Clarification from the agency

VA Employees only

The Licensed Professional Mental Health Counselor serves as a member of a multi-disciplinary Vet Center team and is responsible for coordinating and providing family counseling services in the Vet Center. The LPMHC conducts assessment interviews, develops treatment plans and provides treatment to eligible veterans and their families. Treatment modalities may include crisis intervention as well as both short and long-term services. The LPMHC may refer clients to other programs and professionals to include the VA Medical Center or Outpatient Clinic.

Screening/Assessment: The LPMHC interviews veterans and their significant others to determine specific problems. Independently conducts intake and needs assessment of veterans and their significant others and establishes helping relationships with their clients.
Treatment Planning/Goal Setting: The LPMHC is responsible for developing comprehensive and unique goal-directed treatment plans that reflect a course of therapeutic intervention to address the needs identified in the assessment.
Clinical Counseling: The LPMHC provides individual, conjoint, family, and group therapy for veterans and significant others.
Outreach: The LPMHC will conduct outreach specifically to: identify program eligible veterans and their family members, promote the use of the Vet Center services, and present educational programs about combat veterans, the Department of Veterans Affairs and Readjustment Counseling Service. The LPMHC will, during the outreach activity, ascertain veterans' service needs and inform or refer them to the Vet Center, VA Medical Center or other appropriate agency.
Crisis Intervention: The LPMHC will provide crisis intervention, stabilization and follow-up for veterans and significant others. Provides follow-up evaluations of clients to determine whether veterans have received all appropriate services and provides additional services or referrals as required.

Work Schedule: Fulltime, tour of duty will be dependent on the need at the location you are selected for. May be required to work some evenings, weekends and holidays.

Financial Disclosure Report: Not required

The salary listed is RUS and will be adjusted depending on location of the duty station.

Conditions of employment

• You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job
• Designated and/or random drug testing may be required
• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959
• You may be required to serve a probationary period
• Subject to a background/security investigation
• Must be proficient in written and spoken English
• Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process

Qualifications

Creditable Experience
Knowledge of Current LPMHC Practices. To be creditable, the experience must have demonstrated the knowledge, skills, and abilities associated with current mental health counseling practice. Experience satisfying this requirement must be active professional practice at the post- master's degree level, which is paid/non-paid employment as a professional mental health counselor.
Quality of Experience. Experience is only creditable if it is post- master's degree experience as a mental health counselor directly related to the position to be filled. Qualifying experience must be at a level comparable to LPMHC experience at the next lower grade level.
Part-Time Experience. Part-time experience as a LPMHC is creditable according to its relationship to the full-time workweek.
Practicum in a VA Setting. VHA practicum experience may not be substituted for experience, as the practicum (field placement) is completed prior to graduation with a master's degree in mental health counseling or related field.

BASIC REQUIREMENTS.
Citizenship. Be a citizen of the United States.
Education. Hold a master's or doctoral degree in: Clinical Mental Health Counseling; Clinical Rehabilitation Counseling; Clinical Mental Health Counseling and Clinical Rehabilitation Counseling; or a related field, from a program accredited by the Council on Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP). Additional information may be obtained from http://www.cacrep.org/directory/
NOTE: Traditional Rehabilitation counseling programs that are accredited by CACREP do not meet the LPMHC qualification standards as Traditional Rehabilitation counseling differs from Clinical Rehabilitation counseling.

Licensure. Persons hired or reassigned to LPMHC positions in the GS-0101 series in VHA must hold a full, current, and unrestricted license to independently practice as a Licensed Professional Mental Health Counselor, which includes diagnosis and treatment.
Failure to Obtain License. LPMHCs must actively pursue meeting state prerequisites for licensure starting from the date of their appointment. Failure to become licensed within three years from date of appointment will result in termination of employment.
Loss of Licensure. LPMHCs must maintain a full, valid, and unrestricted license to independently practice mental health counseling, which includes diagnosis and treatment. Loss of licensure may result in termination of employment

English Language Proficiency. LPMHCs must be proficient in spoken and written English

GRADE REQUIREMENTS.

GS-9 (Entry Level)
Experience, Education, and Licensure. The GS-9 grade level is the entry grade level for LPMHCs with less than one year of experience (post-master's degree) or for LPMHCs at the master's or doctoral level) who are graduates not yet licensed at the independent practice level.
Assignments. Individuals assigned as GS-9 LPMHCs are considered to be at the entry level and are closely supervised, including co-signatures where required, as they are not functioning at the full performance level. They are typically assigned to VHA areas that do not require specialized knowledge or experience.
Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities.

• Ability to engage in intake and assessment, problem identification, diagnosis, treatment planning and implementation, continuum of care, evaluation and follow-up.
• Knowledge of current Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM) of Mental Disorders in formulation of treatment goals and application of appropriate clinical interventions using professional counseling practices.
• Basic knowledge of professional counseling practice with emphasis on human development principles through cognitive, affective, behavioral or systemic interventions, and strategies that address high risk behaviors, wellness, personal growth, and career development across the life span.
• Ability to use a wide variety of individual, group, or family counseling interventions; demonstrates sensitivity to diversity and possesses multicultural counseling skills.
• Ability to serve on an interdisciplinary team with focus on the intrapersonal, interpersonal, and relational functioning of individuals, groups and families and on the counseling approaches, strategies, and techniques that will best help patients function effectively.
• Basic skill in the use of computer software applications for drafting documents, data management, maintaining accurate, timely and thorough clinical documentation and delivery of services, such as Telehealth.
• Ability to learn and utilize software programs in use by VHA.
• Knowledge and understanding of existing relevant statutes, case laws, ethical codes, and regulations affecting professional practice of counseling.
• Ability to communicate effectively, both orally and in writing, with people from varied backgrounds.

• Ability to make professional evaluations, decisions, and recommendation for treatment planning and implementation.
• Advanced knowledge and mastery of the fundamentals of the counseling process which includes defining patient/family problems and maintaining an effective counseling relationship.
• Ability to provide subject matter consultation to colleagues and trainees on the counseling process within various specialty areas, build on the foundation of competence through regular meetings and discussions to explain assignments, review progress of cases and confer about the counseling perspectives and orientation.
• Ability to provide complex crisis intervention and stabilization to patients who are in psychological distress. Requires independent judgment and skill.
• Ability to establish goals/treatment through a collaborative process with the patient utilizing advanced counseling skills, including evidenced- based practices, screening, and psychosocial assessment.
• Ability to use a wide variety of individual, group, or familial counseling interventions; demonstrates sensitivity to diversity and possesses multicultural counseling skills.
• Ability to fully utilize the current DSM in making diagnoses and formulation of treatment goals and application of appropriate clinical intervention using professional counseling practices.
• Ability to develop and facilitate psychotherapy and psycho- education groups that include life skills, family support, and community integration. This may include evidence based psychotherapy

How you will be evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE MAY NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. Your application, résumé, C.V., and/or supporting documentation will be verified. Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect consideration for employment.

NOTE: The Professional Standards Board (a peer-review group) will review the selected candidate's education and experience and recommend the grade and salary at which the candidate will be placed. For internal selectees eligible for promotion, the board will determine grade and HR will determine step in accordance with policy.

Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religions; spiritual; community; student; social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.