Social Worker - Mental Health

Summary

This position is eligible for the Education Debt Reduction Program (EDRP), a student loan payment reimbursement program. You must meet specific individual eligibility requirements in accordance with VHA policy and submit your EDRP application within four months of appointment. Program Approval, award amount (up to $200,000) and eligibility period (one to five years) are determined by the VHA Education Loan Repayment Services program office after complete review of the EDRP application.

Duties

This Social Worker position is assigned to the Healthcare for Homeless Veterans (HCHV) Team under Mental Health, providing community-based clinical psychosocial and case management services for chronically homeless Veterans and their families. The role works closely with VA homeless, residential, and domiciliary programs to ensure continuous, coordinated care, and requires travel to meet with Veterans, community agencies, and partners supporting the Syracuse VAMC and its Veterans and caregivers. Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional Major duties assigned but not limited to: Provides intensive case management services to assigned Veterans and significant others, consistent with the goals and methods of the Health Care for Homeless Veterans (HCHV) program Maintains frequent direct contact with Veterans to provide therapy and support aimed at maintaining housing, increasing contact during times of crisis, and strengthening Veterans' ability to independently address acute and chronic problems Delivers care within the framework established by National HUD-VASH Directives Collaborates and consults with interdisciplinary treatment teams to promote and enhance Veteran care Provides individual, family, and group psychotherapy as applicable Maintains strong working relationships with community agencies, including reviewing agreements between Section 8, landlords, and Public Housing Authorities Establishes and maintains appropriate referral sites for HUD-VASH placements Conducts site visits of HUD-VASH apartments to ensure Veterans reside in safe environments compliant with local housing codes Completes psychosocial assessments, initial and updated treatment plans, and discharge summaries as clinically indicated Collects and submits HUD-VASH program participant data as outlined by the Homeless Operations Management and Evaluation System (HOMES) Stays current on National HUD-VASH directives by participating in conference calls and attending HUD-VASH Team trainings Follows all local policies and procedures, including documentation requirements for CARF and Joint Commission accreditation Participates in program planning and development; advises supervisor on caseload trends; identifies needs for procedure or policy changes and makes recommendations Communicates effectively, both orally and in writing, with people from varied backgrounds Evaluates own practice through professional peer review, case conferences, and other organizational means Documents social work interventions and activities in the patient's clinical record and ensures appropriate hand-off when transferring patient care Provides consultation to other staff regarding Veterans' psychosocial needs and the impact of psychosocial problems on health care and treatment adherence Coordinates treatment and communicates with other services to facilitate Veteran care Maintains general knowledge of Veterans' benefits and services, including special programs, service-connected compensation, and non-service-connected pension Facilitates referrals based on Veteran needs and eligibility Participates in committee assignments, discipline-specific meetings, and initiatives as deemed necessary by the service manager Participates in a rotation of on-call social workers, including modification of tour of duty to accommodate patient care needs on weekends Performs other duties as assigned Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 8:00am - 4:30pm Recruitment/Relocation Incentives (Sign-on Bonus): Not Authorized. Permanent Change of Station (Relocation Assistance): Not Authorized. EDRP Authorized: Former EDRP participants ineligible to apply for incentive. Contact [email protected], the EDRP Coordinator for questions/assistance. Learn more Pay: Competitive salary and 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, 11 paid Federal holidays per year). Parental Leave: After 12 months of employment, up to 12 weeks of paid parental leave in connection with the birth, adoption, or foster care placement of a child. Child Care Subsidy: After 60 days of employment, full time employees with a total family income below $144,000 may be eligible for a childcare subsidy up to 25% of total eligible childcare costs for eligible children up to the monthly maximum of $416.66. Retirement: Traditional federal pension (5 years vesting) and federal 401K with up to 5% in contributions by VA Insurance: Federal health/vision/dental/term life/long-term care (many federal insurance programs can be carried into retirement) Telework: Not available. Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Functional Statement #: 000000 Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized.

Qualifications

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. 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/. Exception: VHA may waive the licensure or certification requirement for persons who are otherwise qualified, pending completion of state prerequisites for licensure/certification examinations. This exception only applies at the GS-9 grade level. For the GS-11 grade level and above, the candidate must be licensed or certified. At the time of appointment, the supervisor, chief social work or social work executive will provide the unlicensed/uncertified social worker with the written requirements for licensure or certification, including the time by which the license or certification must be obtained and the consequences for not becoming licensed or certified by the deadline. (a) For appointments at the GS-9 grade level, VHA social workers who are not licensed or certified at the time of appointment must become licensed or certified at the independent, master's level within three years of their appointment as a social worker. Most states require two years of post-MSW experience as a prerequisite to taking the licensure/certification exam, and VHA gives social workers one additional year to pass the licensure/certification exam. In states such as California, Washington, and others where the prerequisites for licensure exceed two years, social workers must become licensed at the independent, master's level within one year of meeting the full state prerequisites for licensure. (b) A social worker who does not yet have a license that allows independent practice must be supervised by a li