Clarification from the agency

Open to current permanent VA employees. Veterans' Preference is not applicable. NOTE: The 2-page Resume requirement does not apply to this position. For more information, refer to Required Documents below.

Videos

VA Careers - Licensed Clinical Social Worker: https://youtube.com/embed/U_xC25QsN0w
Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional

Major duties and responsibilities of the position include but are not limited to:

• The incumbent, in collaboration with the CSP Manager, is administratively responsible for the clinical programming and daily operations of the program.
• Develops policies and procedures for program operation and prepares reports and statistics for facility, VISN, and national use.
• The incumbent manages and controls the use of data related to these programs regarding day- t o - d ay functioning and program evaluation within the Muskogee VAHCS.
• The PCAFC Clinical Assessor, develops and implements the Caregiver Support Program specific to his/her area of assignment and ensures compliance and collaboration with local facility and the VA Central Office Caregiver Support Program initiatives.
• The incumbent administers information and analytical systems to evaluate and enhance the quality of service provided to caregivers, families, and Veterans.
• Develops and implements information systems to track service activities including visits, referrals, caregiver demographics, equipment utilization and caregiver and Veteran satisfaction. Develops implements and evaluates clinical guidelines and protocols to establish appropriate utilization of services. The incumbent participates in direct caregiver and Veteran contacts to identify and assess caregiver stress/burden and the development and application of directed clinical treatment interventions.
• Advises and collaborates with interdisciplinary teams throughout the medical center on caregiver issues.
• Creates educational tools, develops programs, and implements training focused on specific caregiver needs/issues.
• Provides education and in-service training to VAMC employees, Veterans, families, and caregivers.
• Provides ongoing consultation and support to colleagues regarding caregiver support.
• Develops and facilitates caregiver support groups (face-to-face or VANTS telephone line) and educational programs.
• Distributes educational materials provided by VA, local, state, and national caregiver organizations.
• The incumbent conducts caregiver and family clinical interventions to facilitate the identification of caregiver stress, psychiatric illness, emotional distress, and social needs as treatment issues.
• Professional judgment, including the knowledge of normal and abnormal behavior, is an inherent competency applied in daily interactions with caregivers and the Veterans they care for.
• The incumbent provides referral 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.
• If appropriate, the incumbent provides referrals or consults, or in some cases direct admission of a Veteran to other VA programs Rocky Mountain Network Human Resources Title 38/Hybrid Title 38 Functional Statement Updated 10/2024 including but not limited to the Community Residential Care Program, Respite Program, Community Health Care Coordination Program, Hospice, Home Based Primary Care, Telehealth and Community Nursing Home Program.

Work Schedule: Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m to 4:30 p.m
????Telework: Ad- Hoc/Situational
Functional Statement #: 60135-A

Conditions of employment

• You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job.
• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959.
• Must be proficient in written and spoken English.
• Subject to background/security investigation.
• Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements (https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/form-i-9-acceptable-documents). Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued identification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.
• Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP).
• Complete all application requirements detailed in the "Required Documents" section of this announcement.

As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1 or 2-year trial period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may consider:

• your performance and conduct;
• the needs and interests of the agency;
• whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and
• whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service.

Upon completion of your trial period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.

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.

Complete all application requirements detailed in the "Required Documents" section of this announcement.

Basic Requirements:

• 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 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/.

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.

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).


Preferred Experience: Two years post licensure.

Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/.

The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is GS-12.

Physical Requirements: IAW VA Directive and handbook 5019, Employee Occupational Health Services

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, resume, C.V., and/or supporting documentation will be verified. Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect consideration for employment.

Area of consideration:

1. Current Permanent VA employees of the facility
2. All other VA employees


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.

The Department of Veterans Affairs performs pre-employment reference checks as an assessment method used in the hiring process to verify information provided by a candidate (e.g., on resume or during interview or hiring process); gain additional knowledge regarding a candidate's abilities; and assist a hiring manager with making a final selection for a position.

It is the policy of the VA to not deny employment to those that have faced financial hardships or periods of unemployment.

Veterans and Transitioning Service Members: Please visit the VA for Vets site for career-search tools for Veterans seeking employment at VA, career development services for our existing Veterans, and coaching and reintegration support for military service members.