Clarification from the agency

All U.S. Citizens. *1st consideration is current, permanent federal employees of the VA Salem Healthcare System. *2nd consideration is current, permanent federal employees of the VA Mid-Atlantic Healthcare Network - VISN 6. *3rd consideration is Department of VA and all other eligible public candidates. *This position is being filled using U.S. Code 38 U.S.C. § 7412 which waives the requirement to apply Veterans' preference to external applicants for appointments made to shortage occupations.

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The primary responsibility of the Medical/Surgical Social Worker is to provide discharge planning, case management and crisis intervention services. They will also coordinate and oversee all complex discharges in the medical center to support timely patient discharge. In this role the incumbent supervises a group of employees performing work at various GS levels and provides administrative, technical, and clinical supervision necessary for accomplishing the work of the unit.

Duties include but are not limited to:

• Performs the administrative and personnel management function relative to staff supervised.
• Technical assistance provided to monitor activities and program reviews, and the development and analysis of information.
• Uses sound judgment in the interpretation of trends and patterns; the application of guidelines; and the recommendation of program enhancements.
• Performs program analysis, development, review, research, design, and contact work as possible with various agencies (public, DOD, state, etc.
• Independently identifies high-risk patients and provides case management services.
• Provides crisis intervention services, seeking to address the cause as well as the presenting complaint, coordinates family conferences and serves as liaison to family members.
• Has working knowledge and experience in use of medical and mental health diagnoses, disabilities, and treatment procedures. This includes acute, chronic, and traumatic illnesses/injuries, common medications and their effects/side effects, and medical terminology.
• Enter all Veteran/family contacts in the electronic record using appropriate formats and templates and in accordance with Medical Center standards.
• Attend all appropriate staff meetings (i.e., interdisciplinary treatment team meetings, Social Work staff meetings, Social Work supervision meetings, and other committees and workgroups, as appropriate).
• The incumbent will also be available to provide social work coverage for med/surg floors on Saturday on a monthly basis.

Total-Rewards-of-an-Allied-Health-VA-Career-Brochure.pdf

Social Work: vacareers.va.gov/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/Total-Rewards-of-a-Social-Worker-Career-Flyer.pdf

Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional

Work Schedule: 7:45am - 4:30pm, Monday - Friday
Recruitment Incentive (Sign-on Bonus): Not Authorized
Permanent Change of Station (Relocation Assistance): Not Authorized
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
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Functional Statement #: 000000
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.
• You may be required to serve a probationary period.
• 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 dentification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.
• Must pass pre-employment physical evaluation.
• Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP).

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.
• 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/

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).

Grade Determinations: In addition to the basic requirements stated above, the following qualification criteria must be met. The candidate's qualifications must clearly demonstrate the level of competence required for the grade.

Supervisory Social Worker, GS-12:
Education and Experience. One year of experience equivalent to the GS-11 grade level. Experience must demonstrate possession of advanced practice skills in a specialty area or in administration demonstrating progressively more professional competency and judgment. 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.

Licensure/Certification. Individuals assigned as Supervisory Social Workers must be licensed or certified at the advanced practice level, and must be able to provide supervision for licensure

Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSAs:
(a) Ability to independently organize work, set priorities, and meet multiple deadlines.
(b) Knowledge of supervisory duties which includes clinical supervision, consultation, negotiation with other departments and quality improvement.
(c) Ability to ensure provision of clinical social work services.
(d) Ability to provide staff training and development.
(e) Skill in interpersonal relationships in dealing with employees, team leaders, and managers.

Assignment. For all assignments above the full performance level, the higher-level duties must consist of significant scope, complexity (difficulty), and variety and be performed by the incumbent at least 25% of the time. At the GS-12 grade level, supervisory social workers typically have significant personnel management responsibilities for a small to moderate sized professional and non-professional staff, including support staff and professional staff at the GS-12 grade level and below. The supervisory social worker is responsible for the professional and administrative management of an area in a social work service, in a care/product line, or multiple facilities. They provide direct clinical services with or without program coordination responsibilities.

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: The incumbent must be in overall good health, able to sit at a desk working at a computer, engage in light to moderate physical activity including sitting, walking, bending, and carrying supplies. The incumbent must be able to perform primarily light and sedentary duties with occasionally moderate physical demands with reasonable accommodation, if necessary, without endangering the health and safety of the incumbent and others. Position requires walking throughout the Health Care Center, standing for extended periods of time, and involves sitting at a computer and in counsel and consultation with Veterans, their families, and interdisciplinary teams. Position may require minimal travel into the community to meet with community agencies and partners who aid, help, and provide support to Veterans and caregivers. This position also requires close visual acuity to perform an activity such as: viewing a computer terminal, extensive reading and typing, and repetitive motions of the wrists, hands, and/or fingers.

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.