Social Worker - Spinal Cord Injury/Disorders Program

Company: Veterans Health Administration
Location: Palo Alto
Posted on: April 9, 2021

Job Description:

This is an OPEN CONTINUOUS ANNOUNCEMENT and will remain open until September 30, 2021. The initial cut-off date for referral of eligible applications will be April 5, 2021, with subsequent cut-off dates on the 1st of each month. Eligible applications received after that date will be referred at regular intervals or as additional vacancies occur on an as-needed basis until positions are filled. To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 09/30/2021. BASIC REQUIREMENTS:
Citizenship: Be a citizen of the United States. (Non-Citizens may be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens. English Language Proficiency: Social Workers must be proficient in spoken and written English. Grade Determinations:
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. (COPIES OF TRANSCRIPTS MUST BE SUBMITTED WITH APPLICATION PACKET) 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/.
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. Certification: Must provide verification of training or certification sufficient to provide clinical supervision to unlicensed social workers (copy of certification required; in CA, 15 hours is required). SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE:
The candidate must have at least two years 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 and have completed training in order to provide clinical supervision to unlicensed social workers (copy of certification required). Senior social workers have experience that demonstrates possession of advanced practice skills and judgment and 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. (EVIDENCE OF THIS EXPERIENCE MUST BE DOCUMENTED IN YOUR RESUME). In addition to meeting the basic requirements, the candidate must demonstrate the professional knowledge, skills and abilities (KSAs) below. 1. 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. 2. Ability to incorporate complex multiple causation in differential diagnosis and treatment within approved clinical privileges or scope of practice. 3. 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. 4. 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. 5. 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 Handbook 5005/120, Part II, Appendix G39 Social Worker, available in local VA Human Resource Offices. The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-12. Physical Requirements: The physical demands of this position involve primarily walking, talking, use of the telephone, etc. Strenuous physical activity is not required although the incumbent is expected to withstand pressure and stress as part of their day-to-day activities: light lifting under 15 pound, light carrying under 15 pounds, use of fingers, walking and standing up to 8 hours, and operation of motor vehicle. Environmental Factors: Constant noise, working around moving objects or vehicles, working closely with others, and working alone.

Keywords: Veterans Health Administration, Palo Alto , Social Worker - Spinal Cord Injury/Disorders Program, Healthcare , Palo Alto, California