Summary

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.

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: 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 to the CSWE website to verify that the Social Work degree meets the accreditation standards for a Master's 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
• License documentation must be submitted with application
• 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: 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
• 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
• Assignments: For all assignments above the full performance level - the higher-level duties must consist of significant scope - complexity (difficulty) - and variety and be performed by the incumbent at least 25% of the time
• Senior social workers are licensed or certified to independently practice social work at an advanced level
• Senior social workers typically practice in a major program area such as but not limited to: Polytrauma Rehabilitation Center or Polytrauma Network Site
• a Spinal Cord Injury Rehabilitation Center - or a national VHA referral center - such as a national Center for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder or a national Transplant Center - or other program areas of equivalent scope and complexity
• The senior social worker may be assigned administrative responsibility for clinical program development and is accountable for clinical program effectiveness and modification of service patterns
• Assignments include clinical settings where they have limited access to onsite supervision such as CBOCs or satellite outpatient clinics
• The senior social worker collaborates with the other members of the treatment team in the provision of comprehensive health care services to Veterans - ensures equity of access - service - and benefits to this population - ensures the care provided is of the highest quality
• The senior social worker provides leadership - direction - orientation - coaching - in-service training - staff development - and continuing education programs for assigned social work staff
• They serve on committees - work groups - and task forces at the facility - VISN and national level - or in the community as deemed appropriate by the supervisor - Social Work Executive or Chief of Social Work Services
• This assignment is to be relatively few in number based on the size of the facility/service and applying sound position management
• This assignment must represent substantial additional responsibility over and above that required at the full performance grade level and cannot be used as the full performance level of this occupation
• Preferred Experience: Experience in broad range of mental health issues common to justice-involved veteran population - such as PTSD - substance use disorders - depression - crisis intervention and trauma-related conditions
• Experience collaborating with legal personnel - law enforcement and community agencies to develop diversionary tactics aimed at preventing incarceration
• Experience working with multi-disciplinary teams to coordinate care and services
• 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: 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
• Applicants 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 applicant or others
• The position requires walking throughout the Medical Center and clinics - community - agencies/court rooms - standing for extended periods of time - and involves sitting at a computer and in counsel and consultation with Veterans and interdisciplinary teams
• 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
• Physical Requirements continued in Additional Information Section below:

Duties

• Note: The 2-page Resume requirement does not apply to this occupational series
• For more information - refer to Required Documents below
• The Veterans Justice Outreach (VJO) / Healthcare for Reentry Veterans (HCRV) is part of the Health Care for Homeless Veterans (HCHV) Program
• This position works within the VA Long Beach Health Care System - under Social Work Services
• The VJO/HCRV Social Worker is a Senior Social Worker whose primary responsibilities will focus upon justice-involved Veterans in a hybrid model that encompasses court - jail and prison outreach (hybrid VJO/HCRV)
• 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: Provides outreach to identified community Veterans Courts - community events - and to community/county jails
• Advocates for Veterans in the criminal justice system
• Attends Veterans Treatment Court and to jails to interview Veterans
• Determines eligibility for VHA services
• Provides psychosocial assessments - case management services - continuous quality improvement activities - evaluation/consultation - placement services - treatment plan - and referrals
• Meets with judges - officers of the court - correctional administrators - and staff on a regular basis to design and/or maintain appropriate policies and procedures required for each setting
• Collaborates with other VJO clinicians to support engagement in care for eligible Veterans recently discharged from correctional institutions
• Conducts active outreach to Veterans involved with the justice system - including those who may be participants - or candidates for participation - in treatment court programs - including Veterans Courts
• Identifies and interviews justice-involved Veterans in the appropriate setting to conduct needs assessment and determine appropriate referrals - linkage and coordination for VA and non-VA services to enhance function in the community - including in transition from jail or prison
• May perform work in maximum - medium - or minimum-security correctional institutions usually under a \"no hostage\" policy
• Observes established VA safety precautions while working in correctional facilities and/or in community settings
• There is ongoing exposure to individuals with psychiatric/physical illness and disabilities - which can include acute infections - violent or aggressive behavior - or chronic psychiatric and medical problems
• Referral and linkage to VA medical and mental health treatment and to other VA services including VA benefits - as well as community based social services and other non-VA entitlement programs
• Collaborates with county probation officers - prosecutors - public defenders - retained defense counsel - and parole officers to develop a post-release plan and/or community-based alternatives to incarceration
• Participates as an active member of the court treatment team - providing or coordinating the provision of clinical treatment using evidence-based models appropriate to the justice-involved Veteran population
• Complete program specific documentation
• Other duties as assigned
• Work Schedule: Monday-Friday
• 8:00am-4:30pm Location: Santa Ana CA and Long Beach CA Recruitment Incentive (Sign-on Bonus): Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (Relocation Assistance): Not Authorized Education Debt Reduction Program (EDRP) Authorized: This position is eligible for 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 your start date
• 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
• Contact VHA.ELRSProgramSupport@va.gov for questions/assistance
• 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
• based on management approval Virtual: This is not a virtual position
• Functional Statement #: 000000 Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized