Social Worker (Program Coordinator)

Description:

The incumbent is assigned to the West Texas VA Health Care System (WTVAHCS) Patient Aligned Care Teams (PACT) and exhibits leadership that is characterized by substantial and continuous responsibility and accountability for persons served and the mission of the agency. The PACT (Social Work) Program Coordinator provides administrative, technical, and clinical supervision necessary for program operations. The incumbent is a master's prepared social worker, with advance clinical licensure.

Requirements:

***Duties continued***

• Administrative responsibilities: The Social Worker (Program Coordinator) will enter all Veteran/family contacts in the electronic record using appropriate formats and templates. This information will be entered in a complete, confidential and professional manner to ensure information on the patient is accurately shared with other VA staff. This information will be reviewed with the patient on a regular basis. The Social Worker will establish and maintain positive working relationships with employees, volunteers, consumers and stakeholders within the VA and outside community agencies. The Social Worker (Program Coordinator) will attend all appropriate staff meetings (interdisciplinary treatment team meetings, Social Work Service staff meetings, Social Work supervision meetings, and other committees and workgroups, as appropriate) and perform other duties as required.

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. 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. Advanced practice level social workers must be licensed or certified by a state at the advanced practice level which includes 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. All states except California use a series of licensure exams administered by the ASWB. Information can be found at https://www.aswb.org/ .
• Physical Requirements. Please see "Physical Requirements" listed below.
• English Language Proficiency. Candidates must be proficient in spoken and written English to be appointed as authorized by 38 U.S.C. § 7403(f).

Grandfather Provision. A Social Worker employed in VHA on the effective date of the qualification standard (9/10/2019) who did not meet all the basic requirements in this standard, but who met the qualifications applicable to the position at the time they were appointed, the following provisions apply:

1. Employees may be reassigned, promoted up to and including the full performance (journey) level or changed to lower grade within the occupation but may not be promoted beyond the journeyman level or placed in supervisory or managerial positions.
2. Employees in an occupation that requires a licensure/certification/ registration only at higher grade levels must meet the licensure/ certification/registration requirement before they can be promoted to those higher grade levels.
3. Employees who are appointed on a temporary basis prior to the effective date of the qualification standard may not have their temporary appointment extended or be reappointed on a temporary or permanent basis until they fully meet the basic requirements of the standard.
4. Employees who are converted to title 38 hybrid status under this provision and subsequently leave the occupation lose protected status and must meet the full VA qualification standard requirements in effect at the time of re-entry to the occupation.
5. Employees initially grandfathered into this occupation who subsequently obtain additional education and/or licensure/certification/registration that meet all the basic requirements of this qualification standard must maintain the required credentials as a condition of employment in the occupation.

Social Worker (Program Coordinator), GS-12 Grade Determination:
Licensure Requirement: You must be licensed or certified at the advanced practice level, and must be able to provide supervision for licensure.

Experience Requirement: You must possess 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. Examples of specialized experience at the GS-11 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; maintaining patient privacy and confidentiality per policies, handbooks or directives; acting as an advocate with appropriate community service providers and agencies when it serves the best interest of the patient and family members/caregiver; independently assessing the psychosocial functioning and needs of patients and their family members, identifying the patient's strengths, weaknesses, coping skills, and psychosocial acuity.

In addition to the experience above, you must demonstrate the following Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:

• Knowledge of program coordination and administration which includes consultation, negotiation, and monitoring.
• Knowledge and ability to write policies, procedures, and/or practice guidelines for the program.
• Ability to supervise multidisciplinary staff assigned to the program.
• Skill in organizing work, setting priorities, meeting multiple deadlines, and evaluating assigned program area(s).
• Ability to provide training, orientation, and guidance within clinical practice.

***Qualifications continued in Education section***