Social Worker is responsible for administrative and clinical processes of the mental health services at the Eastern Oklahoma VA health Care System (EOVAHCS), CBOC located in Vinita, McAlester, Bartlesville or Claremore. This position is initially stationed at the Vinita facility (CBOC), as part of the Muskogee VA Medical Facility, Eastern Oklahoma VA Health Care System (EOVAHCS), and will transition to the Claremore CBOC at a future date. 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. Physical Requirements. See VA Directive and Handbook 5019, Employee Occupational Health Services. English Language Proficiency. Candidates must be proficient in spoken and written English to be appointed as authorized by 38 U.S.C. § 7403(f). Grade Determinations: 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. AND 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. AND Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. In addition to the experience above, candidates must demonstrate all of the following KSAs: 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. Ability to incorporate complex multiple causation in differential diagnosis and treatment within approved clinical privileges or scope of practice. 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. 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. 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. Assignments. 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. Senior social workers are licensed or certified to independently practice social work at an advanced level. Senior social workers typically practice in a major program area such as but not limited to: Polytrauma Rehabilitation Center or Polytrauma Network Site; a Spinal Cord Injury Rehabilitation Center, or a national VHA referral center, such as a national Center for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder or a national Transplant Center, or other program areas of equivalent scope and complexity. The senior social worker may be assigned administrative responsibility for clinical program development and is accountable for clinical program effectiveness and modification of service patterns. Assignments include clinical settings where they have limited access to onsite supervision such as CBOCs or satellite outpatient clinics. The senior social worker collaborates with the other members of the treatment team in the provision of comprehensive health care services to Veterans, ensures equity of access, service, and benefits to this population, ensures the care provided is of the highest quality. The senior social worker provides leadership, direction, orientation, coaching, in-service training, staff development, and continuing education programs for assigned social work staff. They serve on committees, work groups, and task forces at the facility, VISN and national level, or in the community as deemed appropriate by the supervisor, Social Work Executive or Chief of Social Work Services. This assignment is to be relatively few in number based on the size of the facility/service and applying sound position management. This assignment must represent substantial additional responsibility over and above that required at the full performance grade level and cannot be used as the full performance level of this occupation. Preferred Experience: Mental health experience. References: VA Handbook 5005, Part II, Appendix G39 Physical Requirements: must be physically and mentally able to efficiently perform the essential functions of the position without hazard to themselves or others. Normal work of the position requires visual acuity (with the ability to read typewritten characters without strain, corrective lenses permitted), keen hearing, clear distinctive speech, and manual dexterity. This position requires potentially moderate levels of lifting and carrying (15-44 pounds). The incumbent may occasionally be exposed to patients who are combative secondary to delirium, dementia, or psychiatric disorders. ["VA Careers - Social Work: https://youtube.com/embed/enRhz_ua_UU The primary goals of the Outpatient Mental Health Program are: 1) to provide timely access to appropriate mental health care 2) to assess and develop continuity and effectiveness of care through the interdisciplinary treatment approaches, and 3) to reduce hospital admissions. Administrative Duties: Responsible for implementation of VHA directives and VISN initiatives for the Outpatient MH clinic located in the CBOC. Collects Veteran information as needed for data analysis of the workload in the OMH clinic and management of access within the provider clinics. Screens Veterans referred to the OMH program and facilities clinical discussions with providers both within OMH and other treatment teams. Maintains data tracking of all consults and urgent/emergent patient presentations. Coordinates clinical coverage for unexpected provider absences related to patient needs during the absences. Actively participates in program planning and development, advising the OMH Team Leader of shifting trends with workload of the CBOC and identifying the need for and making recommendations for program procedure or policy changes based on work experiences, VA National Handbooks, VA National Calls, CARF, Joint Commission and local Behavioral Health policies and procedures. Utilizes results from patient satisfaction surveys to improve programming. Responsible for establishing and maintaining working relationships within and between departments within the VA and agencies and providers external to the VA. Actively participates in MH National calls and participates in other relevant conference calls and/or meetings as assigned. Takes responsibility for improving professional skills, participating in planning and executing specific staff development projects, attending seminars and institutes and participating in training programs as needed or assigned. Provides feedback to Service Chiefs and Team Leaders, distributes and manages work flow, ensures compliance with program standards, and keeps supervisor informed about the program's progress in meeting relevant performance goals. Performs other related duties as assigned. Clinical Care: Provide a full range of services within the Social Work Scope of Practice based on Veteran needs, acuity level, and preferences for care. Services may include, but are not limited to, the following: case management; individual, family, and group therapy; discharge planning; resource linkage; and care coordination. Utilizes various treatment modalities such as individual psychotherapy, casework, community organization and community outreach activities to alleviate or remove problems that interfere with the Veteran's ability to improve functional levels. Coordinates care by assuring Veterans are seen in a timely manner and are referred and seen for comprehensive service delivery, and linking and referring Veterans to the VA Medical Center, VA Regional Offices and/or community agencies if warranted. Works with other clinical programs (including inpatient and outpatient providers) that share in the care of the Veteran in pursuit of programmatic and treatment goals, maintains effective working relationships with other professional and administrative personnel throughout the healthcare system and the community. Documents all client contacts in progress notes in a complete, confidential and professional manner to ensure information about clients is shared with other VA staff. Reviews and enters progress notes and treatment plans on a regular basis as prescribed in the program's handbook and policies. e) Performs other duties as assigned. Work Schedule: FT, Monday thru Friday, 8:00 am - 4:30 pm Telework: Not Available Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Functional Statement #: 0000 Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Not required"]
Providing Health Care for Veterans: The Veterans Health Administration is America’s largest integrated health care system, providing care at 1,255 health care facilities, including 170 medical centers and 1,074 outpatient sites of care of varying complexity (VHA outpatient clinics), serving 9 million enrolled Veterans each year.
