Social Worker - Readjustment Counseling Services

Summary

The incumbent serves as Social Worker on the multidisciplinary team that is located in a community-based Vet Center that provides Veterans, service members, and their family members with community outreach, counseling, therapy, treatment, direct services, and referral to VA and community resources and community education in the effort to address problems, needs, and to make the transition from military to civilian life successful.

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Duties

Major Duties Include (But are not limited to):

• Providing services to eligible individuals who are experiencing a variety of military related psychological and psychosocial problems.
• Must possess the knowledge and experience to independently implement psychotherapeutic modalities in working with individuals, families, and groups to enhance the readjustment of Veterans, active-duty service members, and their families.
• Independently conducts readjustment counseling intake procedures, including assessments of risk for self-harm, military history, and military related psychosocial stressors, assesses family readjustment stressors, and documents identified behaviors or symptoms.
• Formulate, implement, and periodically update individualized readjustment counseling service plans that reflects a course of therapeutic and psychosocial interventions, including the identification of measurable, achievable objectives, treatment goals, and desired outcomes.
• Provides case management and care coordination, incorporate complex multiple causation in differential diagnosis and treatment, and makes psychosocial and psychiatric diagnostic inferences, within the clinical scope of practice.
• Conduct timely assessments of Veterans in crisis to identify immediate needs, evaluate risks, and initiate safety planning, as appropriate.
• Utilizes community resources to make appropriate referrals to community and / or other government agencies to coordinated services, opportunities, and care to maximize individual's independence, health, and well-being.
• Establish and maintains a network of community care relationships, internal and external to VA, to coordinate access to readjustment counseling services and to ensure that eligible individuals receive the full spectrum of services to support their readjustment that are outside the scope of readjustment counseling.
• Will periodically engage in Vet Center outreach activities to promote Vet Center access for eligible individuals, to include establishing and maintaining ongoing education programs for Veterans, service members, community representatives and agencies, students, and staff to facilitate understanding of social work interventions specific to Veteran and military populations.
• Actively participate in staff meetings designed to promote team building and staff development.
• Documenting all clinical interactions with eligible individuals and episodes of care coordination on their behalf as required by RCS policy.
• Other duties as assigned.
  
  

Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 8:00 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.; may be required to work

some evenings and weekends, based upon the operational needs

Compressed / Flexible: May be available, based upon operational needs

Telework: May be available, based upon operational needs

Virtual: This is not a virtual position

Position Title / Functional Statement #: Social Worker - Readjustment Counseling Services / 15067-0

Relocation / Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized

Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized



Financial Disclosure Report: Not Required

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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
• You may be required to 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

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 11/15/2024.

Time-in-Grade Requirement: Applicants who are current Federal employees and have held a GS grade at any time in the past 52 weeks must also meet Time-in-Grade requirements, by the closing date of this announcement. If you have not held a GS grade at any time in the past 52 weeks, this requirement does not apply to you.

Basic Requirements

• Citizenship: Be a citizen of the United States
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  Physical Requirements: See VA Directive and Handbook 5019, Employee Occupational Health Services
• English Language Proficiency: Candidates must be proficient in spoken and written English
  
  

Individual Occupational Requirements (IOR)

Degree: Applicants must have fulfilled all of the requirements for the Master's Degree in Social Work (MSW) in a school accredited by the Council on Social Work Education (www.cswe.org/) (TRANSCRIPT REQUIRED).

Master's Degree with Practicum: Applicants who complete all of the requirements for a Master's Degree in Social Work that included a Practicum are eligible for GS-9 (TRANSCRIPT REQUIRED).

NOTE: Educational training programs, such as an internship, practicum, etc., that are included in, or supplemental to, an academic degree are not creditable for professional experience. Such programs are considered part of the basic requirements for professional practice in the field.

Licensure: Applicants must be licensed or certified by a state to independently practice social work at the Master's Degree level.

GS-11 Specialized Experience: For this position, you must have a minimum of one (1) year of post-Master's Degree experience (VA or Non-VA) equivalent to at least the next lower grade, GS-09, in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization.

NOTE: In addition to meeting basic requirements, a Doctoral Degree in Social Work from a school of social work may be substituted for the required one (1) year of Professional Social Work experience in a clinical setting. Specialized experience includes, but is not limited to:

• 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 for 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
  
  
  
  

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.

Note: A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week. Part-time experience will be credited on the basis of time actually spent in appropriate activities. Applicants wishing to receive credit for such experience must indicate clearly the nature of their duties and responsibilities in each position and the number of hours a week spent in such employment. For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/.

References: VA Handbook 5005, Part II, Appendix G39, Social Worker Qualification Standard dated September 10, 2019.

Education

GS-11 Education Requirement: Applicants must possess a Master's Degree in the field of Social Work (MSW) from a school 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. (TRANSCRIPT REQUIRED).


IMPORTANT: A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education.



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 Federal 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: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/.

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.

Special Employment Consideration: VA encourages persons with disabilities to apply, including those eligible for hiring under 5 CFR 213.3102(u), Schedule A, appointment of persons with disabilities [i.e. intellectual disabilities, severe physical disabilities, or psychiatric disabilities], and / or Disabled Veterans with a compensable service-connected disability of 30% or more. Contact the Agency Contact for information on how to apply under this appointment authority via the Selective Placement Coordinator.

The Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP) and Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) provide eligible displaced Federal / VA competitive service employees with selection priority over other candidates for Competitive service vacancies. To be qualified you must submit appropriate documentation (a copy of the agency notice, your most recent performance rating, and your most recent SF-50 noting current position, grade level, and duty location) and be found well-qualified for this vacancy. To be well-qualified, applicants must possess experience that exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position, including all Selective Factors, and who are proficient in most of the required competencies of the job. Information about ICTAP and CTAP eligibility is on OPM's Career Transition Resources website at http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/workforce-restructuring/employee-guide-to-career-transition/.

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.

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.

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.

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Readjustment Counseling Service

120 SE 6th Avenue, Ste. 102

Topeka, KS 66603

US