Staff Psychologist (Spinal Cord Injury/Disorders Service)

Veterans Health Administration • Augusta, GA

12h • Onsite

About The Position

The Staff Psychologist is organizationally aligned with the Spinal Cord Injury/Disorders (SCI/D) Service at the VA Augusta Health Care System Medical Center in Augusta, Georgia. The SCI/D Center is one of 25 VA Medical Centers serving as regional hubs for Veterans with SCI/D. The psychologist works on an interdisciplinary team, independently diagnoses mental disorders, conducts assessments, and provides psychotherapy for diverse mental health conditions. The position may serve at GS-11 through GS-13; GS-13 is the full-performance level. Clinical duties make up 85–100% of assigned time at GS-13, with broader professional independence and consultation, supervision, teaching, research, and program responsibilities. The work schedule is 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. and may be changed based on agency needs. Recruitment/relocation incentives are authorized for highly qualified candidates; Permanent Change of Station (PCS) is not authorized.

Requirements

• U.S. citizenship, except that non-citizens may be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA policy.
• Doctoral degree in psychology from an APA-, PCSAS-, or CPA-accredited graduate program at the time of completion, with a specialty consistent with the assignment; alternatively, an eligible doctoral degree with a qualifying re-specialization program, or a qualifying 1951–1978 doctoral degree from a regionally accredited institution with a primarily psychological dissertation.
• Successful completion of a professional psychology internship meeting the applicable APA/CPA accreditation or other stated VHA, grandfathering, or board-certification criteria.
• Full, current, and unrestricted license to practice psychology at the doctoral level in a U.S. state, territory, commonwealth, or the District of Columbia.
• Proficiency in written and spoken English.
• GS-11: no experience beyond the basic requirements.
• GS-12: at least one year of professional psychologist experience equivalent to GS-11, plus the stated knowledge, skills, and abilities in psychological treatments and assessment, treatment strategy design and implementation, and applicable research activities.
• GS-13: at least two years of professional psychologist experience, including at least one year equivalent to GS-12, plus the stated knowledge, skills, and abilities in psychological treatments across patient populations, professional consultation, and clinical research literature.
• GS-12 research duties, when specified, require ability to perform basic scholarship and research execution within an established research team, including participant relations, documentation, data acquisition, maintenance, and collaboration.
• Meet applicable pre-employment conditions, including drug screening for testing-designated positions, background/security investigation, pre-employment physical examination, influenza vaccination program participation, onboarding and identification requirements, and any required application documentation.
• Males born after December 31, 1959, must meet Selective Service registration requirements.
• Serve a one- or two-year trial period, subject to written certification for continued employment.

Nice To Haves

• Experience working as an SCI/D psychologist on an interdisciplinary team, independently diagnosing mental disorders, conducting assessments, and providing psychotherapy for diverse mental health conditions.
• Highly qualified candidates may be considered for recruitment/relocation incentives.

Responsibilities

• Conduct comprehensive psychological assessments and formulate diagnostic impressions using standardized and clinically appropriate methods.
• Deliver evidence-based and evidence-informed psychotherapy for mental health, substance use, behavioral health, and psychosocial concerns within granted clinical privileges.
• Complete required clinical documentation and charting in accordance with healthcare system timelines, quality standards, and accreditation requirements.
• Provide clinical supervision to unlicensed staff and trainees, and guidance and education to assigned staff in psychological service delivery.
• Consult with other professional personnel regarding psychological services and treatment planning.
• Educate patients, patients' family members, professional staff, and trainees on mental health conditions and treatment approaches.
• Perform risk assessments for self-harm or harm to others and implement suicide prevention and crisis management procedures.
• Contribute to multidisciplinary medical and mental health teams in inpatient, outpatient, or specialty care settings.
• Participate in performance improvement and quality assurance activities relevant to psychological services and assigned clinical programs.
• Abide by ethical principles addressed by psychology licensing boards.
• Support and/or participate in scientific activity.
• May serve on internal and external committees.
• May have administrative responsibilities of limited scope and complexity.
• Diagnose mental disorders, conduct psychological assessments, treat mental disorders through a variety of modalities, and provide adjunctive interventions for medical disorders.
• May conduct research; at applicable grade levels, perform or support clinical research and scholarship activities.

Benefits

• Competitive salary and regular salary increases; a higher step rate may be considered based on higher or unique qualifications or VA needs.
• 37–50 days of annual paid time off per year, including 13–26 days of annual leave, 13 days of sick leave, and 11 paid Federal holidays.
• Eligible employees may receive 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, in connection with birth, adoption, or foster care placement.
• Eligible full-time employees may qualify for a childcare subsidy after 60 days of employment, subject to family-income and other eligibility limits.
• Traditional federal pension, with five-year vesting, and federal 401(k) with up to 5% in VA contributions.
• Federal health, vision, dental, term life, and long-term care insurance; many federal insurance programs can be carried into retirement.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Mid Level
• Education Level: Ph.D. or professional degree