Social Worker - Behavioral Health Interdisciplinary Program
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Columbus, OH, United States
Summary
The incumbent provides social work services and case management services for Veterans with behavioral health diagnoses as an integral part of the outpatient Behavioral Health Interdisciplinary Program (BHIP) team. As a member of the BHIP team, the incumbent will conduct psychosocial assessments, provide crisis intervention, and evidence‑based psychotherapy (e.g., Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)).
Qualifications
Applicants pending 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
Citizenship: Must be a citizen of the United States; non‑citizens may only be appointed when qualified citizens cannot be recruited.
English language proficiency: Proficient in spoken and written English.
Regulation 7403(f).
Education: Master’s degree in social work from a program fully accredited by CSWE; doctoral degree cannot substitute for master’s.
Licensure: Must be licensed or certified by a state to independently practice social work at the master’s level; exception only at GS‑9 and may be waived pending state prerequisites.
Grandfathering provision: May qualify based on current VHA employment and criteria.
Grade determinations: Social Worker – GS‑9 experience, education, and licensure.
Preferred experience: Evidence‑based and/or evidence‑informed therapy.
Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, see https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/.
Physical requirements: May be asked to perform tasks requiring standing, bending, stooping, kneeling, climbing stairs, and lifting up to 25 lbs.
Attendance: Required to attend Ambulatory Care Center administrative and professional meetings as directed.
Ability to work with Veterans and family members from diverse socioeconomic, cultural, ethnic, educational, and other backgrounds utilizing counseling skills.
Ability to assess psychosocial functioning and needs of Veterans and their families, and to formulate and implement a treatment plan identifying problems, strengths, weaknesses, coping skills, and assistance needed.
Ability to implement treatment modalities with individuals, families, and groups to achieve treatment goals.
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 community agencies.
Fundamental knowledge of medical and mental health diagnoses, disabilities, and treatment procedures, including acute, chronic, and traumatic illnesses/injuries, common medications and their effects/side effects, and medical terminology.
Knowledge of community resources and ability to make appropriate referrals to community and governmental agencies and coordinate services.
Skill in independently conducting psychosocial assessments and treatment interventions for a wide variety of individuals from diverse backgrounds.
Skill in independently implementing different treatment modalities with individuals, families, and groups 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 psychosocial needs of patients and impact on health care and compliance with treatment.
Duties
Provide triage assessment, crisis intervention, brief counseling, and evidence‑based individual and group psychotherapy for Veterans with a broad spectrum of diagnoses including depressive disorders, anxiety disorders, trauma‑related conditions, substance abuse conditions, and personality disorders.
Provide same‑day access for Veterans seeking to initiate care and assertive community outreach for suicide prevention.
Set clinical care goals collaboratively with patients, monitor progress toward those goals, and work to achieve outcomes such as reduced hospitalizations.
Serve collaboratively on a Behavioral Health Interdisciplinary Program team and assist with consult management.
Recognize complex situations that impact patient care and intervene using sound judgment and appropriate resources.
Have knowledge of community and VA resources and make appropriate referrals to programs to meet Veterans’ needs and coordinate care.
Advocate on behalf of the Veteran to ensure services and benefits are obtained in a timely manner and in keeping with VA customer‑service goals.
Effectively utilize electronic resources required for services and completing reports, including electronic medical health record (EMHR), CPRS, VISTA, Microsoft Word, workload reporting, and program referral procedures.
Document work appropriately and in a timely manner in the medical record.
Participate in performance‑improvement activities and track and trend issues as part of a performance‑improvement plan.
Provide education and consultation to staff, students, patients, and families regarding programs, and serve as a point of contact for the community regarding these programs.
Remain current on VA policies and procedures relevant to program areas.
Work with the team to meet goals and performance measures within the program.
May provide training opportunities to various disciplines and participate in training of Social Work Students.
Attend appropriate team meetings (including Behavioral Health Interdisciplinary Program huddles and meetings) and work closely with patients’ providers and other team members to coordinate care.
Establish collaborative relationships with behavioral health providers and other team members and staff outside the department to more effectively coordinate patients’ care.
Work schedule: Monday through Friday, 8:00 am‑4:30 pm.
Benefits
Competitive salary with regular salary increases.
Paid time off: 37–50 days of annual paid time offer per year (13–26 days of annual leave, 13 days of sick leave, and 11 paid federal holidays per year). Selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual based on prior work experience or military service experience.
Parental leave: After 12 months of employment, up to 12 weeks of paid parental leave for birth, adoption, or foster care placement of a child.
Child‑care subsidy: After 60 days of employment, full‑time employees with total family income below $144,000 may be eligible for a child‑care subsidy up to 25 % of eligible costs, up to a monthly maximum of $416.66.
Retirement: Traditional federal pension (5‑year vesting) and federal 401K with up to 5 % contributions by VA; insurance coverage includes federal health, vision, dental, term life, and long‑term care (many programs may be carried into retirement).
Telework: Available ad hoc. Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
#J-18808-Ljbffr
The incumbent provides social work services and case management services for Veterans with behavioral health diagnoses as an integral part of the outpatient Behavioral Health Interdisciplinary Program (BHIP) team. As a member of the BHIP team, the incumbent will conduct psychosocial assessments, provide crisis intervention, and evidence‑based psychotherapy (e.g., Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)).
Qualifications
Applicants pending 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
Citizenship: Must be a citizen of the United States; non‑citizens may only be appointed when qualified citizens cannot be recruited.
English language proficiency: Proficient in spoken and written English.
Regulation 7403(f).
Education: Master’s degree in social work from a program fully accredited by CSWE; doctoral degree cannot substitute for master’s.
Licensure: Must be licensed or certified by a state to independently practice social work at the master’s level; exception only at GS‑9 and may be waived pending state prerequisites.
Grandfathering provision: May qualify based on current VHA employment and criteria.
Grade determinations: Social Worker – GS‑9 experience, education, and licensure.
Preferred experience: Evidence‑based and/or evidence‑informed therapy.
Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, see https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/.
Physical requirements: May be asked to perform tasks requiring standing, bending, stooping, kneeling, climbing stairs, and lifting up to 25 lbs.
Attendance: Required to attend Ambulatory Care Center administrative and professional meetings as directed.
Ability to work with Veterans and family members from diverse socioeconomic, cultural, ethnic, educational, and other backgrounds utilizing counseling skills.
Ability to assess psychosocial functioning and needs of Veterans and their families, and to formulate and implement a treatment plan identifying problems, strengths, weaknesses, coping skills, and assistance needed.
Ability to implement treatment modalities with individuals, families, and groups to achieve treatment goals.
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 community agencies.
Fundamental knowledge of medical and mental health diagnoses, disabilities, and treatment procedures, including acute, chronic, and traumatic illnesses/injuries, common medications and their effects/side effects, and medical terminology.
Knowledge of community resources and ability to make appropriate referrals to community and governmental agencies and coordinate services.
Skill in independently conducting psychosocial assessments and treatment interventions for a wide variety of individuals from diverse backgrounds.
Skill in independently implementing different treatment modalities with individuals, families, and groups 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 psychosocial needs of patients and impact on health care and compliance with treatment.
Duties
Provide triage assessment, crisis intervention, brief counseling, and evidence‑based individual and group psychotherapy for Veterans with a broad spectrum of diagnoses including depressive disorders, anxiety disorders, trauma‑related conditions, substance abuse conditions, and personality disorders.
Provide same‑day access for Veterans seeking to initiate care and assertive community outreach for suicide prevention.
Set clinical care goals collaboratively with patients, monitor progress toward those goals, and work to achieve outcomes such as reduced hospitalizations.
Serve collaboratively on a Behavioral Health Interdisciplinary Program team and assist with consult management.
Recognize complex situations that impact patient care and intervene using sound judgment and appropriate resources.
Have knowledge of community and VA resources and make appropriate referrals to programs to meet Veterans’ needs and coordinate care.
Advocate on behalf of the Veteran to ensure services and benefits are obtained in a timely manner and in keeping with VA customer‑service goals.
Effectively utilize electronic resources required for services and completing reports, including electronic medical health record (EMHR), CPRS, VISTA, Microsoft Word, workload reporting, and program referral procedures.
Document work appropriately and in a timely manner in the medical record.
Participate in performance‑improvement activities and track and trend issues as part of a performance‑improvement plan.
Provide education and consultation to staff, students, patients, and families regarding programs, and serve as a point of contact for the community regarding these programs.
Remain current on VA policies and procedures relevant to program areas.
Work with the team to meet goals and performance measures within the program.
May provide training opportunities to various disciplines and participate in training of Social Work Students.
Attend appropriate team meetings (including Behavioral Health Interdisciplinary Program huddles and meetings) and work closely with patients’ providers and other team members to coordinate care.
Establish collaborative relationships with behavioral health providers and other team members and staff outside the department to more effectively coordinate patients’ care.
Work schedule: Monday through Friday, 8:00 am‑4:30 pm.
Benefits
Competitive salary with regular salary increases.
Paid time off: 37–50 days of annual paid time offer per year (13–26 days of annual leave, 13 days of sick leave, and 11 paid federal holidays per year). Selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual based on prior work experience or military service experience.
Parental leave: After 12 months of employment, up to 12 weeks of paid parental leave for birth, adoption, or foster care placement of a child.
Child‑care subsidy: After 60 days of employment, full‑time employees with total family income below $144,000 may be eligible for a child‑care subsidy up to 25 % of eligible costs, up to a monthly maximum of $416.66.
Retirement: Traditional federal pension (5‑year vesting) and federal 401K with up to 5 % contributions by VA; insurance coverage includes federal health, vision, dental, term life, and long‑term care (many programs may be carried into retirement).
Telework: Available ad hoc. Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
#J-18808-Ljbffr