The Cincinnati VA Medical Center (CVAMC) is seeking a Senior Social Worker that demonstrates possession of advanced practice skills and judgment. The clinical and program activities assumed under this position are conducted as part of the Mental Health Intensive Case Management (MHICM) program. 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. 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. 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/. Driver's License: Must posses a valid unrestricted Driver's License 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 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: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. References: VA Handbook 5005, Part II, Appendix G39, Qualification Standards for Social Workers. The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-12. Physical Requirements: See VA Directive and Handbook 5019, Employee Occupational Health Services. ["The goal of MHICM is to develop, implement, and assess the benefit of a behaviorally-oriented program of psychosocial rehabilitation with recovery emphasis, intensive case management, and community-based treatment for chronic mentally ill Veterans. Treatment services are provided in various community settings, including Veteran's home, residential care homes, other supportive housing, hospitals, and other community locations. Veterans are provided with comprehensive and intensive case management, clinical treatment, advocacy, and coordination of appropriate VA and community service providers. Services are provided in the context of individual, interdisciplinary treatment teams, and extensive liaison with other VA and community partners to provide continuity of care for Veterans in outpatient settings. The senior social worker uses advanced knowledge and professional judgment to make decisions about services and treatment to Veterans and their families, as well as provide guidance to other social workers. Duties and responsibilities included but not limited to: Provide intensive case management services to assigned Veterans and family members autonomously in the community, consistent with the goals and methods of MHICM and the VA Mental Health Initiative and with all relevant Medical Center policies and procedures. Intensive case management services are characterized by assertive outreach, individualized treatment planning, multidimensional approach, and intensive delivery of services. Is actively involved in hospital admission decisions, using the procedures established for this purpose. Works assertively and consistently with inpatient teams to assure continuity of care by providing consultation regarding clinical needs, treatment plans, and case management services for assigned Veterans. Promotes appropriate treatment, rehabilitation, and expeditious discharge of assigned Veterans, consistent with program goals and with the individual treatment plans. Assists program manager with establishing, implementing and maintaining referral and screening procedures for all new referrals. As assigned, manages new referrals when program manager is unavailable to complete process within allotted timeframe. The incumbent is assigned administrative responsibility for clinical program development, quality improvement/assurance, and identifying needs and recommendations to the MHICM program manager. Participates and provides feedback to the manager in writing policies, procedures, and/or practice guidelines pertaining to the MHICM program. The incumbent completes clinical documentation according to MHICM and Medical Center standards; this includes but is not limited to mental health assessments, clinical progress reports, mental health treatment plans, and Advance Directives. S(he) will be responsible for timely completion of required clinical records as well as MHICM forms for evaluation and monitoring of service delivery and outcome for the MHICM Manager and Northeast Program Evaluation Center (NEPEC). Provide documentation of patient care as prescribed by MHICM and Medical Center Directives. Incumbent will also document any problem areas concerning implementation of the program and own activities within the programs, and make suggestions for resolving any such problems consistent with MHICM and Medical Center policies and procedures. Work with other clinical programs and care lines that share in the care of assigned MHICM Veterans, including but not limited to each care line and Mental Health Care Line. In pursuit of programmatic and treatment goals, maintain effective working relationships with other professional and administrative personnel both within the Medical Center and in the community. Meet with VA, community, professional organizations, and individuals as needed to carry out assigned developmental and implementation responsibilities. Provide referrals to VA and community-based services as appropriate The incumbent is responsible for meeting the goals and standards as required by accrediting bodies such as The Joint Commission and CARF. Incumbent will participate in assuring program level adherence to accreditation standards. The incumbent will participate in orientation, training and staff development in MHICM and other programs involving Social Workers in each care line and the hospital. The incumbent assumes responsibility and shows initiative for own learning and professional development. Work Schedule: 7:30 AM - 4:00 PM Telework: Available on a limited basis and at supervisors discretion. Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Functional Statement #: 91552-0 Financial Disclosure Report: Not required"]

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