Summary Senior Social Workers in the Health Care for Homeless Veterans (HCHV) Program are primarily responsible for orienting and providing guidance to social workers in the HCHV Program who are at the full performance level and for taking a leadership role with HCHV and Grant & Per Diem Residential Treatment Facilities (RTF's). While the HCHV program provides local contract based residential treatment, the GPD Program operates on a federal grant from VA Central Office. Responsibilities 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 Duties of the Senior Social Worker - HCHV Program include, but are not limited to: Engages in outreach to identify street homeless Veterans, identify VA and community resources, completes clinical assessments and placements in residential treatment, makes referrals to address identified needs and engages Veterans in intensive case management. Organizes inspection teams consisting of multiple Medical Center Services, schedules annual inspections at residential treatment facilities; collaborates with representatives of participating Services and prepares reports for submission to VISN and VA Central Office. Prepares outcome reports for compliance with CARF requirements for effectiveness and Efficiency of program operations and engages in presentations to the TQI Committee and the Homeless Care Coordination Work Group. Participates in monthly Care Coordination Work Group meeting with members of multiple medical center sections to provide updates on program activities, address challenges to providing services to Veterans without homes and identify options for resolving concerns. Monitors clinical services provided by Grant and Per Diem facilities and provides clinical consultation in compliance with CARF, TJC, Mental Health and CAVHS standards. Performs specialized case management for homeless Veterans with complex physical or mental illnesses and independently makes psychosocial and psychiatric diagnoses within approved clinical privileges or scope of practice, incorporating complex multiple causation in differential diagnosis and treatment. Provides clinical services to Veterans who are homeless and their families in individual and group settings using advanced level clinical interventions including Motivational Interviewing, Harm Reduction, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, and other Evidence Based Practices. Develops and implements methods for measuring the effectiveness and efficiency of HCHV Program services and uses outcome evaluations to improve treatment services through Total Quality Improvement principles. Provides consultation services to other staff regarding the psychosocial needs of veterans and the impact of psychosocial problems on health care and adherence to the treatment plan. Offers consultation to colleagues and students on the psychosocial treatment of patients treated in specialty areas, rendering professional opinions based on experience and expertise and role modeling effective social work practice skills. Develops and implements information systems to track service activities including visits, referrals, bed days of care in RTFs, patient demographics and patient satisfaction. Develops, implements, and evaluates clinical guidelines and protocols to establish appropriate utilization of service. Performs a wide range of services and provides technical assistance to state, local, and private agencies and universities based on monitoring activities and program reviews and the development and analysis of information. Performs work related to the review, monitoring, analysis, planning, and assessment of Homeless Program services and activities. Plans and implements special projects within the Homeless Program and serves on special committees within Homeless Program, the medical center and the VISN. Performs comprehensive suicide risk screenings and assessments and develops and integrates safety planning and safety goals into treatment plans. Work Schedule: Monday - Friday 7a-3:30p; one day 10am - 6:30p, subject to change based on the needs of the facility. Relocation Incentive (Sign-on Bonus): Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (Relocation Assistance): Not Authorized Pay: Competitive salary and regular salary increases. Paid Time Off: 37-50 days of annual paid time off per year (13-26 days of annual leave, 13 days of sick leave, 11 paid Federal holidays per year) 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: Not Available Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Functional Statement #: 00572-F Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized Requirements 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. Must be able to independently operate Government Vehicle. Must provide clean driving record report from the DMV during the pre-employment process. Qualifications 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. English Language Proficiency. Candidates must be proficient in spoken and written English to be appointed as authorized by 38 U.S.C. § 7403(f). Education. VHA Social Worker must 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: GS-12 Senior Social Worker 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: (a)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. (b)Ability to incorporate complex multiple causation in differential diagnosis and treatment within approved clinical privileges or scope of practice. (c)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. (d)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. (e)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. Preferred Experience: Experience working in the Health care for Homeless Veterans Program with Veterans experiencing homelessness is preferred. Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/. The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is GS-12. Physical Requirements: Physical Requirements: Physical aspects associated with work required of this assignment are typical for the occupation, see Duties section for essential job duties of the position. May require standing, lifting, carrying, sitting, stooping, bending, puling, and pushing. May be required to wear personal protective equipment and undergo annual TB screening or testing as conditions of employment. Work Environment: Work is performed in an office/clinic setting with minimal risks that requires normal safety precautions; the area is adequately lighted, heated, and ventilated. However, the work environment requires someone with the ability to handle several tasks at once in sometimes stressful situations. Education Additional Information 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. 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 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.