Social Worker - Primary Care, Patient Aligned Care Teams

This position is eligible for the Education Debt Reduction Program (EDRP), a student loan payment reimbursement program. You must meet specific individual eligibility requirements in accordance with VHA policy and submit your EDRP application within four months of appointment. Approval, award amount (up to $200,000) and eligibility period (one to five years) are determined by the VHA Education Loan Repayment Services program office after complete review of the EDRP application.

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:

• Education: 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. (TRANSCRIPTS REQUIRED)
• Licensure: Must be licensed or certified by a state to independently practice social work at the master's degree level. (COPY OF LICENSE REQUIRED)

In addition to the basic requirements for employment, the following criteria must be met when determining the grade of candidates.

Grade Determinations:
GS-9 Level:

Experience, Education and Licensure: None beyond the basic requirements. This is the entry level and are closely supervised.

In addition, the candidates must demonstrate all of the KSAs:

• Ability to work with Veterans and family members from various socioeconomic, cultural, ethnic, educational, and other diversified backgrounds utilizing counseling skills.
• Ability to assess the psychosocial functioning and needs of Veterans and their family members, and to formulate and implement a treatment plan, identifying the Veterans problems, strengths, weaknesses, coping skills, and assistance needed.
• Ability to implement treatment modalities in working with individuals, families, and groups to achieve treatment goals. This requires judgment and skill in utilizing supportive, problem solving, or crisis intervention techniques.
• Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships and communicate with clients, staff, and representatives of community agencies.
• Fundamental knowledge 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.

GS-11 Level: In addition to the basic requirements, you must have a minimum of one year of post-MSW degree experience in the field of health care social work (VA or non-VA experience).
OR
Doctoral degree in social work from a school of social work may be substituted for the required one year of professional social work experience in a clinical setting. (TRANSCRIPTS REQUIRED)In addition to the experience above, candidates must demonstrate all of the following KSAs:

• Knowledge of community resources, how to make appropriate referrals to community and other governmental agencies for services, and ability to coordinate services.
• Skill in independently conducting psychosocial assessments and treatment interventions to a wide variety of individuals from various socio-economic, cultural, ethnic, educational and other diversified backgrounds.
• Knowledge of medical and mental health diagnoses, disabilities and treatment procedures (i.e. acute, chronic and traumatic illnesses/injuries, common medications and their effects/side effects, and medical terminology) to formulate a treatment plan.
• Skill in independently implementing different treatment modalities in working with individuals, families, and groups who are experiencing a variety of psychiatric, medical, and social problems to achieve treatment goals.
• Ability to provide consultation services to new social workers, social work graduate students, and other staff about the psychosocial needs of patients and the impact of psychosocial problems on health care and compliance with treatment.

Exception: VHA may waive the licensure or certification requirement for persons who are otherwise qualified, pending completion of state prerequisites for licensure/certification examinations. This exception only applies at the GS-9 grade level. For the GS-11 grade level and above, the candidate must be licensed or certified.

References: VA Handbook 5005/120 Part II Appendix G39 Social Worker Qualification Standard

The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-11. The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is in the range of GS-09 to GS-11.

Physical Requirements: The work is primarily sedentary. Physical demands do not exceed those of a typical office setting. There may be some walking, standing, twisting, turning, sitting, pushing, bending, repetitive keyboarding, or carrying of light items.

Responsibilities:

Relocation/Retention Incentive may be authorized for highly qualified candidates.

The Patient Aligned Care Team is a comprehensive team which delivers primary care to Veteran patients in a longitudinal rather than episodic fashion and which has as its focus: prevention; health promotion, coordination and chronic disease management. The social worker in this Veteran-centric approach often functions as a care coordinator with a panel of veterans to ensure that health care meets the needs, as defined by the Veteran. Social Workers are uniquely prepared for this role by virtue of their education, training, and experience which prepares them to understand the person-in-situation and the influences that family and community have in impacting the health-care needs of Veterans.

Duties Include:

• Skill in assessing and treating the complicated psychosocial problems of Veterans and their families/significant others

• assessment of psychosocial problems that cause distress, often impacting the health condition and creating barriers to care

• actively participate as a member of the interdisciplinary treatment team and actively participate through collaboration with Veterans and family as well as interdisciplinary treatment team members in the development and implementation of treatment goals and intervention
• knowledge and experience in use of medical and mental health diagnoses, disabilities, and treatment procedures, including acute, chronic and traumatic illnesses, substance abuse disorders, common medications and their effects/side effects, and medical terminology
• facilitate action for community placements through collaboration with Veterans and their families as well as interdisciplinary treatment team members to ensure that appropriate community placements are completed in a timely manner.
• serve as a liaison between Veterans and/or their families and VA and community resources in order to ensure thorough delivery of services.

• Must provide consultation and education to Veterans and their families regarding community resources, VA benefits and specialty programs, and advance directives.

Work Schedule: 7:30am to 4:00pm Monday - Friday
Telework: Available
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Functional Statement #: 000000
Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Authorized
EDRP Authorized: Contact, Eva.Gennara@va.gov and cc VISN12EDRP@va.gov, the EDRP Coordinator for questions/assistance. Learn more
Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized
Financial Disclosure Report: Not required