Summary

The 2-page Resume requirement does not apply to this occupational series. For more information - refer to Required Documents below. The Substance Use Disorder (SUD) Social Worker is assigned to the Substance Abuse Treatment Team (SATT) and independently provides clinical psychosocial - mental health and case management services to eligible Veterans who have problems with substance abuse or dependence and may include work with family members and the Veteran as part of the treatment plan.

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 only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy
• English Language Proficiency: You must be proficient in spoken and written English as required by 38 U.S.C. 7403(f)
• Education: You must possess 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
• 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/
• For assignments at the GS-9 level - VHA may waive the licensure or certification requirement for persons who are otherwise qualified - pending completion of state prerequisites for licensure/certification examinations
• 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 a social worker
• 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
• GS-9 Social Worker Experience - Education - and Licensure
• None beyond the basic requirements
• GS-11 Social Worker 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-9 grade 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
• 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
• While we no longer require essay-style responses to our Knowledge's Skills - Abilities - and Other Characteristics (KSAOs) - you must be able to demonstrate that you possess the (below) competencies which are necessary to perform the work of the position
• Please ensure your resume/CV/application contains sufficient information to support the level of experience/education/training
• otherwise - we will not be able to award you credit for the experience/education/training you claim
• These are the KSA's for this subject position: GS-9 Knowledge - Skills - and Abilities: 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 GS-11 Knowledge - Skills - and Abilities: 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
• Preferred Experience: Working with Veterans with substance use disorders
• 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 GS-9 to GS-11
• Physical Requirements: To be able to meet the physical demands of the position - reasonable accommodations may be made to enable qualified individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions
• They must have good manual dexterity
• Must be able to express or exchange ideas by means of spoken and written word
• Must be able to view and read information on computer screens
• Position involves sitting a majority of the workday - with some standing - bending - and walking.

Duties

• The SUD Social Worker facilitates efficient and appropriate delivery of services across episodes of care - which may encompass discharge issues from inpatient detoxification - ambulatory detoxification - outpatient treatment - and residential treatment within the VA or under contract in community programs
• The SUD Social Worker coordinates care with other services provided within the Medical Center - including Vocational Rehabilitation - Health Care for Homeless Veterans Program - the Post Traumatic Stress Disorder Clinical Team - and other Mental Health Services
• along with community partners
• The work affects a wide range of agency activities and operations
• It directly affects the health and well-being of the patients served and relationships with internal and external stakeholders
• The work requires the exercise of independent mature professional judgment and flexible use of clinical - administrative - and leadership skills
• Duties and responsibilities include - but are not limited to: Interviewing Veterans and their family members/significant others to establish facts about the Veteran's situation - presenting problems and their causes - and the impact of such problems on the Veteran's functioning and health as part of a comprehensive psychosocial and/or mental health assessment
• Serving Veterans who tend to have serious frequent and severe crises - lack family or an adequate community support network - be poor at self-monitoring - frequently fail to comply with instructions and treatment - have significant deficits in coping skills and require continuing professional psychological support
• Reviewing all data - subjective and objective - and making a clinical assessment - identifying needs and strengths by effectively utilizing professional skill - objectivity and insight
• Using advanced clinical training - insight and experience to interpret data and to identify viable treatment options
• Completing a psychosocial and/or mental health assessment documenting appropriate treatment plans - interventions - VA/community resource referrals and follow-up case management services
• Independently evaluating the client's situation - including the Veteran's reaction and ability to cope - and using professional judgment and advanced practice skills to make a psychosocial/mental health diagnosis
• Developing psychosocial treatment plans in coordination with interdisciplinary team members - including goals for psychosocial/mental health clinical treatment
• Using known available resources and the initial assessment of the Veteran's likelihood to accept differing types of assistance - makes initial and continuing decisions regarding use of VA and non-VA services - including telehealth treatment and VA community referrals
• Providing clinical services which may include individual and group psychotherapy to Veterans and family members/significant others in support of the Veteran's treatment
• Assisting and encouraging Veterans and significant others in facing problems - thinking through them - evaluating the situation realistically - considering alternative course of action and arriving at plans for using resources to resolve problems
• Organizing community services on behalf of beneficiaries - and developing and coordinating procedures for use of these services by related staff
• Establishing working relationships and agreements with other organizations having responsibilities for the same patient population
• Other duties as assigned
• Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional Work Schedule: 8:00am - 4:30pm - Monday - Friday 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: Not available
• Virtual: This is not a virtual position
• Functional Statement # 50301F Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not authorized.