The Michael E DeBakey VA Medical Center (MEDVAMC) is seeking a Senior Social Worker-General Mental Health Clinic (GMHC) and the position will be located in Houston, TX. Current permanent VA employees and Federal employees from other federal agency should apply under CBST-11518454-22-TH 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. 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 the CSWE website to verify if that social work degree meets the accreditation standards for a master 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/. English Language Proficiency Requirement - Social workers must be proficient in spoken and written English in accordance with VA Handbook 5005, Part II, chapter 3, section A, paragraph 3j. GS 12 Grade Determinations: In addition to the basic requirements for employment, the following criteria must be met when determining the grade of candidates 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. One year of experience equivalent to the GS- 11- Social workers at this level are licensed or certified to independently practice social work. Incumbents are assigned to all program areas, including but not limited to: inpatient or outpatient medicine, surgery, mental health, neurology, rehabilitation medicine, and geriatrics. Employees provide professional, independent social work services in the assigned area. Duties include but are not limited to: assessing and documenting identified behaviors or symptoms of abuse, neglect, exploitation and/or intimate partner violence; use of clinical social work skills and knowledge to maintain Veteran privacy and confidentiality per policies, handbooks or directives; and acts as an advocate with appropriate VA and community service providers and agencies when it serves the best interest of the Veteran and family members/caregiver. Incumbent independently assesses the psychosocial functioning and needs of Veterans and their family members, identifying the Veteran's strengths, weaknesses, coping skills, and psychosocial acuity. In collaboration with the Veteran, family/caregiver, and interdisciplinary treatment team, the social worker facilitates the delivery of health care services. The social worker identifies family/caregiver stressors, conducts assessment and provides specific interventions. The incumbent provides case management and care coordination to facilitate appropriate delivery of health care services, incorporates complex multiple causation in differential diagnosis and treatment of Veterans, including making psychosocial and psychiatric diagnoses within approved clinical privileges or scope of practice. The social worker links the Veteran with services, resources, and opportunities, in order to maximize the Veteran's independence, health, and well-being. The social worker conducts timely assessment of at-risk Veterans in crisis to identify immediate needs, evaluate risk, and initiate safety plan as appropriate. The social worker provides interventions independently with Veterans and their families/caregivers who are experiencing a wide range of complicated medical, behavioral health, financial, legal, and psychosocial problems. 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, the candidate 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. References: VA Regulations, specifically VA Handbook 5005/120, Part II, Appendix G39 Social Worker Qualification Standard. Preferred experience and/or training in: Working with clients who have mental illness, Working with clients who are not in stable housing and/or identified as homeless, Providing evidence-based psychotherapies including but not limited to: Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT), Interpersonal Therapy (IPT), Motivational Interviewing (MI), Problem Solving Therapy (PST), Working in an outpatient mental health Adapting technology and computer assisted programs to deliver treatments and improve treatment outcomes The full performance level of this vacancy is a GS-12. Physical Requirements: The work is primarily sedentary. The employee may sit comfortably in an office or clinic to perform the work. However, there may be some sitting, walking, standing, bending and carrying items such as books, papers and files are required. When carrying out job related duties, it may be necessary for the incumbent to travel to MEDVAMC and/or into the community to meet with Veterans, their families, community partners, internal/external stakeholders and other representatives to complete official job related duties. ["VA Careers - Social Work: https://youtube.com/embed/enRhz_ua_UU Performs case finding functions and outreach, identifying and screening patients for psychosocial needs. Incumbent must possess the knowledge and ability to independently implement treatment modalities, provide counseling or psychotherapy for individuals, families and groups. Conducts psychosocial assessments and makes psychosocial diagnoses based on assessment. Develops treatment plans in collaboration with the veteran/family and with the interdisciplinary treatment team. Incumbent possesses the skills to offer psychosocial interventions and measures outcomes to interventions. Coordinates community-based services, including information and referral for additional services from other VA programs, other government programs and community agency programs. Assist the Social Work Service with development of clinical guidelines and protocols to establish appropriateness of services. Orient new staff and conduct work performance critiques for Service Line supervisory staff, as requested. Provide informal feedback to supervisors' of social work staff which may be used to evaluate employee performance. Offers consultation to the Social Work Service Line Mental Health Care Line administrative and supervisory staff, 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. The duties are highly complex and require in depth administrative knowledge, clinical expertise, and complex managerial skills in the independent management and administration consultation of acute & chronic psychiatric services. Communicates with supervisors of social workers the guidelines and performance expectations of staff. Assist supervisors to develop work improvement plans and consult on personnel actions if requested by supervisor. Provides advice & counsel to social workers related to work and administrative matters. Makes recommendations, upon request, for adjusting staff levels or work procedures within the Mental Health Care Line to accommodate vacancies that occur due to transfer, medical leave or emergencies. Provides LCSW supervision to employees upon request. Demonstrates the ability to teach and mentor staff and students in the special area of practice and to provide supervision for licensure or specialty certifications. Independently identifies high-risk patients and provides case management services. Incumbent provides crisis intervention services, seeking to address the cause as well as the presenting complaint, coordinates family conferences and serves as liaison to family members. Has working knowledge and experience in use of medical and mental health Work Schedule: Monday - Friday; alternate to include evenings and/or Saturdays\nTelework: Available-Position is suitable for Telework\nVirtual: This is not a virtual position.\nPosition Title/Functional Statement # Senior Social Worker-General Mental Health Clinic (GMHC)/PD000000\nRelocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized\nPermanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized\nFinancial Disclosure Report: Not required"]