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Summary The Palliative Care Senior Social Worker serves a patient population with highly complex health and mental health problems. The incumbent directs/coordinates clinical and psychosocial services and is accountable for the overall effectiveness of the services provided, modifying services to best meet the treatment needs of Veterans to promote efficient practice. The social worker will provide services via telephone or video contact and face-to-face visits. Responsibilities VA Careers - Social Work: https://youtube.com/embed/enRhz_ua_UU VA Careers - Licensed Clinical Social Worker: https://youtube.com/embed/U_xC25QsN0w Total-Rewards-of-an-Allied-Health-VA-Career-Brochure.pdf Social Work: vacareers.va.gov/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/Total-Rewards-of-a-Social-Worker-Career-Flyer.pdf The incumbent of this position must use a high level of skill in assessing and treating the complicated psychosocial problems of veterans with complex physical and mental symptoms and life-limiting illnesses. Referrals typically originate from other members of the interdisciplinary team and are provided in the outpatient clinic via telephone or video contact or face-to-face visits. Services are provided both to qualified veteran patients as well as their families, medical surrogates, and caregivers. The incumbent's duties include but are not limited to completion of thorough biopsychosocial assessments, providing case-management for patients with ongoing palliative needs, supportive counseling for patients and their families, conducting goals-of-care discussions, acting as liaison with community hospice partners, providing counseling and assistance with Advance Healthcare Directives, and palliative program development. Major duties include, but are not limited to the following: Provision of individual, group and family counseling or psychotherapy and advanced level case management interventions used in the treatment of veterans with complex medical and psychiatric disorders. Participation as an active member of the outpatient Palliative Care interdisciplinary treatment team to provide social work interventions to veterans and/or their families to meet treatment goals within the context of their goals of care. Participation in HPC bereavement support programs for the families of veterans who die at Mather Hospital or Martinez CLC Hospice Unit, in conjunction with the Chaplain service. Participation in active case finding for the outpatient Palliative Care services. Helping the Veteran cope with end-of-life or complex chronic illness diagnoses and assessment of treatment options and when appropriate making referrals based on the Veteran's preference or that of the surrogate decision-maker. Maintenance of effective therapeutic relationships with veterans and their families experiencing a wide range of psychosocial, medical, emotional, behavioral, and environmental issues. Provision of consultation and education to other treatment teams and staff members regarding hospice and palliative services, and role modeling effective social work practice skills. Helping the Veteran cope with end-of-life or complex chronic illness diagnoses and assessment of treatment options. Facilitating communication between the treatment team, Veteran and family, including advocacy. Facilitating family discussions regarding illness, healthcare and life changes. Supporting end-of-life planning/care preferences through assistance with Advanced Directives for Healthcare and completion of goals of care conversations. Providing education and referrals where appropriate related to the patient's VA, Social Security, disability benefits, and community resources. Where appropriate, referral to and coordination of hospice care services including facilitation with Non-VA Care Coordination. Participation in specialty committee meetings and initiatives. Acting as the representative and liaison of Hospice and Palliative Care from the facility to the greater community. Work Schedule: Mon - Fri 8:00-4:30 Pay: Competitive salary and regular salary increases. When setting pay, a higher step rate of the appropriate grade may be determined after consideration of higher or unique qualifications or special needs of the VA (Above Minimum Rate of the Grade). 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) 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 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: Available Functional Statement #: 06802F Requirements Conditions of Employment You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job. Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959. Must be proficient in written and spoken English. You may be required to serve a probationary period. Subject to background/security investigation. Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP). Participation in the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccination program is a requirement for all Veterans Health Administration Health Care Personnel (HCP) - See "Additional Information" below for details. Qualifications Grade Determinations: Social Worker GS-12 BASIC REQUIREMENTS: The basic requirements for employment as a VHA social worker are prescribed by statute in 38 U.S.C. § 7402(b)(9), as amended by section 205 of Public Law 106-419, enacted November 1, 2000. To qualify for appointment as a social worker in VHA, all applicants must meet the following: a. Citizenship. Be a citizen of the United States. (Non-citizens may be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with chapter 3, section A, paragraph 3g this part). b. 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. c. 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/ d. English Language Proficiency: Social workers must be proficient in spoken and written English in accordance with VA Handbook 5005, Part II, chapter 3, section A, paragraph 3j, this part. 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). Social Worker (Program Coordinator), GS-12 (1) Experience/Education. One year of experience equivalent to the GS-11 grade level. Experience must demonstrate possession of advanced practice skills and judgment, demonstrating progressively more professional competency. Candidate may have certification or other post-master's degree training from a nationally recognized professional organization or university that includes a defined curriculum/course of study and internship, or equivalent supervised professional experience. (2) Licensure/Certification. Individuals assigned as social worker program coordinator must be licensed or certified at the advanced practice level, and must be able to provide supervision for licensure. (3) Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. In addition to the experience above, candidates must demonstrate all of the following KSAs: (a) Knowledge of program coordination and administration which includes consultation, negotiation, and monitoring. (b) Knowledge and ability to write policies, procedures, and/or practice guidelines for the program. (c) Ability to supervise multidisciplinary staff assigned to the program. (d) Skill in organizing work, setting priorities, meeting multiple deadlines, and evaluating assigned program area(s). (e) Ability to provide training, orientation, and guidance within clinical practice. Preferred Experience: Veteran Health Administration experience Hospice/Palliative experience Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/. The full performance level of this vacancy is 12. Physical Requirements: The work is sedentary. Typically, the employee sits comfortably to perform the work. However, there may be some walking; standing; bending; carrying of light items such as papers, books, small parts; or driving an automobile, etc. No special physical demands are required to perform the work. Education IMPORTANT: A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education. Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/. If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/. Additional Information This is an OPEN CONTINUOUS ANNOUNCEMENT and may be posted up to 60 days from the opening date. The initial cut-off date for referral of eligible applications will be 15 days after open date, with subsequent cut-off dates on the 1st and 15th 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. Receiving Service Credit or Earning Annual (Vacation) Leave: Federal Employees earn annual leave at a rate (4, 6 or 8 hours per pay period) which is based on the number of years they have served as a Federal employee. Selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual, based on prior work experience or military service experience. This credited service can be used in determining the rate at which they earn annual leave. Such credit must be requested and approved prior to the appointment date and is not guaranteed. During the application process you may have an option to opt-in to make your resume available to hiring managers in the agency who have similar positions. Opting in does not impact your application for this announcement, nor does it guarantee further consideration for additional positions. This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies. This position is in the Excepted Service and does not confer competitive status. VA encourages persons with disabilities to apply. The health-related positions in VA are covered by Title 38, and are not covered by the Schedule A excepted appointment authority. Pursuant to VHA Directive 1193.01, VHA health care personnel (HCP) are required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 subject to such accommodations as required by law (i.e., medical, religious or pregnancy). VHA HCPs do not include remote workers who only infrequently enter VHA locations. If selected, you will be required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and submit documentation of proof of vaccination before your start date. The agency will provide additional information regarding what information or documentation will be needed and how you can request a legally required accommodation from this requirement using the reasonable accommodation process. If you are unable to apply online or need an alternate method to submit documents, please reach out to the Agency Contact listed in this Job Opportunity Announcement. Under the Fair Chance to Compete Act, the Department of Veterans Affairs prohibits requesting an applicant's criminal history prior to accepting a tentative job offer. For more information about the Act and the complaint process, visit Human Resources and Administration/Operations, Security, and Preparedness (HRA/OSP) at The Fair Chance Act.