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VA Portland Health Care System is a Complexity Level 1a Facility and provides extensive primary, secondary, tertiary, and quaternary care in outpatient, inpatient, residential, and community settings. VAPORHCS is a multi-site medical system that includes a major medical facility in Portland, Oregon, outpatient and residential facilities in Vancouver, Washington, and 10 Community Based Outpatient Clinics.
05/12/2025 to 06/03/2025
$74,382 - $116,987 per year
GS 9 - 11
1 vacancy in the following location:
No
No
25% or less - You may be expected to travel for this position.
No
Permanent
Full-time
Excepted
11
No
No
CBSV-12735442-25-SN
836844800
Areas of consideration: 1. Current Permanent Internal VA Employees/Department/Service line or Facility 2. VISN 3. VHA 4. VA Wide (NCA, VBA, VACO) 5. Past/Current/Upcoming VHA Health Professions Trainee Graduates
VA Careers - Social Work: https://youtube.com/embed/enRhz_ua_UU
The duties of this position include but are not limited to the following:
The Supportive Services for Veteran Families (SSVF) Substance Use Disorder (SUD) is responsible for providing case management and therapeutic services to Veterans throughout the VA Portland catchment area. SSVF programs serving Veterans within the VA Portland Health Care System (VAPORHCS) are private non-profit organizations and consumer cooperatives that assist very low-income Veteran families by providing a range of supportive services designed to promote housing stability. The SUD SSVF Social Worker focuses on providing continuity of care between SSVF and VAPORHCS programs. The incumbent provides housing first and harm reduction treatment interventions to promote access to care until transitioned to other care as clinically indicated.
The SUD SSVF Social Worker provides intensive case management services, individual and group psychotherapy treatment, and biopsychosocial assessments to assist Veterans with housing and employment stability. The incumbent will independently foster professional relationships with stakeholders to support seamless coordination of care and facilitating access to community-based treatment programs. Additionally, the position provides outreach to Veterans experiencing housing instability to support SUD treatment goals, as well as, access to both VA and community based homeless services.
The SUD SSVF Social Worker provide care in community settings and are required to operate a government vehicle as they work with Veterans, meet with community partners, and travel between sites of care. Contact with Veterans will be in person, over the phone, and through video conferencing technology. Case management resource brokering and documenting work in electronic medical record may be performed in an office setting.
Provides direct SUD services for Veterans enrolled in the SSVF program.
- Provides Outreach services for Veterans and supports referral to VA and community-based treatment programs, for Veterans enrolled in SSVF.
- Provides training for other members of the multidisciplinary treatment team in areas related to SUD assessment and co-occurring disorders.
- Completes comprehensive bio-psychosocial assessments evaluating the psychological functioning and needs of Veterans, including Veteran identified strengths, needs, abilities, and preferences (SNAP).
- Formulates and implements patient-centered treatment plans, using Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Timely (SMART) interventions, reassessing and revising as indicated by the Veteran's engagement in treatment.
- Utilizes recovery model framework to develop treatment interventions to address the factors that contributed to homelessness, including SUD and other co-occurring factors.
Conducts individual and group treatment, including case management and psychotherapy treatment, including early interventions and supportive follow-up to ensure stability.
- Supports Veterans enrolled in SSVF by providing consultation to Grantee or accompanying SSVF case managers on home visits, as clinically indicated, as well as, assists with policy development, goal setting, and treatment service planning discussions with SSVF Grantees and VA Homeless Programs.
- Serves as a member of a multidisciplinary homeless program treatment team.
- Develops strong partnerships and processes with local SSVF grantees, incumbent develops partnerships with community-based agencies providing direct services to Veterans experiencing homelessness and/or Substance Use Disorders.
Work Schedule: Monday-Friday 08:00am-4:30pm
Telework: Not Authorized
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized
Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized
PCS Appraised Value Offer (AVO): Not Authorized
Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/. If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/.
Receiving Service Credit or Earning Annual (Vacation) Leave: Federal Employees earn annual leave at a rate (4, 6 or 8 hours per pay period) which is based on the number of years they have served as a Federal employee. Selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual, based on prior work experience or military service experience. This credited service can be used in determining the rate at which they earn annual leave. Such credit must be requested and approved prior to the appointment date and is not guaranteed.
Failure to Obtain. License or Certification. In all cases, social workers must actively pursue meeting state prerequisites for licensure or certification starting from the date of their appointment. Failure to become licensed or certified within the prescribed amount of time will result in removal from the GS-0185 social worker series and may result in termination of employment.
During the application process you may have an option to opt-in to make your resume available to hiring managers in the agency who have similar positions. Opting in does not impact your application for this announcement, nor does it guarantee further consideration for additional positions.
This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies.
This position is in the Excepted Service and does not confer competitive status.
VA encourages persons with disabilities to apply. The health-related positions in VA are covered by Title 38, and are not covered by the Schedule A excepted appointment authority.
If you are unable to apply online or need an alternate method to submit documents, please reach out to the Agency Contact listed in this Job Opportunity Announcement.
Under the Fair Chance to Compete Act, the Department of Veterans Affairs prohibits requesting an applicant's criminal history prior to accepting a tentative job offer. For more information about the Act and the complaint process, visit Human Resources and Administration/Operations, Security, and Preparedness (HRA/OSP) at The Fair Chance Act.
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.
To apply for this position, you must provide a complete Application Package which includes:
Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education in order for it to be credited towards qualifications. Therefore, provide only the attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.
Failure to provide all of the required information as stated in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating or may affect the overall rating.
All applicants are encouraged to apply online. To apply for this position, you must complete the full questionnaire and submit the documentation specified in the Required Documents section below. The complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (ET) on 06/03/2025 to receive consideration. To preview the questionnaire click https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/12735442.
Once your online application is submitted you will receive a confirmation notification by email. After we receive application packages (including all required documents) and the vacancy announcement closes, we will review applications to ensure qualification and eligibility requirements are met. After the review is complete, a referral certificate(s) is issued and applicants will be notified of their status by email. Referred applicants will be notified as such and may be contacted directly by the hiring office for an interview. All referred applicants receive a final notification once a selection decision has been made.
You may check the status of your application at any time by logging into your USA Jobs account and clicking on Applications. Information regarding your application status can be found in the USAJobs Help Center.
NOTE: Participation in the seasonal influenza program is a condition of employment and a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP). It is a requirement that all HCP to receive annual seasonal influenza vaccination or obtain an exemption for medical or religious reasons. Wearing a face mask is required when an exemption to the influenza vaccination has been granted. HCP in violation of this directive may face disciplinary action up to and including removal from federal service. HCP are individuals who, during the influenza season, work in VHA locations or who come into contact with VA patients or other HCP as part of their duties. VHA locations include, but are not limited to, VA hospitals and associated clinics, community living centers (CLCs), community-based outpatient clinics (CBOCs), domiciliary units, Vet centers and VA-leased medical facilities. HCP include all VA licensed and unlicensed, clinical and administrative, remote and onsite, paid and without compensation, full- and part-time employees, intermittent employees, fee basis employees, VA contractors, researchers, volunteers and health professions trainees (HPTs) who are expected to perform any or all of their work at these facilities. HPTs may be paid or unpaid and include residents, interns, fellows and students. HCP also includes VHA personnel providing home-based care to Veterans and drivers and other personnel whose duties put them in contact with patients outside VA medical facilities.
The Federal hiring process is set up to be fair and transparent. Please read the following guidance.
This job originated on www.usajobs.gov. For the full announcement and to apply, visit www.usajobs.gov/job/836844800. Only resumes submitted according to the instructions on the job announcement listed at www.usajobs.gov will be considered.