| The Caregiver Support Program (CSP) is one of the Veterans Health Administration's (VHA) most rapidly growing service areas, as a result of infrastructure modernization, programming innovation, and expansion of population-served by the Program of Comprehensive Assistance for Family Caregivers (PCAFC) under the MISSION Act. The Senior Social Worker is assigned to the Social Work Service of the South Texas Veterans Health Care System. The Caregiver Support Program (CSP) Senior Social Worker for the Program of Comprehensive Assistance for Family Caregivers is assigned to the CSP with responsibility to act as a subject matter expert (SME) within the CSP team. The CSP program goal is to not only support caregivers in their role but to also promote their health and well-being through education, therapeutic engagement, and resource and service linkage. The incumbent will provide specialized consultation on the administrative and clinical considerations of the CSP as referenced in VHA Directive 1152 (1). The Senior Social Worker will function in support of caregivers, Veterans, and family members throughout the Medical Center and in the community and will support the development and implementation of the PCAFC. This includes developing and implementing methods for measuring effectiveness of Social Work practice and services in the specialty area, utilizing outcome evaluations to improve treatment services, and to design system changes. Duties will include but are not limited to: Develop and facilitates caregiver support groups and educational programs and distributes educational materials Participate in direct caregiver and Veteran contacts to assess caregiver stress/burden and the development/application of directed clinical treatment interventions Provide caregiver and family clinical interventions to facilitate the treatment of caregiver stress, psychiatric illness, emotional distress, and social needs Responsible for conducting regular home visits to Veterans and Caregivers participating in the PCAFC Respond to calls from the National Caregiver Support Hotline Respond to other phone calls and general inquiries regarding the CSP Assists with general tasks associated with the program Advise and collaborate with interdisciplinary teams throughout the medical center on caregiver issues Responsible for creating educational tools, developing programs, and implementing training focused on specific caregiver needs/issues and providing education and in-service training to VAMC employees, Veterans, families, and caregivers Provide ongoing consultation and support to colleagues regarding caregiver support services and issues facing Veterans, families and their caregivers Communicate and can develop positive, effective relationships with all CSP stakeholders including Veterans, caregivers, local, state, and federal agencies, as well as non-governmental organizations Provide referrals to VA medical and mental health treatment and to other VA services including VA benefits, as well as community-based social services and other non-VA entitlement programs Provide referrals or consults, and in some cases facilitate direct admission of a Veteran to other VA programs including but not limited to the Community Residential Care Program, Respite Program, Community Health Care Coordination Program, Hospice, Home Based Primary Care, Telehealth, and the Community Nursing Home Program Responsible for serving as a consultant for navigating the complex processes caregivers, Veterans, and their families encounter when interacting with government and community agencies Keeps abreast of current federal and state legislation directed at assisting caregivers to continue to provide caregiving in an environment that is safe for both themselves and the Veteran Serve as a liaison between the VA and community agencies Participate in caregiver support activities in the local community and state to promote and recognize the role of the caregiver and participates on state and local caregiver support committees Assist in coordinating events and programs for the annual National Family Caregivers Month in November, which includes announcements and advertising of month-long activities, mobilization of participants, educational sessions, caregiver recognition events, and caregiver support programs Assist program leadership in maintaining a data monitoring system to measure the efficacy of the program and assists in collecting and analyzing local data for reports to local management, the VISN Caregiver Support Program Lead, and the National Caregiver Support Program, Care Management and Social Work Service, Office of Patient Care Services Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 8:00 am to 4:30 pm Financial Disclosure Report: Not required |
