule: Monday-Friday 8:00am to 4:30pm Recruitment Incentive (Sign-on Bonus): Not Authorizaed 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: Ad Hoc Emergency Telework May Be Authorized Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Functional Statement #: 000000 Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized