Senior Social Worker - Home Based Primary Care
What you'd do
This position is located at Lebanon VA Medical Center within the Social Work Services service line. The Social Worker will be assigned to the Home Based Primary Care and Contract Nursing Home Programs.
Major duties
As a member of the Interdisciplinary Treatment Team in the Home Based Primary Care (HBPC) and Contract Nursing Home (CNH) Programs, the individual conducts work activity independently using his/her educational training, clinical experience, VA policies, and Joint Commission standards in administering direct services: psychosocial and behavioral health assessment of patient/family needs in relation to the provision of interdisciplinary treatment planning and service delivery; individual, group, and family therapy and casework services for the purpose of addressing identified needs. This position is responsible for assessments, planning, and provision of case management services in the HBPC and CNH programs. This social worker coordinates a variety of activities including home visits, community contract nursing home visits, outreach, interdisciplinary activities, psychosocial assessments, behavioral health assessments, suicide risk assessments, safety planning, treatment planning, consultation/education to Medical Center staff and community based service providers, the collection and maintenance of statistical data, program planning evaluation and modification. The social worker will provide services both via telephone contact, video telehealth and in the homes of veterans enrolled in HBPC and CNH. Major duties include, but are not limited to: Conducts psychosocial assessments to determine needs of veterans and family members. Completes assessment of mental health needs, including suicide risk assessments and provide psychotherapeutic interventions and safety planning. Participates in the treatment planning process with other disciplines. Participates in discharge planning with other disciplines and will be responsible for ensuring that discharge plans are executed in a manner that is timely and appropriate. Utilizes evidence-based practice to provide individual, family and group therapy as appropriate. Provides consultation/education to veterans and families on community resources, advance directives and VA benefits. Acts as a consultant to other team/staff members. Provides consultation/education to medical residents on social work practice and VA policy and procedure. Acts as liaison between VA and community resources, to include marketing and public relation duties as needed. Provides case management to veterans and families, as needed, throughout the continuum of care. Provides a full range of social work services within commonly accepted standards of social work practice which includes case work, individual, family and group therapy, discharge planning, case management and other services as appropriate. Provides wellness/prevention education and facilitate patient/family support groups as appropriate. Coordinates treatment and communicate with the care lines to facilitate continuity of care for veterans. Assists patients and their significant others with coping and dealing with the loss and grief experiences in disability, terminal illness and death through grief counseling and other evidenced based practices. HBPC social workers may be required to drive patients in a government vehicle and as such will be required to meet driver physical requirements as detailed in Medical Center Memorandum 138-18. Performs additional duties as assigned. Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional Work Schedule: 8:00 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. 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 only Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized
What you need to qualify
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. 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: In addition to the basic requirements for employment, the following criteria must be met when determining the grade of candidates. Senior Social Worker, 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. Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://department.va.gov/employees/va-qualifications-standards/. The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-12. Physical Requirements: You will be asked to participate in a pre-employment evaluation [or examination] 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.
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