Summary

The Senior Social Worker is the Coordinated Entry Specialist (CES) for Homeless Programs with the Chillicothe VA Medical Center. This position enables VA homeless programs to fully collaborate with the community - including the Continuum of Care (CoC) and community partners - in the coordinated entry efforts in that community.

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: Be a citizen of the United States
• (Non-citizens may be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with chapter 3 - section A - paragraph 3g this part)
• 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
• License - You 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
• 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
• Applicable experience must demonstrate possession of advanced practice skills and judgment
• Licensure: Senior social workers must be licensed 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
• Driver's License: Applicants must possess a current - valid driver's license
• You may be required to provide your license at the time of interview
• A clean driving record report from the DMV and validation of your driver's license will be required during the online onboarding process
• 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-12
• Physical Requirements: This position requires the operation of a government-owned or -leased motor vehicle in order to properly carry out assigned duties
• Refer to VA Handbook 5019/1 - Part II - Appendix A for requirements related to motor vehicle operators
• Traveling throughout the medical center and the community is required - as is performing activities involving sitting - talking - driving - walking - standing - bending - the use of a computer and telephone and carrying such items as books - papers and files not to exceed facility determined weights
• In carrying out responsibilities - it is necessary for the incumbent to travel into the community where they provide care to Veterans
• Care provided in emergency shelters - Veteran homes or other community locations may require the use of stairs - walking on uneven terrain and reasonable exposure to the elements
• Strenuous physical activity is not anticipated - although the incumbent is expected to withstand stress and interact with crisis situations as part of day-to-day activity.

Duties

• Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional Duties included but not limited to: Participate in CoC meetings and planning efforts which may include leadership roles within the CoC group
• Provides direct linkage from community services to VHA homeless program services through regular and consistent outreach and communication with community providers
• Participates in case conferencing process within the CoC's coordinated entry system to help inform and facilitate referrals to VA programs such as HUD- VASH -SSVF - HCHV CERS - and GPD
• Ensures efficient sharing of Veteran data and program information - as allowable under VA Privacy and Information Security policies and Directives
• Participates and contribute to a CoC level resource-and-demand analysis - including periodic review of the gaps to determine inflows/outflows - and make recommendations to VHA homeless program leadership on adjustments to resource allocations within coordinated entry based on this analysis
• Provides support to the VA homeless program teams as a functional member of the team - to include participation in outreach activities and subject matter consultation on community involved interventions for homeless Veterans
• Serve as a member of a multidisciplinary homeless program treatment team to link treatment team discussions to the community's case conferencing discussions - ensuring continuity of care for Veterans experiencing homelessness in addition to complex physical and mental illnesses - including those at risk for suicide
• Provide all necessary assessment functions in the service provision for homeless Veterans - e.g
• interviewing - psychosocial histories and assessments to aid in the development of treatment plans as well as case conferencing discussions and planning
• Develop partnerships with community agencies with regular contact and communication
• Use of a government vehicle to transport Veterans
• This positions requires the ability to accompany and transport Veterans to appointments and other community resources as needed - whether medical - housing - or other treatment plan goal appointments through the use of a government vehicle
• All motor vehicle operators shall undergo a standard pre-placement examination and periodic evaluation at least once every 4 years to ensure that employees who operate a government owned or leased vehicle are medically able to do so without undue risk to self or others
• Work Schedule: Full-time - Monday through Friday - 7:30 a.m.-4:00 p.m
• 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) 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 Telework Only Virtual: This is not a virtual position
• Functional Statement #: 92900-0 Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized