Primary Care Mental Health Integration (PCMHI) License Professional Mental Health Counselor

Veterans Health Administration•Syracuse, NY

1d•Onsite

About The Position

The Primary Care Mental Health Integration (PCMHI) Licensed Professional Mental Health Counselor provides functional assessment, triage, brief intervention, education, and consultation regarding a wide range of concerns. Consistent with the VA Whole Health philosophy, the counselor promotes awareness of the mental and behavioral aspects of wellness and their impact on overall health outcomes. The position uses a population-based care and public health approach, recognizing the primary care provider as the overall leader of the treatment team and maximizing access to services for Veterans. The counselor works with primary care providers and the interdisciplinary PACT to coordinate services at patient and programmatic levels. The role is the GS-11 full-performance level and may include program evaluation or research activities. The work schedule is Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Telework is not authorized, and the position is not virtual. The work is primarily sedentary, with some standing, walking, bending, twisting, and carrying light items.

Requirements

U.S. citizenship, subject to the stated exception for appointments when qualified citizens cannot be recruited under VA policy.
Master's or doctoral degree in Clinical Mental Health Counseling, Clinical Rehabilitation Counseling, both fields, or a related field from a CACREP-accredited program.
Full, current, unrestricted license to independently practice as a Licensed Professional Mental Health Counselor, including diagnosis and treatment.
At least one year of post-master's or post-doctoral mental health counseling experience, in VA or non-VA settings.
Demonstrated ability to make professional evaluations, decisions, and treatment-planning recommendations.
Advanced knowledge of the counseling process, including defining patient or family problems and maintaining an effective counseling relationship.
Ability to provide consultation to colleagues and trainees on counseling processes and specialty areas.
Ability to provide complex crisis intervention and stabilization using independent judgment and skill.
Ability to establish treatment goals collaboratively using advanced counseling skills, evidence-based practices, screening, and psychosocial assessment.
Ability to use individual, group, or family counseling interventions and demonstrate sensitivity to diversity and multicultural counseling skills.
Ability to use the current DSM for diagnosis, treatment-goal formulation, and clinical intervention.
Ability to develop and facilitate psychotherapy and psychoeducation groups.
Proficiency in spoken and written English.
Compliance with Selective Service registration requirements for males born after December 31, 1959.
Successful completion of a background/security investigation and online onboarding requirements.
Participation in the VA seasonal influenza vaccination program.
Ability to meet the position's physical demands, including standing, walking, bending, twisting, and carrying light items.
Successful completion of a one- or two-year trial period, as applicable.

Nice To Haves

Experience providing direct patient care in an integrated health care setting.
Experience or interest in working with Veterans and military populations.
Experience or comfort working in a fast-paced environment with frequent set-shifting, scheduled and unscheduled patients, primary care huddles, and consultation to primary care staff.
Experience with or interest in learning brief, evidence-based interventions and brief documentation.

Responsibilities

Collaborate with primary care providers and the interdisciplinary PACT to support high-quality, effective, coordinated service delivery at patient and programmatic levels.
Maintain daily open-access appointment slots and encourage same-day warm handoffs within PACT.
Complete most individual appointments, approximately 75%, within 30 minutes.
Use Measurement Based Care in accordance with nationally recommended PCMHI guidelines.
Conduct focused initial functional assessments addressing the main reason or reasons for referral, typically shorter than traditional mental health intake evaluations.
Support stepped-care principles by matching service intensity to clinical need and providing timely, targeted services to Veterans.
Refer Veterans with more severe or complex needs to appropriate general or specialty mental health programs.
Provide professional counseling and mental health services within the knowledge, theory, and training foundations of professional counseling.
Make professional evaluations, treatment decisions, and recommendations for treatment planning and implementation.
Provide consultation to colleagues and trainees on the counseling process and specialty areas.
Provide crisis intervention and stabilization to patients in psychological distress.
Establish goals and treatment collaboratively with patients using advanced counseling skills, evidence-based practices, screening, and psychosocial assessment.
Use individual, group, or family counseling interventions with cultural sensitivity and multicultural counseling skills.
Use the current DSM to make diagnoses, formulate treatment goals, and select appropriate clinical interventions.
Develop and facilitate psychotherapy and psychoeducation groups, potentially including life skills, family support, community integration, and evidence-based psychotherapy.
May provide clinical supervision to an unlicensed LPMHC or LPMHC trainee when permitted by applicable state licensing requirements.
May participate in program evaluation and/or research activities.