Staff Psychologist - Substance Use Disorder Provider

U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs; Lafayette (LA); On-site; USD 65,000 - 100,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Federal benefits

Paid time off

Retirement plan

Professional development opportunities

Job summary

Alexandria VA Health Care System seeks a Psychologist to provide direct patient care, training, and program evaluation within a multidisciplinary setting. The role emphasizes evidence-based assessment and interventions for diverse clinical needs, with collaboration across mental health and medical staff.

Applicants must meet education, internship, and licensure requirements, and will engage in research and program development as part of a dynamic healthcare team.

Qualifications

• Doctoral degree in psychology from an APA/PCSAS/CPA-accredited program.
• Specialty area must align with the assignment.
• Full current license to practice psychology or eligible for licensure.

Responsibilities

• Diagnose mental disorders and provide a full range of psychodiagnostic services.
• Deliver evidence-based therapies (individual, group, family) and adjunctive interventions.
• Ensure accurate CPRS documentation and timely record keeping.
• Collaborate with medical staff to plan and coordinate treatment.
• Engage in program evaluation and research activities; attend meetings.

Skills

Effective communication

Education

APA/PCSAS/CPA accredited doctoral degree in psychology

APA/CPA accredited internship or retraining program

State licensure in psychology

Job description

Summary

The Psychologist position located at Alexandria VA Health Care System provides direct patient care - training - and program evaluation. Communicates effectively with mental health and medical staff - using evidence-based assessment and interventions for diverse medical - mental health - and complex patient needs.

Summary

The Psychologist position located at Alexandria VA Health Care System provides direct patient care - training - and program evaluation. Communicates effectively with mental health and medical staff - using evidence-based assessment and interventions for diverse medical - mental health - and complex patient needs.

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 (1) Have a doctoral degree in psychology from a graduate program in psychology accredited by the American Psychological Association (APA) - the Psychological Clinical Science Accreditation System (PCSAS) - or the Canadian Psychological Association (CPA) at the time the program was completed
• The specialty area of the degree must be consistent with the assignment for which the applicant is to be employed
• For the purpose of meeting this requirement - the term ""specialty area"" refers to the specific specialty areas recognized by the accrediting body and not to specific job duties that might require special skills
• Currently - APA accredits doctoral programs in the specialty areas of clinical psychology - counseling psychology - school psychology - or combinations of two or more of those areas
• PCSAS accredits doctoral programs in psychological clinical science
• CPA accredits doctoral programs in clinical psychology - counseling psychology - clinical neuropsychology - and school psychology
• There are no job assignments in VHA that require the skills of a school psychologist
• therefore - an applicant with a degree in the specialty area of school psychology is not eligible for appointment
• Strictly for the purpose of determining eligibility for appointment as a psychologist in VHA - there is no distinction between the specialty areas (with the exception of school psychology)
• OR (2) Have a doctoral degree in any area of psychology and - in addition - successfully complete a re- specialization program (including documentation of an approved internship completed as part of the re- specialization program) meeting both of the following conditions: (a) The re-specialization program must be completed in an APA or a CPA accredited doctoral program
• and - (b) the specialty in which the applicant is retrained must be consistent with the assignment for which the applicant is to be employed
• OR (3) Have a doctoral degree awarded between 1951 and 1978 from a regionally-accredited institution - with a dissertation primarily psychological in nature
• AND Internships (a) Have successfully completed a professional psychology internship training program that was accredited by APA or CPA at the time the program was completed and that is consistent with the assignment for which the applicant is to be employed
• OR (b) New VHA psychology internship programs that are in the process of applying for APA accreditation are acceptable in fulfillment of the internship requirement - provided that such programs were sanctioned by the VHA Central Office Program Director for Psychology and the VHA Office of Academic Affiliations at the time that the individual was an intern
• OR (c) VHA facilities that offered full-time - one-year pre-doctoral internships prior to PL 96- 151 (pre- 1979) are considered to be acceptable in fulfillment of the internship requirement
• OR (d) Applicants who completed an internship that was not accredited by APA or CPA at the time the program was completed may be considered eligible for hire only if they are currently board certified by the American Board of Professional Psychology in a specialty area that is consistent with the assignment for which the applicant is to be employed
• (NOTE: Once board certified - the employee is required to maintain board certification.) OR (e) Applicants who have a doctoral degree awarded between 1951 and 1978 from a regionally- accredited institution with a dissertation primarily psychological in nature may fulfill this internship requirement by having the equivalent of a one-year supervised internship experience in a site specifically acceptable to the candidate's doctoral program
• If the internship experience is not noted on the applicant's official transcript - the applicant must provide a statement from the doctoral program verifying that the equivalent of a one- year supervised internship experience was completed in a site acceptable to the doctoral program
• Licensure
• Hold a full - current - and unrestricted license to practice psychology at the doctoral level in a State - Territory - or Commonwealth of the United States - or the District of Columbia
• (1) Exception
• Non-licensed applicants who otherwise meet the eligibility requirements may be given a temporary appointment as a ""graduate psychologist"" at the GS-11 or GS- 12 grade under the authority of 38 U.S.C.
• 7405 [(c)(2)(B)] for a period not to exceed two years from the date of employment on the condition that such a psychologist provide care only under the supervision of a psychologist who is licensed
• Failure to obtain licensure during that period is justification for termination of the temporary appointment
• (2) Loss of Credential
• A psychologist who fails to maintain the required licensure must be removed from the occupation - which may result in termination of employment
• At the discretion of the appointing official - an employee may be reassigned to another occupation if qualified and if a placement opportunity exists
• English Language Proficiency
• Psychologists must be proficient in spoken and written English in accordance with VA Handbook 5005 - Part II - Chapter 3 - section A - paragraph 3j
• 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: Staff Psychologist - GS-11 (Entry Level) Experience
• None beyond the basic requirements
• Staff Psychologist - GS-12 (Developmental Level) Experience
• At least one year of experience as a professional psychologist equivalent to the next lower grade level (GS-11)
• Psychologists who are not licensed must practice under the supervision of a licensed psychologist but with less intense supervision than at the GS-11 grade level
• Demonstrated Knowledge - Skills - and Abilities
• In addition to the experience above - the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSAs: 1
• Knowledge of and ability to apply a wide range of professional psychological treatments or assessment methods to a variety of patient populations
• 2
• Ability to design and implement effective treatment strategies
• 3
• Ability to incorporate new clinical procedures
• 4
• Ability to conduct research activities - such as designing and implementing clinical research projects (staff psychologists with specified research job duties)
• 5
• Ability to perform basic research tasks of scholarship and research execution within the context of an established research team - including research participant relations - research documentation - data acquisition - maintenance - and collaboration
• Staff Psychologist - GS-13 (Full Performance - Level) Experience
• At least two years of experience as a professional psychologist - with at least one year equivalent to the GS-12 grade level
• Demonstrated Knowledge - Skills - and Abilities
• In addition to the experience above - the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSAs: 1
• Knowledge of - and ability to apply - professional psychological treatments to the full range of patient populations
• 2
• Ability to provide professional advice and consultation in areas related to professional psychology and behavioral health
• 3
• Knowledge of clinical research literature
• Reference: For more information on this qualification standard - please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/
• The full performance level of this vacancy is GS11
• The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is in the range of GS11 to GS13.

Duties

• Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional Ability to diagnose mental disorders and provide a full range of psychodiagnostic services - conduct psychological assessments for clinical or administrative purposes as directed by the Chief of Psychology or designated Supervisory Psychologist
• Ability to treat mental disorders through a variety of evidence-based modalities and provide adjunctive interventions for treatment of medical disorders
• Provides a full range of therapeutic interventions including: individual - group and family/couples psychotherapy
• Complies with all CPRS documentation procedures - including timeliness standards for documentation and proper patient check out procedures (e.g. - entering diagnostic and procedure codes)
• Effectively communicates with and utilizes other disciplines (e.g. - nursing - medicine) to facilitate treatment planning and implementation
• Participates effectively in team meetings - treatment planning conferences - etc
• when appropriate
• Consults with medical center staff on a wide variety of patient care issues
• Remains involved in program evaluation and/or research activities
• Provides administrative duties - including attending organizational meetings
• Additional duties may include providing clinical supervision to various disciplines and levels of training - including trainees seeking licensure in psychology
• May be involved in Psychology Training Program and Training Committee
• Provides leadership guidance and consultation to staff of units to which assigned
• Serves as a consultant to other medical center staff and trainees and assists in their formulation of the psychological characteristics and appropriate treatment expectations regarding their patients
• Is responsible for timely completion of all clinical record keeping and documentation required by the Medical Center or healthcare system - as appropriate
• Serves on Psychology or Health Care System committees May represents the Medical Center or Healthcare System at professional/program community group/events and committees
• Attends regular Psychology Service - Medical Staff - and other required meetings
• Willingly accepts additional and special assignments that are necessary to meet program goals or customer needs
• Work Schedule: Monday - Friday - 8:00am - 4:30pm - subject to change based on the needs of the facility
• Compressed/Flexible: Not Available Recruitment/Relocation Incentives (Sign-on Bonus): Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (Relocation Assistance): Not Authorized 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: Not Available Virtual: This is not a virtual position
• Functional Statement #: 00410F - 00411F - 99253F Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized