Chaplain

US-Department-of-Veterans-Affair; San Diego (CA); On-site; USD 70,000 - 100,000; Full time

Job summary

The Department of Veterans Affairs at the San Diego VA Medical Center seeks a Chaplain to provide pastoral counseling and spiritual care to Veterans, their families, and staff in various inpatient and outpatient settings. The role requires board certification, ecclesiastical endorsement, and U.S.

citizenship. Chaplains work within a medical facility structure, collaborating with health care teams to develop care plans and ensure respect for diverse faith traditions.

Qualifications

• Must hold a Master of Divinity degree or equivalent from CHEA/ATS-accredited school.
• Must be a United States citizen.
• Ecclesiastical endorsement from an official endorsing authority, current within 12 months.
• Board Certification by BCCI or reciprocal body; 4 units of CPE qualifying.
• Foreign education, if completed outside the U.S., must be evaluated by NACES.

Responsibilities

• Provide pastoral counseling and spiritual care to Veterans, families, and staff in inpatient and outpatient settings.
• Collaborate with health care teams to create and update treatment plans addressing spiritual needs.
• Coordinate religious services honoring patient faith traditions and ensure free exercise of religion.
• Offer crisis intervention and stabilization as required in a hospital setting.

Skills

Pastoral counseling

Crisis intervention

Health care team collaboration

Communication across diverse groups

Education

Master of Divinity (MDiv) degree

Board Certification (BCCI) or reciprocal body

Ecclesiastical endorsement (within 12 months)

Foreign education evaluation (NACES) if applicable

Job description

This position is located within the Department of Veterans Affairs at the San Diego VAMC. The position provides services within various settings, including Veterans Integrated Service Networks, Inpatient Clinics, Outpatient Clinics and domiciliaries. Most Chaplain services are usually provided in a medical facility structure. The CS provides pastoral counseling and treatment to Veteran patients, patient's families and staff in various inpatient and outpatient settings.

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. Applicants must possess a Master of Divinity degree or equivalent educational qualifications as evidenced by a graduate-level theological degree from a college, university or theological school accredited by a member of the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA) or Association of Theological Schools (ATS) and recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.

Ecclesiastical Endorsement.

In accordance with 38 C.F.R. § 17.655, ecclesiastical endorsement is a condition of employment as a VA chaplain. An individual must possess and maintain a full and active ecclesiastical endorsement to be employed as a VA chaplain. Applicants must have an ecclesiastical endorsement, dated within the past 12 months. Ecclesiastical endorsements must be from the official national endorsing authority of the applicant's/employee's faith group or denomination. Ecclesiastical endorsement is a written official statement, by the official national endorsing body of the faith group or denomination, certifying that the applicant is in good standing with the applicant's faith group or denomination; and stating that the individual is, in the opinion of the endorsing body, qualified to perform the full range of ministry required in the VA pluralistic setting. Loss of endorsement will result in removal from the GS-0060 Chaplain series and may result in termination of employment. The National Chaplain Service maintains a list of approved endorsing organizations that can be found here: National VA Chaplain Service SharePoint

• Board Certification. Applicants must be a Board-Certified Chaplain certified by BCCI ® or a U.S. certifying body that has a reciprocity agreement with BCCI ®. Board Certification that requires 4 units of CPE is qualifying. The National Chaplain Service maintains a list of approved certifications found on the National VA Chaplain Service SharePoint.


• Foreign Education. To be creditable, education completed outside the U.S. must be submitted to a current affiliate agency of the National Association of Credential Evaluation Services (NACES) at https://www.naces.org/members and be deemed at least equivalent to that gained in a conventional U.S. program.

Exception for Non-Board-Certified Chaplains.

• (a) Non-Board-Certified applicants who otherwise meet the eligibility requirements, may be given a temporary appointment as a Chaplain under the authority of 38 U.S.C. § 7405(c)(2) not to exceed 2 years.


• (b) Non-Board-Certified Chaplains must provide proof of completion of 4 units of CPE as required by an approved board certifying body.


• (c) Non-Board-Certified individuals may only provide care under the supervision of a certified Chaplain at or above the FPL.


• (d) Non-Board-Certified individuals may only be appointed at the entry level and may not be promoted/converted until certification is obtained. Temporary appointments of non-board-certified Chaplains may not be extended beyond 2 years or be converted to a new temporary appointment.

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).

Grade Determinations

Chaplain GS-09:

Experience. None beyond the basic requirements.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (KSAs)

In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate the following KSAs:

1. Knowledge of spiritual assessments to identify patient strengths and needs and documenting services provided.


2. Ability to use the information of the spiritual assessment to create care plans in all dimensions of pastoral care.


3. Ability to provide crisis intervention and stabilization.


4. Skill in health care team collaboration to create and update treatment plans to address spiritual issues.


5. Ability to ensure free exercise of religion for patients and staff.


6. Knowledge of individual and group interventions to address spiritual and emotional needs of patients and families; providing referrals for continuity of spiritual care.


7. Skill in the coordination of religious services respecting the faith tradition of individual patients.


8. Ability to communicate verbally and in writing with persons of varied backgrounds.

Assignment.

Employees at this grade level serve in an entry level position. It is expected that they receive guidance from more experienced staff members and require daily direct supervision. Chaplains serve in a career development position practicing under close supervision of a supervisor or qualified individual who reviews and ensures the employee meets competency requirements. The chaplain conducts spiritual assessments to identify patient strengths and needs and creates plans for care in response to the moral injuries and spiritual distress of patients. The candidate provides crisis intervention and stabilization as required. The chaplain collaborates with health care teams to create and update treatment plans to address spiritual distress, grief, and loss as existential concerns to enhance holistic care. The chaplain ensures free exercise of religion and protects Veterans from proselytization and coercion from any source. The candidate uses a variety of intervention methods, including individual and group intervention, to address the emotional and spiritual needs of patients and families. The candidate coordinates religious services in a manner which respects the faith traditions and religious expression of patient.

Chaplain GS-11

Experience. One year of creditable experience equivalent to the next lower grade.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (KSAs)

In addition to meeting to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate the following KSAs:

1. Knowledge of advance care planning to educate, inform, and counsel patients and families.


2. Skill in guiding patients in verbalizing and expressing values through life review, oral history, and end of life preparation and documentation.


3. Ability to develop pastoral care programs that are measurable, outcome-driven and evidenced based within the department guidelines.


4. Skill in counseling on medical and ethical issues, terminal diagnoses or crises, moral injury, problems of conscience, family or marital difficulties, and justice or confinement matters.


5. Ability to support the development of staff resiliency and develop programs for staff development and wellness by providing spiritual and emotional support.


6. Ability to educate and equip health care staff and trainees screening for spiritual and religious needs of patients and the importance of appropriate referrals to chaplains for complex spiritual distress.


7. Knowledge of community needs to coordinate with community organizations to provide comprehensive spiritual care, utilizing outside community resources to meet the religious needs of patients that cannot be met by chaplain staff.

Preferred Experience:

Completed 4 (Four) units of CPE with a minimum of 1 year of experience at a healthcare facility.

Reference:

For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/. The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-11. The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is in the range of GS-9 to GS-11.

Physical Requirements:

This position requires the Chaplain to meaningfully engage with Veteran patients and family members by walking and moving within the healthcare setting or with the incumbent uses an assistive device. The Chaplain is required to speak, hear (hearing aid permitted) and work closely with others.