Senior Social Worker

Veterans Health Administration • Durham, NC

10d

About The Position

The Senior Social Worker provides specialized social work treatment to Veterans with complex physical or mental illnesses. The role involves incorporating multiple causes into differential diagnosis and treatment and making psychosocial and psychiatric diagnoses within approved clinical privileges or scope of practice. The position delivers individual, group, and family psychotherapy, as well as advanced case management, for Veterans with conditions including polytrauma, spinal cord injuries, traumatic brain injuries, visual impairment, post-traumatic stress disorder, addictions, and other serious disorders.

The Senior Social Worker develops and implements methods to measure the effectiveness of social work practice and services in specialty areas and uses outcome evaluations to improve treatment. The role provides consultation to colleagues and students, contributes subject-matter expertise to consult triage and treatment recommendations, and participates in interdisciplinary team staffing. The position completes clinical documentation to Health Care System standards, including psychosocial assessments, progress notes, Evidence Based Program templates, Measurement Based Care, and treatment plans, and trains new employees and trainees in documentation.

The role also teaches and mentors staff and students in the specialty area, provides supervision for licensure or specialty certifications, and works across VA programs to support continuity of care through consultation on clinical needs, treatment plans, and case management. The Senior Social Worker participates in training and staff development activities and takes a leadership role in communication with interdisciplinary and cross-team colleagues, collaborating closely with clinic or program directors. The work schedule is 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Telework is ad hoc; this is not a virtual position.

Requirements

• Master's degree in social work from a school fully accredited by the Council on Social Work Education; a doctoral degree cannot substitute for the master's degree.
• State licensure or certification to independently practice social work at the master's degree level, subject to applicable grandfathering provisions.
• Proficiency in spoken and written English.
• At least two years of experience post advanced practice clinical licensure in a specialized area of social work practice, including one year equivalent to the GS-11 grade level.
• Advanced-practice state licensure or certification, including an advanced generalist or clinical examination, subject to stated grandfathering provisions.
• Ability to provide supervision for licensure.
• Demonstrated skill in specialized interventions and treatment modalities, including individual, group, and/or family counseling or psychotherapy and advanced psychosocial or case management.
• Ability to incorporate complex multiple causation in differential diagnosis and treatment within approved clinical privileges or scope of practice.
• Knowledge of developing and implementing effectiveness-measurement methods and using outcome evaluations to improve treatment and design system changes.
• Ability to provide specialized consultation to colleagues and students and role model effective social work practice.
• Ability to expand clinical knowledge in social work and write policies, procedures, and/or practice guidelines for the service delivery area.
• U.S. citizenship, except where appointment of a non-citizen is permitted under VA policy.
• Males born after December 31, 1959 must be registered with Selective Service.
• Successful completion of a background/security investigation and required online onboarding.
• Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program.
• Completion of application requirements specified in the Required Documents section.
• Agree to serve a one- or two-year trial period, subject to evaluation and written certification for continued employment.

Nice To Haves

• Advanced experience with evidence-based psychotherapy protocols.
• VA provider status preferred.
• Certification or post-master's training from a nationally recognized professional organization or university, including a defined curriculum or course of study and internship or equivalent supervised professional experience in a specialty.

Responsibilities

• Provide specialized treatment to patients with complex physical or mental illness, incorporating multiple causation in differential diagnosis and treatment within approved clinical privileges or scope of practice.
• Make psychosocial and psychiatric diagnoses within approved clinical privileges or scope of practice.
• Provide individual, group, and family psychotherapy and advanced-level case management for Veterans with specialty-area conditions and serious disorders.
• Develop and implement methods to measure the effectiveness of social work practice and services in specialty areas, and use outcome evaluations to improve treatment services.
• Consult with colleagues and students on psychosocial treatment, provide professional opinions, and model effective social work practice skills.
• Participate in team staffing and consult triage, providing subject-matter expertise on treatment recommendations.
• Complete clinical documentation to Health Care System standards, including psychosocial assessments, progress notes, Evidence Based Program templates, Measurement Based Care, and treatment plans.
• Train new employees and trainees in clinical documentation.
• Teach and mentor staff and students in the specialty area and provide supervision for licensure or specialty certifications.
• Coordinate with VA programs across the Health Care System to support continuity of care through consultation on clinical needs, treatment plans, and case management services.
• Participate in training Social Workers, Peer Support Specialists, volunteers, and students, and in orientation, training, and staff development programs.
• Lead communication with the interdisciplinary team and across teams, working closely with clinic or program directors.

Benefits

• Education Debt Reduction Program (EDRP), subject to eligibility and approval, with an award of up to $200,000 and an eligibility period of one to five years.
• Federal employee benefits package; specific benefits depend on position type and eligibility.
• Potential credit toward annual leave accrual based on prior federal service or military service, subject to approval.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior