Clarification from the agency

This job is open to current permanent Department of Veteran Affairs employees, and current, past, or upcoming Health Professional Trainees (HPTs). *See "How You Will Be Evaluated" for additional information. NOTE: The 2-page Resume requirement does not apply to this position. For more information, refer to Required Documents below.

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Duties may include but are not limited to:

• Provide symptom targeted assessments of neurocognitive problems resulting from various conditions.
• Provide screening for cognitive deficits to address specific functional questions or to determine the necessity for a further neuropsychological evaluation or assessment.
• Perform capacity/competency assessments when there are questions about a patient's ability to make medical decisions, perform other specific functions, or live independently.
• Assess patients' understanding of advanced directives and other forms of consent and assist staff in determining how to present treatment options and other such material to patients in a format they can understand.
• May provide cognitive rehabilitation strategies for various conditions.
• Use professional judgment and advanced practice skills to diagnose a full-range of psychiatric disorders according to DSM-5 and/or as applicable ICD-10.
• Ensure the correct administration, scoring, and interpretation of psychological and neuropsychological measures, along with the accurate presentation of resulting data is entered into the veterans electronic medical record.
• Consult/liaison with medical center staff on a wide variety of patient care issues.
• May provide psychological assessments and supervision of trainees completing assessments or neuropsychological evaluations.
• Coordinate scheduling of all referred veterans, supervision of assessments, evaluation of test results, monitoring of test interpretation, and appropriate communication of results to referral sources.
• Provide crisis intervention services, seeking to address the cause as well as the presenting complaint, coordinates family conferences and serves as liaison to family members, as needed.
• Assess the need for referral for more intensive and/or specialty mental health services.
• Independently identify high-risk patients and connects with needed resources and services, as needed.
• Complete clinical reminders.
• Review relevant data, assess the data, develop, and implement ideas for improvement.
• Ensure that appropriate testing equipment, forms, manuals, and materials are available. Monitor the efficiency, effectiveness, timeliness, quality of services offered within the program area.
• Perform specialized treatment of complex mental illness incorporating complex multiple causation in differential diagnosis and treatment of Veterans including making psychosocial and psychiatric diagnoses within approved clinical privileges.
• Perform routine and in-depth mental health evaluations, including intake assessments.
• Provide evidence-based psychotherapy and other therapeutic interventions utilizing VA based guidance and guidelines.
• Provide a full range of therapeutic interventions for patients, including individual, couples, and group psychotherapy.
• Use the most appropriate psychotherapeutic techniques in providing quality care.
• Perform routine brief assessments in context of therapy, as appropriate.
• Provide brief mental health and behavioral interventions, as appropriate.
• Provide case management interventions, at times at an advanced level, used in the treatment of veterans with mood, anxiety, psychotic, trauma, substance, and other mental health, emotional and behavioral disorders.
• Provide clinical supervision to psychology trainees.
• Liaison/advocate on behalf of the Neuropsychology Team and/or Veteran/caregiver between settings of care, both internal and external to the VA.
• Provide patient, family, and caregiver education, both in individual and group formats.
• Independently identifies high-risk patients and connects with needed resources and services, as needed.
• Complete comprehensive Veteran-centered, recovery-focused treatment plans and updates as appropriate/required.
• Serve as psychology champion for treatment planning, discharge planning, and psychosocial and psychotherapeutic needs.
• Involvement in training program didactics for trainees of various disciplines and levels, as assigned.
• Serve on Medical Center or Healthcare System, VISN, and/or National VA committees or task forces, as assigned by the Supervisor or the Associate Chief of Staff for Mental Health.
• Represent psychology on decision-making committees at the Medical Center or Healthcare System, as assigned by the Supervisor or the Associate Chief of Staff for Mental Health.
• Represent the Medical Center or Healthcare System at professional/program community group/events and committees.
• Perform VA police psychological examinations, as needed.
• Other duties as assigned.

Conditions of employment

• You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job.
• All applicants tentatively selected for VA employment in a testing designated position are subject to urinalysis to screen for illegal drug use prior to appointment. Applicants who refuse to be tested will be denied employment with VA.
• 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).
• Physical Requirements: Ability to physically access various treatment settings within the facility. Ability to use computers frequently/continuously throughout the day for data input and communication. Ability to use phone. Position is primarily sedentary, and incumbent must be able to sit for prolonged periods of time. May require light lifting and carrying (under 15 pounds) and climbing stairs as needed.
• Complete all application requirements detailed in the "Required Documents" section of this announcement.

• 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.

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.
• English Language Proficiency. Psychologists must be proficient in spoken and written English in accordance with VA Handbook 5005, Part II, Chapter 3, section A, paragraph 3j.
• Education:
  • A doctoral degree in psychology from a graduate program in psychology accredited by the American Psychological Association (APA), the Psychological Clinical Science Accreditation System (PCSAS), or the Canadian Psychological Association (CPA) at the time the program was completed. The specialty area of the degree must be consistent with the assignment for which the applicant is to be employed. For the purpose of meeting this requirement, the term "specialty area" refers to the specific specialty areas recognized by the accrediting body and not to specific job duties that might require special skills. Currently, APA accredits doctoral programs in the specialty areas of clinical psychology, counseling psychology, school psychology, or combinations of two or more of those areas. PCSAS accredits doctoral programs in psychological clinical science. CPA accredits doctoral programs in clinical psychology, counseling psychology, clinical neuropsychology, and school psychology. There are no job assignments in VHA that require the skills of a school psychologist; therefore, an applicant with a degree in the specialty area of school psychology is not eligible for appointment. Strictly for the purpose of determining eligibility for appointment as a psychologist in VHA, there is no distinction between the specialty areas (with the exception of school psychology); OR,
  • A doctoral degree in any area of psychology and, in addition, successfully complete a re- specialization program (including documentation of an approved internship completed as part of the re- specialization program) meeting both of the following conditions:
    • The re-specialization program must be completed in an APA or a CPA accredited doctoral program; and,
    • the specialty in which the applicant is retrained must be consistent with the assignment for which the applicant is to be employed.
      • NOTE: The applicant must provide an official transcript and/or certificate documenting the completion of the re-specialization program, which includes completion of an APA or CPA internship; OR,
  • A doctoral degree awarded between 1951 and 1978 from a regionally-accredited institution, with a dissertation primarily psychological in nature.
• Internship Requirement:
  • You must have successfully completed a professional psychology internship training program that was accredited by APA or CPA at the time the program was completed and that is consistent with the assignment for which the applicant is to be employed; OR,
  • New VHA psychology internship programs that are in the process of applying for APA accreditation are acceptable in fulfillment of the internship requirement, provided that such programs were sanctioned by the VHA Central Office Program Director for Psychology and the VHA Office of Academic Affiliations at the time that the individual was an intern; OR,
  • VHA facilities that offered full-time, one-year pre-doctoral internships prior to PL 96-151 (pre-1979) are considered to be acceptable in fulfillment of the internship requirement; OR,
  • Applicants who completed an internship that was not accredited by APA or CPA at the time the program was completed may be considered eligible for hire only if they are currently board certified by the American Board of Professional Psychology in a specialty area that is consistent with the assignment for which the applicant is to be employed. (NOTE: Once board certified, the employee is required to maintain board certification); OR,
  • Applicants who have a doctoral degree awarded between 1951 and 1978 from a regionally-accredited institution with a dissertation primarily psychological in nature may fulfill this internship requirement by having the equivalent of a one-year supervised internship experience in a site specifically acceptable to the candidate's doctoral program. If the internship experience is not noted on the applicant's official transcript, the applicant must provide a statement from the doctoral program verifying that the equivalent of a one-year supervised internship experience was completed in a site acceptable to the doctoral program.
• Licensure: Candidates must hold a full, current, unexpired, and unrestricted license to practice psychology at the doctoral level in a State, Territory or Commonwealth of the United States, or the District of Columbia.
  • Exception. Non-licensed applicants who otherwise meet the eligibility requirements may be given a temporary appointment as a "graduate psychologist" at the GS-11 or GS-12 grade under the authority of 38 U.S.C. § 7405 [(c)(2)(B)] for a period not to exceed two years from the date of employment on the condition that such a psychologist provide care 4 only under the supervision of a psychologist who is licensed. Failure to obtain licensure during that period is justification for termination of the temporary appointment.

• Experience: None beyond the basic requirements.

• Experience: At least 1 year of experience as a professional psychologist equivalent to the next lower grade level (GS-11). Psychologists who are not licensed must practice under the supervision of a licensed psychologist but with less intense supervision than at the GS-11 grade level.
• Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (KSAs): In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSAs:
  • Knowledge of and ability to apply a wide range of professional psychological treatments or assessment methods to a variety of patient populations.
  • Ability to design and implement effective treatment strategies.
  • Ability to incorporate new clinical procedures.
  • Ability to conduct research activities, such as designing and implementing clinical research projects (staff psychologists with specified research job duties).
  • Ability to perform basic research tasks of scholarship and research execution within the context of an established research team, including research participant relations, research documentation, data acquisition, maintenance, and collaboration

• Experience: At least 2 years of experience as a professional psychologist, with at least one year equivalent to the GS-12 grade level.
• Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (KSAs): In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSAs:
  • Knowledge of, and ability to apply, professional psychological treatments to the full range of patient populations.
  • Ability to provide professional advice and consultation in areas related to professional 7 psychology and behavioral health.
  • Knowledge of clinical research literature.

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. Your resume must include the following information for each job listed:
Company & Job Title
Month & Year of Start/End dates (i.e. June 2007 to April 2008)
Indicate Full-time or Part-time (include hours worked per week) status
Duties(be as detailed as possible) for each job entry
References, to include contact information

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.

Applicants will be considered based on the following areas of consideration:

• First Area of Consideration (Facility Employees) - Current, permanent John D. Dingell Medical Center employees (this includes Outpatient Clinics, permanent employees of the Veteran Canteen Service assigned to this facility, Office of Information & Technology employees assigned to this facility, CPAC bargaining unit employees located at the Detroit VAMC, and Virtual bargaining unit employees assigned to the facility.
• Second Area of Consideration (Other VA Employees) - Current, permanent Department of Veterans Affairs Employees (VA employees who are located at other VA medical centers).
• Third Area of Consideration - Current, past, or upcoming VHA Health Professional Trainees (HPTs). *subject to Veteran's Preference.