Social Worker-Behavioral Health Interdisciplinary Program (BHIP)

Veterans Health Administration•Winter Park, FL

5h•Onsite

About The Position

This position is eligible for the Education Debt Reduction Program (EDRP), a student loan payment reimbursement program. You must meet specific eligibility requirements per VHA policy and submit your EDRP application within four months of appointment. Program Approval, award amount (up to $200,000) & eligibility period (one to five years) are determined by the VHA Education Loan Repayment Services program office after review of the EDRP application. Former EDRP participants ineligible to apply. The BHIP Social Worker interviews Veterans and their family members/significant others to establish facts about the Veteran's situation, presenting problems and their causes, and the impact of such problems on the Veteran's functioning and health as part of a comprehensive psychosocial assessment. Interprets and explains VA's treatment and benefit programs. Duties and responsibilities include, but are not limited to: The incumbent reviews all data, subjective and objective, and makes a clinical assessment identifying needs and strengths. Effectively uses professional skill, objectivity, and insight. Uses advanced clinical training, insight, and experience to interpret data and to identify viable treatment options. Assesses high risk factors, acuity, and need for services. The incumbent has the ability to serve Veterans who tend to have frequent and severe crises, lack family or an adequate community support network, be poor at self-monitoring, and frequently fail to comply with instructions and treatment, or have significant deficits in coping skills and require continuing professional psychosocial support. The incumbent provides referral to VA medical and mental health treatment and to other VA services including VA benefits, as well as community-based social services and other non-VA entitlement programs.

Requirements

Must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job.
Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959.
Must be proficient in written and spoken English.
Subject to background/security investigation.
Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process.
Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements.
Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued identification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.
Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP).
Complete all application requirements detailed in the "Required Documents" section of this announcement.
Must serve a 1 or 2-year trial period.
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.
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.
For appointments at the GS-9 grade level, VHA social workers who are not licensed or certified at the time of appointment must become licensed or certified at the independent, master's level within three years of their appointment as a social worker.
For the GS-11 grade level and above, the candidate must be licensed or certified.
Appointment to the GS-11 grade level requires completion of a minimum of one (1) year of post-MSW experience equivalent to the GS-9 grade level in the field of health care or other social work-related settings, (VA or non-VA experience) and licensure or certification in a state at the independent practice level.
A doctoral degree in social work from a school of social work may be substituted for the required one (1) year of professional social work experience in a clinical setting.

Nice To Haves

VA BHIP experience
Evidence-based psychotherapy

Responsibilities

Interviews Veterans and their family members/significant others to establish facts about the Veteran's situation, presenting problems and their causes, and the impact of such problems on the Veteran's functioning and health as part of a comprehensive psychosocial assessment.
Interprets and explains VA's treatment and benefit programs.
Reviews all data, subjective and objective, and makes a clinical assessment identifying needs and strengths.
Uses advanced clinical training, insight, and experience to interpret data and to identify viable treatment options.
Assesses high risk factors, acuity, and need for services.
Serves Veterans who tend to have frequent and severe crises, lack family or an adequate community support network, be poor at self-monitoring, and frequently fail to comply with instructions and treatment, or have significant deficits in coping skills and require continuing professional psychosocial support.
Provides referral to VA medical and mental health treatment and to other VA services including VA benefits, as well as community-based social services and other non-VA entitlement programs.
Utilizes a Veteran centric approach when providing interventions and counseling for Veterans, their family members, caregivers, and survivors.
Assesses the psychosocial functioning and needs of Veterans and their family members, and to formulate and implement a treatment plan, identifying the Veterans problems, strengths, weaknesses, coping skills, and assistance needed.
Implements treatment modalities in working with individuals, families, and groups to achieve treatment goals, utilizing supportive, problem solving, or crisis intervention techniques.
Establishes and maintains effective working relationships and communicates with clients, staff, and representatives of community agencies.
Applies fundamental knowledge of medical and mental health diagnoses, disabilities, and treatment procedures, including acute, chronic, and traumatic illnesses/injuries; common medications and their effects/side effects; and medical terminology.
Conducts psychosocial assessments and treatment interventions to a wide variety of individuals from various socio-economic, cultural, ethnic, educational and other diversified backgrounds.
Implements different treatment modalities in working with individuals, families, and groups who are experiencing a variety of psychiatric, medical, and social problems to achieve treatment goals.
Provides consultation services to new social workers, social work graduate students, and other staff about the psychosocial needs of patients and the impact of psychosocial problems on health care and compliance with treatment.