Staff Psychologist - Sheridan, 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.

Duties

• Oversees the in-depth psychosocial assessment as part of the overall assessment of the patient.
• Identifies problems/needs from the assessment to be treated and develops the individual treatment plan.
• Provides individual professional input and addressing the social aspect of the patient's situation with the treatment team.
• Assists Veterans and the treatment team in navigating problems in the residential milieu.
• Oversees all case management as assigned for the duration of the Veteran's admission through post-discharge follow up.
• Conducts therapeutic counseling in accordance with specific guidelines and handles crises, regularly with minimal supervision.
• Serves as therapist/counselor with individuals and groups.
• Observes and documents behavior and reaction patterns of patients to be utilized by the multidisciplinary treatment team, and final disposition for follow-up. All therapy provided is complete upon discharge.
• Develops and conducts lectures and educational presentations for patients related to various specialty aspects of general mental health, substance use disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), or Serious Mental Illness (SMI).
• Educates the veteran, their families, and the team of all the options available to them and will collaborate with the veteran and family on the preferred option.
• Develops, organizes, and implements a wide variety of outpatient aftercare treatment for patients and their collaterals.
• Develops and implements methods to motivate veterans to attend aftercare and/or participate in the outpatient program. Aftercare planning is coordinated with the Behavioral Health Interdisciplinary Programs (BHIP) treatment team to provide continuity of care during the transition from residential treatment to outpatient care in the Veterans local area.
• Depends on the work assignment, the incumbent may occasionally, transport veterans to assist them in assessing resources or taking care of essential business. In all cases the worker must know the patient and be comfortable in providing the needed transportation. Government vehicle will be used as well as all processes, trainings, and requirements related to Government vehicle use.
• Collaborates with other service providers in reassessing the Veteran's needs.
• Educates the veteran and/or caregiver of the available services and assisting them in establishing the appropriate referrals based on the veteran's preference or that of the surrogate decision-maker.
• Serves as a field instructor, preceptor, and/or mentor to interns, new/unlicensed, or newly licensed clinicians and peers as needed.
• Enters all veteran/family contacts in the electronic record using appropriate/approved formats and templates. This information must be entered in a complete, confidential, and professional manner to ensure information on the patient is shared with other VA staff. This information will be reviewed on a regular basis.
• Establishes and maintains positive working relationships with employees, volunteers, consumers and stakeholders within the VA and outside community agencies.
• Attends all appropriate staff meetings, team meetings, committee meetings, or group meetings and perform other duties as required.
• Collaborates in the performance improvement process and comply with performance measures as required by the appropriate program offices and local policies.
• Completes the continuing education hours needed for maintaining Professional Licensure.
• Demonstrates professional behavior that conforms to VA regulations and policy, State and Federal laws, and ethical codes of appropriate professional accrediting organizations.
• Participate in activities that obtain feedback from clients and work to enhance services as needed.
• Provides clinical supervision to various disciplines and levels of training, including trainees seeking licensure.
• Provides leadership guidance and consultation to staffs 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.
• Offers consultation to colleagues and students on the psychosocial treatment of patients treated in specialty areas, rendering professional opinions based on experience and expertise and role modeling effective clinical practice skills.
• Demonstrates the ability to teach and mentor staff and students in the special area of practice and to provide supervision for licensure or specialty certifications.