Clarification from the agency

Open to current permanent Department of Veterans Affairs employees; current permanent Federal employees of other agencies; and All US Citizens. NOTE: The 2-page Resume requirement does not apply to this position.

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Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional

The Social Work Program Coordinator is administratively responsible for the provision of social work services and case management in the Polytrauma/Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) and Spinal Cord Injury (SCI) Programs within Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (PMR) Service at the VA Pacific Islands Health Care System (VA PIHCS).

Major Duties include but are not limited to the following:

• Provides ongoing comprehensive social work services to Veterans with spinal cord injuries and traumatic brain injuries through the coordination of health and rehabilitation services and addressing the psychosocial needs of Veterans and their families.
• Manages aspects of program operations related to the provision of social work services by providing direct patient care, developing relevant policies and procedures for program operation, and preparing reports and statistics for facility, VISN, and national use.
• Delivers services at the advanced practice level and has specialized knowledge of practice related to case management and psychosocial impacts of spinal cord injury, polytrauma, and traumatic brain injury.

Administrative Functions:

• Coordinates, develops, evaluates, and delivers social work services in the TBI and SCI Programs in PMR Service.
• Develops successful collaborations and ongoing consultation with the PMR multi-disciplinary teams, CBOCs, Primary Care, Social Work Executive, and other VA staff and community-based programs to ensure quality to support Veterans' psychosocial needs.
• Ensures compliance with the regulations and requirements which govern provision of social work services in the SCI and TBI programs.
• Administers information and analytical systems to evaluate and enhance the quality of service provided to patients, maintains related local and national databases, and monitors related performance measures.

Clinical Functions:

• Provides advanced level case management and social work interventions for Veterans with traumatic brain injuries, other acquired brain injuries, and spinal cord injuries and is accountable for the provision and effectiveness of case management and family support services provided in SCI and TBI Programs.
• Independently interviews Veterans and families to assess presenting problems and their impact on functioning and health, utilizing professional skill, objectivity, and insight during assessments and interviews to determine viable treatment options and resources.
• Coordinates treatment plans with interdisciplinary teams, assists with community resources, and acts as liaison with service providers to maintain or improve veteran's health and social functioning in a supportive environment.
• Assists Veterans and families with advance directives, guardianships, and applications for home care and extended care services.

Work Schedule: Full-Time; Monday to Friday, 7:30am-4:00pm
Recruitment/Relocation Incentives (Sign-on Bonus): Not Authorized
Permanent Change of Station (Relocation Assistance): Not Authorized
EDRP Authorized: Former EDRP participants ineligible to apply for incentive. Contact V21CCOEEDRP@va.gov,, the EDRP Coordinator for questions/assistance. Learn more
Pay: Competitive salary and regular salary increases. When setting pay, a higher step rate of the appropriate grade may be determined after consideration of higher or unique qualifications or special needs of the VA (Above Minimum Rate of the Grade).
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). Selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual, based on prior [work experience] or military service experience.
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 Telework may be authorized at Supervisory discretion.
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Functional Statement #: 10618-F
Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized

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

Basic Requirements:

1. United States Citizenship: Non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy.

2. English Language Proficiency: Candidates must be proficient in spoken and written English to be appointed as authorized by 38 U.S.C. § 7403(f).

3. Education: Candidates must 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.

4. 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/.


Grandfathering Provision: 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).

The following is the standard grandfathering policy for all title 38 hybrid qualification standards. Please carefully review the qualification standard to determine the specific education and/or licensure/certification/registration requirements that apply to this occupation.

1. All persons employed in VHA in this occupation on the effective date of this qualification standard are considered to have met all qualification requirements for the title, series and grade held, including positive education and licensure or certification that are part of the basic requirements of the occupation. For employees who do not meet all of the basic requirements in this standard, but who met the qualifications applicable to the position at the time they were appointed to it, the following provisions apply:
2. Such employees in an occupation that requires a licensure or certification, may be reassigned, promoted up to and including the full performance (journey) level, or changed to lower grade within the occupation, but may not be promoted beyond the journey level or placed in supervisory or managerial positions.
3. Employees who are appointed on a temporary basis prior to the effective date of the qualification standard may not have their temporary appointment extended or be reappointed, on a temporary or permanent basis, until they fully meet the basic requirements of the standard.
4. Employees initially grandfathered into this occupation, who subsequently obtain additional education and/or licensure/certification/registration that meet all of the basic requirements of this qualification standard must maintain the required credentials as a condition of employment in the occupation.
5. If an employee who was retained in an occupation listed in 38 U.S.C. § 7401(3) under this provision leaves that occupation, the employee loses protected status and must meet the full VA qualification standard requirements in effect at the time of reentry to the occupation.

NOTE: If social workers covered under the grandfathering provision of the 1991 Federal law regarding licensure or certification of VHA social workers leave the GS0185 social work series, they lose the grandfathering protection. If they choose to return at a later date to the GS-0185 series, they must be licensed or certified to qualify for employment as a social worker.


Grade Determinations:

Social Worker (Program Coordinator), GS-12

1. Experience and Education: One year of experience equivalent to the GS-11 grade level. Experience must demonstrate possession of advanced practice skills and judgment, demonstrating progressively more professional competency. Candidate may have certification or other post-master's degree training from a nationally recognized professional organization or university that includes a defined curriculum/course of study and internship, or equivalent supervised professional experience.
2. Licensure/Certification: Individuals assigned as social worker program coordinator must be licensed or certified at the advanced practice level, and must be able to provide supervision for licensure.
3. Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities: In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSAs:
   • Knowledge of program coordination and administration which includes consultation, negotiation, and monitoring.
   • Knowledge and ability to write policies, procedures, and/or practice guidelines for the program.
   • Ability to supervise multidisciplinary staff assigned to the program.
   • Skill in organizing work, setting priorities, meeting multiple deadlines, and evaluating assigned program area(s).
   • Ability to provide training, orientation, and guidance within clinical practice.

Preferred Experience: VA social work and TBI/SCI/Rehab experience is preferred.

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

Physical Requirements: See 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.

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.