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Work Schedule: Monday through Friday, 8:00am to 4:30pm
Telework: Available - Ad-hoc
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Functional Statement #: 000000
Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized
EDRP Authorized: Contact V21CCOEEDRP@va.gov, the EDRP Coordinator for questions/assistance. Learn more
Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized
Financial Disclosure Report: Not required

The Healthcare for Homeless Veteran (HCHV) Case Manager functions as the Senior Social Worker and is administratively responsible for clinical programming and daily operation of the program, as well as, program effectiveness and/or modification of service patterns. The responsibility of the HCHV Case Manager is to identify and engage homeless Veterans and provide them with direct services and/or develop and connect homeless Veterans to the services and resources that will enable them to secure safe, affordable, quality permanent housing. Delivery of these services requires specialized knowledge and skills and extensive experience in resource identification and access with VA medical, mental health, substance abuse, and other specialty clinical providers, as well as community collaboration; understanding of HUD regulations, interpretation and repair strategies to successfully overcome housing acceptance barriers including negative housing histories, bad credit and criminal records, and the preparation of appeal presentations. The direct services are delivered within a creative provider-consumer partnership that emphasizes a trauma/recovery model, promoting personal mastery and peer mentoring. The foundation of this service is the Peer Housing Location Assistance Group (PHLAG) developed by the Incumbent.

Duties of the position include, but are not limited to:

• Performs outreach and facilitates eligibility determination by securing military discharge papers when necessary and facilitating enrollment for care with VA eligibility staff and determining HCHV eligibility in accordance with the HUD McKinney Act definition of homelessness.
• Conducts psychosocial assessments; develops treatment plans in collaboration with the Veteran/family and with the interdisciplinary treatment team.
• Possesses the knowledge and skills to independently implement treatment modalities and provide counseling or psychotherapy for individuals, families and groups.
• Possesses expert level skills to perform psychosocial interventions and measure outcome results.
• Proficient in coordinating community based services, including information and referral for additional services from other VA programs, other government programs and community agency programs.
• Identifies high risk patients with complex or serious health and/or mental health problems and provides case management services.
• Provides crisis intervention services, seeking to address the cause as well as presenting complaint, engaging family and other support systems as appropriate.
• Functional knowledge and experience in the use of medical and mental health diagnoses, disabilities and treatment procedures, including acute, chronic and traumatic illnesses and /injuries, common medications and their effects, side effects, and medical terminology.
• Identify multiple causes of physical and/or mental illnesses when developing treatment plans.
• Establishes and maintains effective therapeutic relationships with Veterans and their families when appropriate.
• Works independently with patients and families who are experiencing a variety of psychiatric, medical and social problems, utilizing individual, group and family counseling and therapy skills.
• Provides consultation services to other VA staff regarding the psychosocial needs of homeless Veterans and the impact of psychosocial problems on health care and adherence to treatment plans.
• Evaluate their own professional practice through peer review, case conferences and other organizational means.
• General knowledge of Veterans' benefits and services relating to special programs, service connected compensation and non-service connected pension.
• Facilitates referrals based upon Veterans' needs and eligibility.
• Working knowledge and skill in the use of word processing, data management and other computer systems, especially those programs in use by the VA.
• Consistently communicates and treats customers (Veterans, their representatives, visitors, and all VA staff) in a courteous, tactful, and respectful manner.
• Provide the customer with consistent information according to established policies and procedures.
• Handles conflict and problems in dealing with the consumer constructively and appropriately.
• Working knowledge and skill in the use of word-processing, data management and other computer systems, especially those programs in use by VHA.
• Progress notes are timely and reflect progress toward treatment goals.
• Must have and maintain a valid unrestricted driver's license.
• Other duties as assigned by management.

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.

This is an open until filled announcement. Qualified applicants will be referred to the hiring managers until the position is filled.

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

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). Grandfathering Provision: 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.

• 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:
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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 GS-0185 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: Senior Social Worker, GS-12

Experience/Education. The candidate must have at least two years of experience post advanced practice clinical licensure and should be in a specialized area of social work practice of which, one year must be equivalent to the GS-11 grade level. Senior social workers have experience that demonstrates possession of advanced practice skills and judgment. Senior social workers are experts in their specialized area of practice. Senior social workers may have certification or other post-masters training from a nationally recognized professional organization or university that includes a defined curriculum/course of study and internship or equivalent supervised professional experience in a specialty.

Licensure/Certification. Senior social workers must be licensed or certified by a state at the advanced practice level which included an advanced generalist or clinical examination, unless they are grandfathered by the state in which they are licensed to practice at the advanced practice level (except for licenses issued in California, which administers its own clinical examination for advanced practice) and they must be able to provide supervision for licensure.

Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. In addition to the experience above, candidates must demonstrate all of the following KSAs:

1. Skill in a range of specialized interventions and treatment modalities used in specialty treatment programs or with special patient populations. This includes individual, group, and/or family counseling or psychotherapy and advanced level psychosocial and/or case management.
2. Ability to incorporate complex multiple causation in differential diagnosis and treatment within approved clinical privileges or scope of practice.
3. Knowledge in developing and implementing methods for measuring effectiveness of social work practice and services in the specialty area, utilizing outcome evaluations to improve treatment services and to design system changes.
4. Ability to provide specialized consultation to colleagues and students on the psychosocial treatment of patients in the service delivery area, as well as role modeling effective social work practice skills.
5. Ability to expand clinical knowledge in the social work profession, and to write policies, procedures, and/or practice guidelines pertaining to the service delivery area.

References: VA Handbook 5005, Part II, Appendix G39

Preferred Experience: Experience working with Homeless population is preferred.

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 physical demands of this position involve primarily walking, sitting, talking, use of fingers, both hands required, Near vision correctable at 13" to 16" to Jaeger 1 to 4, Far vision correctable in one eye to 20/20 and to 20/40 in the other, Hearing (aid permitted).

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.