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Senior Licensed Professional Mental Health Counselor - (ICMHR)

Department of Veterans Affairs
Veterans Health Administration
This job announcement has closed

Summary

This Job Opportunity is being announced as both a Senior Licensed Professional Mental Health Counselor and a Senior Social Worker. Both vacancies can be filled by either a Senior Social Worker or Senior Licensed Professional Mental Health Counselor.

Overview

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Job canceled
Open & closing dates
11/16/2022 to 12/08/2022
Salary
$79,363 to - $103,176 per year

Salary based on the Rest of the US (RUS) GS Pay Scale

Pay scale & grade
GS 12
Location
Sioux Falls, SD
2 vacancies
Remote job
No
Telework eligible
No
Travel Required
Occasional travel - You may be expected to travel occasionally for this position.
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Appointment type
Permanent
Work schedule
Full-time
Service
Excepted
Promotion potential
12
Job family (Series)
Supervisory status
No
Security clearance
Other
Drug test
No
Position sensitivity and risk
Non-sensitive (NS)/Low Risk
Trust determination process
Announcement number
CBSY-11733703-23-AMB
Control number
689782700

This job is open to

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Clarification from the agency

Open to the public which includes all US Citizens and all current permanent Federal employees from other agencies. Employees of other federal agencies and the public will be referred on separate certificates. Current, permanent VA employees should apply to: CBSY-11733702-23-AMB

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Duties

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The VA Midwest Health Care Network advocates for a Whole Health System of care in each of the Medical Centers. This is an approach to healthcare that empowers and equips people to take charge of their health and well-being and live their lives to the fullest. As an employee operating in a Whole Health System of care, you will operate in a model with three core elements, seeking to create a personalized health plan for each Veteran. This is done in the context of healing relationships and healing environments and a connection back to the Veteran's community. This aligns with the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) Mission Statement to Honor America's Veterans by providing exceptional health care that improves their health and well-being.

Mental Health Intensive Case Management (MHICM), Rural Access Network for GrowthEnhancement (RANGE),and Enhanced Rural Access Network for Growth Enhancement (E-RANGE), collectively referred to as ICMHR Services are adaptations of ACT for Veterans with SMI served by the VHA mental health system.The Primary responsibility of the ICMHR Senior Licensed Professional Counselor Case Manager is to provide intensive case management services, continuous quality improvement activities, evaluation/consultation, psychosocial assessments, individual therapy, placement services, and referrals to various community agencies and hospital services to Veterans in ICMHR.Duties include but are not limited to the following:

  • Provides intensive community-based case management services to Veterans with SMI, severe functional impairment, and high inpatient mental health inpatient utilization, in coordination with existing community and VA services.
  • Works collaboratively with an interdisciplinary team to provide exceptional care to a vulnerable population
  • Implements Psychosocial and Rehabilitation and Recovery Services-fully utilizing practices and principles of psychosocial rehabilitation and recovery.
  • Has ability to respond to consults by independently interviewing the Veteran utilizing questionnaires and other measurement devices while assessing the Veteran's emotional, functional, and psychological condition. Presents the findings to the team to determine admission to the ICMHR program.
  • Provides assessment/evaluation to include a social work assessment and recovery plan taking into account the Veterans strengths, and abilities. Recovery plans are developed taking into consideration the Veterans wishes and treatment goals, and include measurable goals outlined based on relevant psychological, medical, and psychiatric information.
  • Implements the measurement based care tools on a regular basis to assess Veterans wellbeing and overall functioning.
  • Assists Veterans in the preparation of materials needed for applications to various agencies of entitlement, then follow the process of the application until a determination has been made. Serves as the major consultant for information on negotiating the complex process Veterans encounter when interacting with government and community agencies.
  • Collaborate with members of the ICMHR team and other professional's specialty clinics to provide comprehensive care to Veterans.
  • Demonstrates the ability to teach and mentor staff and students in the special area of practice and are eligible to provide supervision for licensure or specialty certifications. Enters all Veteran/family contacts in the electronic record using appropriate formats and templates and report changes to the AMSA to update the record. All clinical interventions whether by telephone or face to face will be recorded in electronic progress notes. This information will be entered in a complete, confidential, and professional manner. Required documentation will be completed and signed in the timeframes set by facility policy or national program requirements.
Work Schedule: Monday-Friday 8:00am to 4:30pm
Telework: Not Authorized
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Functional Statement #: 000000
Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized
Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized
Financial Disclosure Report: Not required


Requirements

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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.
  • Must pass pre-employment physical examination.
  • Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP).
  • Participation in the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccination program is a requirement for all Veterans Health Administration Health Care Personnel (HCP) - See "Additional Information" below for details.

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. Hold a master's or doctoral degree in: Clinical Mental Health Counseling; Clinical Rehabilitation Counseling; Clinical Mental Health Counseling and Clinical Rehabilitation Counseling; or a related field, from a program accredited by the Council on Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP). Examples of related mental health counseling fields include, but are not limited to Addiction Counseling; Community Counseling; Gerontology Counseling; Marital, Couple, and Family Counseling. CACREP defines the date when graduates are considered to have graduated from a CACREP accredited program. Additional information may be obtained from http://www.cacrep.org/directory/. NOTE: Traditional Rehabilitation counseling programs that are accredited by CACREP do not meet the LPMHC qualification standards as Traditional Rehabilitation counseling differs from Clinical Rehabilitation counseling.
  • Licensure. Persons hired or reassigned to LPMHC positions in the GS-0101 series in VHA must hold a full, current, and unrestricted license to independently practice as a Licensed Professional Mental Health Counselor, which includes diagnosis and treatment. NOTE: It is VHA policy that a LPMHC who does not yet have a license that allows independent practice must be supervised by a licensed independent practitioner of the same discipline who is a VA staff member and who has access to the electronic health record.
  • Physical Requirements. See VA Directive and Handbook 5019.
  • English Language Proficiency. LPMHCs must be proficient in spoken and written English in accordance with VA Handbook 5005, Part II, chapter 3, section A, paragraph 3.j.
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 for employment, the following criteria must be met when determining the grade of candidates.

Senior Licensed Professional Mental Health Counselor, GS-12
  • Experience, Education, and Licensure. In addition to the basic requirements, candidates must have at least one year of progressively complex LPMHC experience equivalent to the GS-11 grade level. Senior LPMHCs must have five years of post-licensed experience that demonstrates possession of advanced practice skills and judgment, demonstrating progressive professional competency and expertise and be licensed to provide clinical supervision to trainees or unlicensed LPMHCs.
  • Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. In addition to meeting the KSAs for the GS-11 grade level, the candidate must demonstrate all of the KSAs below:
  1. Advanced knowledge of and mastery of theories and modalities used in the specialized treatment of complex mental illness. Ability to incorporate complex multiple causation in differential diagnosis and treatment of veteran patients, including making psychosocial and psychiatric diagnoses within approved clinical privileges or scope of practice. Ability to determine priority of services needed and provide specialized treatment.
  2. Advanced and expert skill in a range of specialized interventions and treatment modalities for Veterans with complex needs. This includes individual, group, and/or family counseling, or psychotherapy and advanced level psychosocial, and/or case management interventions used in the treatment of Veterans.
  3. Ability to coordinate the delivery of specialized psychosocial services and programs. Ability to design system changes based on data.
  4. Ability to provide subject matter consultation to colleagues and trainees on the psychosocial treatment of patients, rendering professional opinions based on experience, expertise and role modeling effective clinical skills.
  5. Ability to teach, mentor staff and trainees, and provide supervision for licensure or for specialty certifications.
  6. Ability to engage in written and oral communication with leadership/staff and community stakeholders regarding policies, procedures, practice guidelines, and issues pertaining to the practice of the profession.
References: VA Handbook 5005/106 Part II Appendix G43 April 3, 2018

The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-12. The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is in the range of GS-12

Physical Requirements: Daily intermittent walking, standing, bending, stooping, reaching, and carrying of lightweight items required. Rigid deadlines and need for high degree of accuracy periodically becomes stressful. Community visits may require the ability to drive a vehicle.

Education

IMPORTANT: A transcript must be submitted with your application

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 Feder
al 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: http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ous/international/usnei/us/edlite-visitus-forrecog.html.

Additional information

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.

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.

Pursuant to VHA Directive 1193.01, VHA health care personnel (HCP) are required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 subject to such accommodations as required by law (i.e., medical, religious or pregnancy). VHA HCPs do not include remote workers who only infrequently enter VHA locations. If selected, you will be required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and submit documentation of proof of vaccination before your start date. The agency will provide additional information regarding what information or documentation will be needed and how you can request a legally required accommodation from this requirement using the reasonable accommodation process.

If you are unable to apply online or need to fax a document you do not have in electronic form, view the following link for information regarding an Alternate Application.

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, résumé, 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.

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