The Nephrology (Outpatient/Inpatient) Specialty Care Social Worker will be assigned to provide appropriate clinical services including, but not limited to, psychosocial assessments, treatment plans, ongoing case management, pre-transplant assessments and education, counseling and education on disease process, advance health care planning and end of life education/care. Basic Requirements Citizenship: Citizen of the United States. Licensure: Candidate must be licensed or certified by a state at the advanced practice level which included 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. Education: Master's degree in social work (MSW) 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 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 master's degree in social work. Grade Determinations: GS-12 Senior Social Worker Experience: In addition to the basic requirements, applicants must have at least two years of experience post advanced practice clinical licensure and should be in a specialized area of social work practice of which, one year must be equivalent to the GS-11 grade level. In addition to the experience above, candidates must demonstrate all of the following KSAs: Skill in a range of specialized interventions and treatment modalities used in specialty treatment programs or with special patient populations. This includes individual, group, and/or family counseling or psychotherapy and advanced level psychosocial and/or case management. Ability to incorporate complex multiple causation in differential diagnosis and treatment within approved clinical privileges or scope of practice. Knowledge in 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. Ability to provide specialized consultation to colleagues and students on the psychosocial treatment of patients in the service delivery area, as well as role modeling effective social work practice skills. Ability to expand clinical knowledge in the social work profession, and to write policies, procedures, and/or practice guidelines pertaining to the service delivery area. Assignments. Senior social workers are licensed or certified to independently practice social work at an advanced level. Senior social workers typically practice in a major program area such as but not limited to: Polytrauma Rehabilitation Center or Polytrauma Network Site; a Spinal Cord Injury Rehabilitation Center, or a national VHA referral center, such as a national Center for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder or a national Transplant Center, or other program areas of equivalent scope and complexity. The senior social worker may be assigned administrative responsibility for clinical program development and is accountable for clinical program effectiveness and modification of service patterns. Assignments include clinical settings where they have limited access to onsite supervision such as CBOCs or satellite outpatient clinics. The senior social worker collaborates with the other members of the treatment team in the provision of comprehensive health care services to Veterans, ensures equity of access, service, and benefits to this population, ensures the care provided is of the highest quality. The senior social worker provides leadership, direction, orientation, coaching, in-service training, staff development, and continuing education programs for assigned social work staff. They serve on committees, work groups, and task forces at the facility, VISN and national level, or in the community as deemed appropriate by the supervisor, Social Work Executive or Chief of Social Work Services. This assignment is to be relatively few in number based on the size of the facility/service and applying sound position management. References: VA Handbook 5005, Part II, Appendix G39 - Social Worker Qualification Standard. Physical Requirements: The incumbent must be mobile throughout VA Loma Linda Healthcare Systems (including ACC, main site, and community) as needed, including walking, standing, bending, pushing (i.e. wheelchairs) and some moderate lifting at times. In addition, there can be prolonged standing, sitting or walking during activities at the VA or in the community. The incumbent may carry light items, such as books, files, or a laptop computer. Duties require ability to walk distances, communicate verbally in a clear manner and normal hearing and manual dexterity. ["VA Careers - Social Work: https://youtube.com/embed/enRhz_ua_UU Duties include but are not limited to: Independently manage a complex caseload seeking clinical or administrative consultation on rare occasions for the most complex cases, as needed. Independently implement treatment plans and provide guidance for patients and their families. Address and complete well written responses to White House Hotline reports, Congressionals, PATS-R, assigned due outs and other suspenses, as assigned. Demonstrate knowledge regarding medical and mental health diagnoses, disabilities and treatment procedures. Independently completes biopsychosocial assessments annually for VALLHCS Nephrology patients and those Veterans being followed in the community for Nephrology services (i.e., dialysis, etc.). Complete end of year consults and any additional assessments or consults for patient receiving care at VALLHCS and the community. Create treatment plans in collaboration with the multidisciplinary team, Veteran and family/caregivers, which meet designated program/clinic specific time lines/deadlines, guidelines defined by the Joint Commission standards, VHA policy and VALLHCS policy. Ensure CSREs and Safety Plans are completed, as needed and as due for renewal, for all high risk Veterans. Provide crisis intervention, as required, and complete the Columbia Suicide Severity Rating Scale (C-SSRS), CSRE, Safety Plan, SBOD and other relevant and required interventions and documentation as needed. Expand clinical knowledge in the profession, provide consultation and guidance to colleagues, role models effective social work practice skills, teach or provide orientation to less experienced social workers and provide coverage as needed. Type and execute clear and comprehensible notes on Computerized Patient Record System (CPRS). Navigate VALLHCS documents and programs such as advance care planning, safety plans, orders, consults, Technology Architecture (VistA), CPRS, Microsoft Teams, Outlook and others as needed or assigned. Remain current on changes within community care facilities, VALLHCS contract Community Nursing Homes and other services through VALLHCS contracts. Work independently and build strong collaboration with multiple medical teams to assist with continuity of care for Veterans. Communicate effectively, both verbally and in writing with people from diverse backgrounds and positions. Display respect, integrity and values in line with ICARE Values and the VHA Mission. Understand, implement, and educate Veterans and their families with consistent information on VALLHCS policies and procedures. Capable of managing conflicts and difficulties when dealing with Veterans under pressure or in crisis. Teach and mentor staff and students in this specialty area of practice and to provide supervision for licensure. Perform additional related duties, as assigned, which fall under their approved privileges (scope of practice). As a Senior Social Worker in Specialty Care, the incumbent will be required to cover other specialty care areas (i.e., Cardiology, ALS, Oncology, GI/ID, CLC, etc.) and medical areas, as assigned. May be required to cover on-call, weekends and evenings. Work Schedule: Monday - Friday 8:00 am - 4:30 pm Telework: Not Available Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Functional Statement #: 00000 Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Not required"]
Providing Health Care for Veterans: The Veterans Health Administration is America’s largest integrated health care system, providing care at 1,255 health care facilities, including 170 medical centers and 1,074 outpatient sites of care of varying complexity (VHA outpatient clinics), serving 9 million enrolled Veterans each year.
