Social Worker- (Clinical Assessor)

Veterans Health Administration • Ann Arbor, MI

10d • Onsite

About The Position

The Clinical Assessor works within the Caregiver Support Program to assess Veterans’ needs for personal care services, including help with activities of daily living, supervision, protection, or instruction. The position conducts initial and reassessment home visits for the Program of Comprehensive Assistance for Family Caregivers, participates in eligibility determinations, and completes wellness contacts with assigned Veterans and caregivers through face-to-face, virtual, telephone, or in-home visits. At least one wellness contact per year must occur in the home.

The Clinical Assessor supports daily program operations, maintains and uses data-monitoring systems, and helps collect and analyze information for program reports and evaluation. The position collaborates with interdisciplinary teams and program staff, provides clinical consultation and caregiver support, develops and delivers education and training, and facilitates caregiver support groups and educational programs. Clinical interventions may address caregiver stress, psychiatric illness, emotional distress, and social needs. The position is on site, with a Monday–Friday schedule from 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., and may involve community travel for home visits and meetings with partner agencies.

Requirements

• Master’s degree in social work from a school fully accredited by the Council on Social Work Education.
• State licensure or certification to independently practice social work at the master’s degree level.
• Proficiency in spoken and written English.
• Current, valid state-issued driver’s license.
• At least two years of experience after advanced-practice clinical licensure, including one year equivalent to the GS-11 level.
• Advanced-practice state licensure or certification, including an advanced generalist or clinical examination, subject to the stated grandfathering provisions.
• Skill in specialized interventions and treatment modalities, including individual, group, or family counseling or psychotherapy and advanced psychosocial or case management.
• Ability to incorporate multiple causes into differential diagnosis and treatment within approved clinical privileges or scope of practice.
• Knowledge of methods for measuring social-work practice effectiveness and using outcome evaluations to improve services and design system changes.
• Ability to provide specialized consultation and role-model effective social-work practice for colleagues and students.
• Ability to expand clinical knowledge and write policies, procedures, or practice guidelines.
• U.S. citizenship, except where appointment of a non-citizen is permitted under VA policy.
• Must meet applicable Selective Service registration requirements.
• Must complete a background/security investigation, onboarding requirements, and a pre-employment physical examination.
• Must participate in the seasonal influenza vaccination program.
• Must serve a two-year trial period.

Nice To Haves

• Certification or post-master’s training from a nationally recognized professional organization or university in a specialty area, including a defined curriculum and internship or equivalent supervised professional experience.

Responsibilities

• Assess Veterans’ needs for personal care services, including activities of daily living, supervision, protection, or instruction.
• Work with Caregiver Support Program Coordinators and designees to complete functional assessments and reassessments.
• Assist program staff with clinical services, documentation, and collection and monitoring of data about program operations and outcomes.
• Conduct initial home assessments for applications and reassessments for the Program of Comprehensive Assistance for Family Caregivers.
• Assist Centralized Eligibility and Appeal Teams in determining eligibility.
• Conduct wellness contacts with assigned Veterans and caregivers face-to-face, virtually, by phone, or at home; conduct at least one home contact per year.
• Support day-to-day Caregiver Support Program operations and ensure collaboration with local facilities and VA Central Office initiatives.
• Assess Veteran and caregiver functioning and personal-care needs, and develop and apply clinical treatment interventions as needed.
• Maintain and use data-monitoring systems; collect and analyze local data for reports to management, program teams, and relevant VA offices.
• Evaluate program progress and outcomes and use data to improve the program, processes, and standardized assessment practices.
• Advise and collaborate with interdisciplinary teams on caregiver issues.
• Create educational tools, develop programs, and implement training focused on caregiver needs.
• Provide education and in-service training to VA medical center employees, Veterans, families, and caregivers.
• Provide consultation and support to colleagues regarding caregiver support.
• Develop and facilitate caregiver support groups and educational programs, in person or virtually.
• Conduct clinical interventions with Veterans, caregivers, and families to identify caregiver stress, psychiatric illness, emotional distress, and social needs.

Benefits

• Education Debt Reduction Program student-loan reimbursement, subject to individual eligibility and program approval, up to $200,000.
• Competitive salary and regular salary increases.
• 37–50 days of annual paid time off per year, including annual leave, sick leave, and 11 federal holidays.
• Potential credit toward annual leave accrual based on prior work or military service, subject to approval.
• Up to 12 weeks of paid parental leave after 12 months of employment.
• Potential childcare subsidy for eligible full-time employees after 60 days of employment.
• Traditional federal pension with five-year vesting and federal 401(k), with VA contributions up to 5%.
• Federal health, vision, dental, term life, and long-term care insurance.

What This Job Offers

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