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The Inpatient Mental Health and Neuromodulation Supervisory Social Worker- henceforth referred to as the Incumbent is administratively responsible to the Director of Inpatient Mental Health and Neuromodulation Services, has full responsibility for the provision of complex social work services requiring advanced practice skill. 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. The basic requirements for employment as a VHA social worker are prescribed by statute in 38 U.S.C. § 7402(b)(9), as amended by section 205 of Public Law 106-419, enacted November 1, 2000. To qualify for appointment as a social worker in VHA, all applicants must meet the following: a. Citizenship. Be a citizen of the United States. b. 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. c. 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/. d. English Language Proficiency. Candidates must be proficient in spoken and written English to be appointed as authorized by 38 U.S.C. § 7403(f). GRADE DETERMINATIONS. In addition to the basic requirements for employment, the following criteria must be met when determining the grade of candidates. Social Worker Supervisory, GS-13 (1) Experience/Education. One year of experience equivalent to the GS-12 grade level. Experience must demonstrate possession of advanced practice skills in administration, demonstrating progressively more professional competency skills and judgment. Individual may have certification or other post-master's degree training from a nationally recognized professional organization or university that includes a defined curriculum/course of study and internship, or equivalent supervised professional experience. (2) Licensure/Certification. Individuals assigned as supervisory social workers must be licensed or certified at the advanced practice level, and must be able to provide supervision for licensure. (3)Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSAs: (a) Ability to independently organize work, set priorities, and meet multiple deadlines. (b) Skill in a range of supervisory duties which includes clinical supervision, consultation, negotiation with other departments and quality improvement. (c) Ability to ensure provision of clinical social work services by supervised social workers. (d) Ability to delegate authority, manage priorities, coordinate work, and follow up on pending issues to complete duties in an accurate and timely fashion. (e) Ability to analyze organizational and operational problems, develop and implement solutions that result in efficient operations, and use data effectively to manage workload, quality, performance, and productivity within the service. (f) Ability to provide staff training and development. Assignment. For all assignments above the full performance level, the higher-level duties must consist of significant scope, complexity (difficulty), and variety and be performed by the incumbent at least 25% of the time. Supervisory social workers at the GS-13 grade level typically supervise professional and non-professional staff. They are responsible for the professional and administrative management of an area in a social work service, in a care/product line, or across multiple sites, (e.g., multi-division facilities and CBOCs). Incumbent may also provide direct clinical services.] Physical Requirements: Must be in overall good health, able to sit at a desk working at a computer, engage in light to moderate physical activity including sitting, walking, bending, and carrying supplies. Applicants must be able to perform primarily light and sedentary duties with occasionally moderate physical demands, exercise patience, and control emotions, with reasonable accommodation if necessary, without endangering the health and safety of the applicant or others. Position requires walking throughout the clinic and the Medical Center, standing for extended periods of time, and involves sitting at a computer and in counsel and consultation with Veterans and interdisciplinary teams. Position may require minimal travel into the community to meet with community agencies and partners who assist and support to the Caregiver Support program, its Veterans and caregivers. This position also requires close visual acuity to perform an activity such as: preparing and analyzing data and figures; transcribing; viewing a computer terminal; extensive reading; and repetitive motions of the wrists, hands, and/or fingers. DEVIATIONS. An approving official may, under unusual circumstances, approve reasonable deviations to the grade determination requirements for an employee whose composite record of accomplishments, performance, and qualifications, as well as current assignment, warrants such action based on demonstrated competence to meet the requirements of the proposed grade. Under no circumstances will the educational requirements be waived. Under no circumstances will licensure requirements be waived for positions at the GS-11 grade level or above. The placement of individuals in grade levels or assignments not described in this standard must be approved by the Under Secretary for Health or designee in VHA Central Office prior to placement in the position. References: VA Handbook 5005/120 Part II Appendix G39 Social Worker Qualification Standard GS-185 Veterans Health Administration. The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-13. Physical Requirements: Work is sedentary but also demands standing, walking, bending, twisting, and carrying light items. Work is performed in an office/clinic setting with minimal risks that requires normal safety precautions; the area is adequately lighted, heated and ventilated. However, the work environment requires someone with the ability to handle several tasks at once in sometimes stressful situations. ["The Incumbent is responsible for directly supervising 3 GS-12 Senior Social Workers, and 5 GS-9/11 Social Workers in the Inpatient Mental Health Service. The Incumbent provides administrative, technical, and clinical supervision necessary for accomplishing the work of the various units where social workers are assigned which includes 111 patient beds across the 4 units. The Incumbent is licensed at the advanced practice level and is able to provide supervision for subordinate staff to qualify for licensure. The Incumbent may supervise additional Social Work staff as determined by the Director of Inpatient Mental Health and Neuromodulation. The Incumbent works closely with the Neuromodulation team, which includes psychiatrists, staff nurses, anesthesiology providers, and MSAs. The social worker will also assist with monitoring clinic activities and program reviews in order to assist with development and analysis of information and recommends program enhancements. The Incumbent performs the administrative and personnel management function relative to staff supervised. The Incumbent has established guidelines and performance expectations for staff, clearly communicated, through the formal employee performance management system. The Incumbent observes workers' performance; demonstrates and conducts work performance critiques. The Incumbent provides informal feedback and periodically evaluates employee performance. The Incumbent works to resolve informal complaints and grievances and develops work improvement plans, recommending personnel actions as necessary. The Incumbent provides advice and counsel to workers related to work and administrative matters. The Incumbent invokes disciplinary measures as appropriate to the authority delegated in this area. The GS 13 Incumbent reviews and approves or disapproves leave requests and assures that subordinates are trained and fully comply with the provisions of the safety regulations. The Incumbent designs and implements strategies that maximize employee potential, connects the organization horizontally and vertically, and fosters high ethical standards in meeting the organization's vision, mission, and goals. The GS 13 Incumbent provides an inclusive workplace that fosters the development of others to their full potential; allows for full participation by all employees; facilitates collaboration, cooperation, and teamwork, and supports constructive resolution of conflicts. The GS 13 Incumbent ensures employee performance plans are aligned with the organization's mission and goals, that employees receive constructive feedback, and that employees are realistically appraised against clearly defined and communicated performance standards. The Incumbent holds employees accountable for appropriate levels of performance and conduct. Seeks and considers employee input. The Incumbent recruits, retains, and develops the talent needed to achieve a high quality, diverse workforce that reflects the nation, with the skills needed to accomplish organizational performance objectives while supporting workforce diversity, workplace inclusion, and equal employment policies and programs. The Incumbent reviews applications, interviews applicants, and selects, or concurs in the selection of, the best-qualified staff available to fill vacancies in assigned programs within Social Work Service. Conducts performance appraisal of assigned staff within Social Work Supervisors or reviews performance appraisals made by subordinate supervisors, in order to determine the level of performance for assigned staff. Rewards appropriate performance, or reviews and concur, in award recommendations from subordinate supervisors of employees assigned within Social Work Service to ensure that high-level performance is recognized. The incumbent provides technical assistance to monitor activities and program reviews and assists with the development and analysis of information. In addition, the incumbent uses sound judgment in the interpretation of trends and patterns; the application of guidelines; and the recommendation of program enhancements. The incumbent is responsible for furthering the goals of equal employment opportunity (EEO) by taking positive steps to assure the accomplishment of affirmative action objectives and by adhering to nondiscriminatory employment practices in regard to race, color, religion, sex, and affirmative action for the area under incumbent supervision in the following: (1) merit promotion of employees and recruitment and hiring of applicants; (2) fair treatment of all employees; (3) encouragement and recognition of employee achievements; (4) career development of employees; and (5) full utilization of their skills. Work Schedule: Monday-Friday 8:00am-4:30pm Telework: Not Available Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Functional Statement #: F05943 Financial Disclosure Report: Not required"]

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