Social Worker- Personal Care Services Program

US-Department-of-Veterans-Affair; Orlando (FL); On-site; USD 70,000 - 100,000; Full time

Job summary

U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs in Orlando, FL seeks a Social Worker for Personal Care Services (PCS) within Social Work Service to serve Veterans receiving non-institutional care.

The role requires MSW from an accredited program, state licensure, and ability to supervise and coordinate care. Frontline duties include psychosocial assessments, care coordination, and consultation to staff, with emphasis on discharge planning and community partnerships.

Qualifications

• Knowledge of community resources, referrals, and coordination of services.
• Ability to conduct psychosocial assessments and interventions for diverse clients.
• Knowledge of medical and mental health diagnoses and treatment procedures to form a plan.
• Skill in implementing treatment modalities with individuals, families, and groups.
• Ability to provide consultation to new social workers and students on psychosocial needs and treatment compliance.

Responsibilities

• Perform psychosocial assessments and develop treatment plans.
• Coordinate services with community resources and agencies.
• Provide consultation to staff and supervisees on psychosocial needs and treatment compliance.
• Assist with discharge planning and care coordination.
• Maintain documentation in patient records per standards.

Skills

Community resources knowledge

Psychosocial assessment

Treatment interventions

Medical terminology

Professional consultation

Education

Master’s degree in Social Work (CSWE-accredited)

Doctoral degree in social work (may substitute for one year of experience)

Job description

Personal Care Services (PCS) Social Worker works within Social Work Service and provides services to Veterans receiving non-institutional care (NIC) through the Orlando VA Healthcare System.

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.
• English Language Proficiency: Candidates must be proficient in spoken and written English to be appointed as authorized by 38 U.S.C. § 7403(f).
• 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/.

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

In addition to meeting the basic requirements stated above, the following qualifications criteria must be met in determining the appropriate grade assignment of candidates.

GS-11 (Full-Performance Level)

• Experience and Licensure: Appointment to the GS-11 grade level requires completion of a minimum of one (1) year of post-MSW experience equivalent to the GS-9 grade level in the field of health care or other social work-related settings, (VA or non-VA experience) and licensure or certification in a state at the independent practice level.

OR

• Education: In addition to meeting basic requirements, a doctoral degree in social work from a school of social work may be substituted for the required one (1) year of professional social work experience in a clinical setting.

While we no longer require essay-style responses to our Knowledge's Skills, Abilities, and Other Characteristics (KSAOs), you must be able to demonstrate that you possess the (below) competencies which are necessary to perform the work of the position. Please ensure your resume/CV/application contains sufficient information to support the level of experience/education/training; otherwise, we will not be able to award you credit for the experience/education/training you claim. These are the KSA's for this subject position:

GS-11 (Full-Performance Level)

1. Knowledge of community resources, how to make appropriate referrals to community and other governmental agencies for services, and ability to coordinate services.
2. Skill in independently conducting psychosocial assessments and treatment interventions to a wide variety of individuals from various socio-economic, cultural, ethnic, educational and other diversified backgrounds.
3. Knowledge of medical and mental health diagnoses, disabilities and treatment procedures (i.e. acute, chronic and traumatic illnesses/injuries, common medications and their effects/side effects, and medical terminology) to formulate a treatment plan.
4. Skill in independently implementing different treatment modalities in working with individuals, families, and groups who are experiencing a variety of psychiatric, medical, and social problems to achieve treatment goals.
5. Ability to provide consultation services to new social workers, social work graduate students, and other staff about the psychosocial needs of patients and the impact of psychosocial problems on health care and compliance with treatment.

Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/.

Preferred Experience: Case management, Hospital discharge planning, Skilled home care, Skilled nursing facility, Medical social work, Geriatric population, Care coordination, Community partnerships. Ability to communicate affectively with peers, Veterans and families. Organizational skills and ability to work independently.

Physical Requirements: May require standing, lifting, carrying, sitting, stooping, bending, pulling, and pushing. May be required to wear personal protective equipment and undergo annual TB screening or testing as conditions of employment.