Psychologist - Behavioral Health Interdisciplinary Program - Washington, United States - Department of Veterans Affairs

Description

Summary

This position is eligible for the Education Debt Reduction Program (EDRP), a student loan payment reimbursement program.

You must meet specific individual eligibility requirements in accordance with VHA policy and submit your EDRP application within four months of appointment.

Approval, award amount (up to $200,000) and eligibility period (one to five years) are determined by the VHA Education Loan Repayment Services program office after complete review of the EDRP application.

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Overview

• Accepting applications
• Open & closing dates

01/22/2024 to 06/24/2024

• Salary

$94,626 - $175,334 per year

• Pay scale & grade

GS

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Location

Few vacancies in the following location:

• Washington, DC
• Remote job

No

• Telework eligible

Yes-as determined by the agency policy.

• Travel Required

Not required

• Relocation expenses reimbursed

No

• Appointment type

Permanent -* Work schedule

Full-time -* Service

Excepted

• Promotion potential

13

• Job family (Series)

0180 Psychology

• Supervisory status

No

• Security clearance

Not Required

• Drug test

Yes

• Position sensitivity and risk

Non-sensitive (NS)/Low Risk

• Trust determination process

Credentialing

Suitability/Fitness

• Announcement number

OCA-FY24-BHIP Psychologist

• Control number

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This job is open to

• Internal to an agency

Current federal employees of this agency.

Clarification from the agency

Open to current, permanent VA employees. If you are not a current, permanent VA employee, please apply under the announcement open to the public. This is an OPEN CONTINUOUS ANNOUNCEMENT until June 24, 2024. Applications will be accepted on an ongoing basis and qualified candidates will be considered as vacancies become available.

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Duties

The psychologist will serve on an Interdisciplinary Behavioral Health Care team to provide evidence-based psychotherapy and other psychological services for Veterans with moderate to severe mental health concerns within the Mental Health Clinic at the DC VA Medical Center .

The psychologist will provide a range of individual and group psychotherapy services, and psychological evaluations.


Functions/Duties:

• The psychologist will provide a full range of psychological services utilizing best practices in implementing psychotherapeutic techniques to provide quality care. Familiarity and skill in evidence based practices, such as CBT, CPT and DBT are expected. Psychologist works within Mental Health Clinic interdisciplinary teams for the coordination of service delivery that may include screenings, intakes, diagnostic assessments and treatment of veterans with a wide range of mental health problems. The psychologist will provide therapeutic interventions including individual therapy, group therapy couples/family therapy psycho-education, and consultation.
• The psychologist will conduct evaluations to aid in the differential diagnosis of complex cases.
• Works with interdisciplinary teams to provide professional advice and consultation regarding behavioral health evaluation, recommendations, treatment, and progress of patients identified with mental health and behavioral problems. Adheres to operational policies and procedures for the treatment team.
• Facilitates liaisons with other health care programs in order to effectively coordinate services.
• Complies with national and local performance measures, including timely health care screening and completion of clinical reminders for all patients.
• Complies with all CPRS documentation procedures, including timeliness standards for documentation and proper patient check out procedures (e.g., entering diagnostic and procedure codes).
• Attends and participates in administrative and informational meetings.
• Provides clinical supervision & training to Psychology Interns and/or Practicum students.

Administrative:

• May serve on Medical Center or Healthcare System, VISN, and/or National VA committees or task forces, as endorsed by supervisor.
• Participates in Psychology privileging, educational and peer review activities, in accordance with Psychology and medical center policies.
• Participates as a non-voting member of the medical staff, in accordance with medical staff by-laws.
• Participates in support of DC VA, Mental Health Service and Psychology Services administrative and performance improvement activities, e.g., by taking on assigned projects and serving on committees.
• Completes required clinical and administrative documentation in a timely manner and in accord with governing regulations.

Academic/Teaching/Training:

• As requested, supervises psychology predoctoral interns, practicum students and post-doctoral fellows in accord with training program policies and accrediting agency requirements.
• May provides staff and student didactic training and consultation as requested in content areas of scholarly and/or clinical expertise.
• May supervise or train allied health providers in accord with facility and regulatory standards regarding such training.

Research/Program Evaluation:

• May participate in program evaluation and/or research activities.

Work Schedule:
Monday - Friday, 8 am - 4:30 pm EST


Telework:
Available


Virtual:
This is NOT a virtual position.


Functional Statement #:

Relocation/Recruitment Incentives:
Not Authorized


EDRP Authorized:
Contact , the EDRP Coordinator for questions/assistance. Learn more

Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized


Financial Disclosure Report:
Not required

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Requirements

Conditions of Employment

• You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job.
• All applicants tentatively selected for VA employment in a testing designated position are subject to urinalysis to screen for illegal drug use prior to appointment. Applicants who refuse to be tested will be denied employment with VA.
• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959.
• Must be proficient in written and spoken English.
• You may be required to serve a probationary period.
• Subject to background/security investigation.
• Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process.
• Must pass pre-employment physical examination.
• Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP).
• Participation in the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccination program is a requirement for all Veterans Health Administration Health Care Personnel (HCP) - See "Additional Information" below for details.

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 Requirement:

You must 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.

OR

Have a doctoral degree in any area of psychology and, in addition, successfully completed a 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 you were retrained is consistent with the assignment you are am applying for.



NOTE:

The applicant must provide an official transcript and/or certificate documenting the completion of the re-specialization program, which includes completion of an APA or CPA internship.

[Psychologists who have successfully completed a re-specialization program as described above and who were employed by the Department of Veterans Affairs prior to the implementation of this standard are considered to have fully met the educational requirements of these qualification standards.

;

OR

Have a doctoral degree awarded between 1951 and 1978 from a regionally-accredited institution, with a dissertation primarily psychological in nature.

Internship Requirement:
You must 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

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

VHA facilities that offered full-time, one-year pre-doctoral internships prior to PL pre-1979) are considered to be acceptable in fulfillment of the internship requirement;

OR

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

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.

NOTE:

Psychologists who meet the requirements of this revision and who were employed by the Department of Veterans Affairs prior to the implementation of this standard are considered to have fully met the requirements of this qualification standard.

Licensure:
Candidates must 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.

NOTE:

At the GS-11 and GS-12 levels non-licensed applicants who otherwise meet the eligibility requirements may be given a temporary appointment as a "graduate psychologist" 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.


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



GS11 (Entry Level):
Experience - None beyond the basic requirements.



GS12 (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



GS13 (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.

References:
VA HANDBOOK 5005/103 February 7, 2018, PART II APPENDIX G18.

The full performance level of this vacancy is 13.

The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is in the range of 11 to 13.

Physical Requirements:
See VA Directive and Handbook 5019.

Education

See


QUALIFICATIONS SECTION

IMPORTANT:

A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education.

Note:
Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment.

You can verify your education here:
If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education


For further information, visit:
Additional information

"Whole Health is an approach to health care that empowers and equips people to take charge of their health and well-being and live their life to the fullest. The VA is committed to Whole Health and values Veteran and Employee health and wellbeing. As a VA employee, you will practice Whole Health in an environment that supports personalized and proactive care."

This is an OPEN CONTINUOUS ANNOUNCEMENT until June 24, 2024.

Applications will be accepted on an ongoing basis and qualified candidates will be considered as vacancies become available.

This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies.

This position is in the Excepted Service and does not confer competitive status.

VA encourages persons with disabilities to apply.

The health-related positions in VA are covered by Title 38, and are not covered by the Schedule A excepted appointment authority.

Pursuant to VHA Directive , VHA health care personnel (HCP) are required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 subject to such accommodations as required by law (i.e., medical, religious or pregnancy).

VHA HCPs do not include remote workers who only infrequently enter VHA locations.

If selected, you will be required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and submit documentation of proof of vaccination before your start date.

The agency will provide additional information regarding what information or documentation will be needed and how you can request a legally required accommodation from this requirement using the reasonable accommodation process.

If you are unable to apply online or need to fax a document you do not have in electronic form, view the following link for information regarding an Alternate Application.

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• Benefits

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A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package.

As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding.

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Review our benefits

Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent.

Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.

How You Will Be Evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE MAY NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. Your application, resume, C.V., and/or supporting documentation will be verified. Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect consideration for employment.

Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religions; spiritual; community; student; social).

Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment.

You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.

The Department of Veterans Affairs performs pre-employment reference checks as an assessment method used in the hiring process to verify information provided by a candidate (e.g., on resume or during interview or hiring process); gain additional knowledge regarding a candidate's abilities; and assist a hiring manager with making a final selection for a position.

It is the policy of the VA to not deny employment to those that have faced financial hardships or periods of unemployment.

Veterans and Transitioning Service Members:

Please visit the VA for Vets site for career-search tools for Veterans seeking employment at VA, career development services for our existing Veterans, and coaching and reintegration support for military service members.