Social Worker

Social Worker

Department: Department of Veterans Affairs

Location(s): Livermore, California

Salary Range: $127943 - $166333 Per Year

Job Summary: This position is eligible for the Education Debt Reduction Program (EDRP), a student loan payment reimbursement program. You must meet specific individual eligibility requirements in accordance with VHA policy and submit your EDRP application within four months of appointment. Program Approval, award amount (up to $200,000) and eligibility period (one to five years) are determined by the VHA Education Loan Repayment Services program office after complete review of the EDRP application.

Major Duties:

• VA Careers - Social Work: https://youtube.com/embed/enRhz_ua_UU Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional The Caregiver Support Coordinator position requires advanced knowledge and understanding of the services and benefits available for caregivers from both federal, state and private sector resources. As an advanced practice level clinical social worker, the Coordinator is assigned to work independently with multiple VA healthcare services and with community agencies, leaders, and organizations where he/she has no access to direct social work clinical supervision. The Coordinator is responsible for developing and establishing linkages and collaborating on VA caregiver support efforts with community healthcare and social service agencies. The Coordinator is administratively responsible and accountable for the clinical and program development and effectiveness of the facility's General Caregiver Support Program. FUNCTIONS OR SCOPE OF ASSIGNED DUTIES INCLUDE, BUT ARE NOT LIMITED TO: The Caregiver Support Program Coordinator develops and implements the General Caregiver Support Program specific to his/her area of assignment and ensures compliance and collaboration with the local facility and the VA Central Office Caregiver Support Program initiatives. Coordinator is responsible for staying up to date on trainings, policy changes, guidelines, and deadlines from the facility, VISN, and national leadership. Manages a caseload of caregivers and veteran dyads in accordance with VACO and facility-level directed Field Guides, Directives, Standard Operating Procedures, and memorandums. Demonstrates expertise in the application of sophisticated knowledge and skill as a licensed social worker at the advanced practice level and displays a high degree of leadership, motivation, self-direction, and initiative in quality management activities. The Coordinator administers information and analytical systems to evaluate and enhance the quality of service provided to caregivers, families, and Veterans. Develops and implements information systems to track service activities, including visits, referrals, caregiver demographics, equipment utilization, and caregiver and Veteran satisfaction. Develops, implements, and evaluates clinical guidelines and protocols to establish appropriate utilization of services. Is broadly acquainted with clinical treatment modalities, administrative and clinical support systems, and is knowledgeable about the organization and multifaceted health care delivery systems (at National, VISN, and facility levels) and their relationship to clinical practice guideline development and implementation. The Coordinator participates in direct caregiver and Veteran communication to identify and assess caregiver stress/burden and the development and application of directed clinical treatment interventions. Licensure/Certification: Individuals assigned as social worker program coordinators must be licensed or certified at the advanced practice level, and must be able to provide supervision for licensure Driver's License: The incumbent of this position must possess an appropriate, valid CA driver's license to operate sanctioned vehicles in the transportation of patients and/or equipment. Other Duties as assigned Work Schedule: M-F 8:00 am - 4:30 pm or as determined by the supervisor. Compressed/Flexible: This may be authorized at the supervisor's discretion. EDRP Authorized: Former EDRP participants are ineligible to apply for the incentive. Contact v21ccoeedrp@va.gov, the EDRP Coordinator, for questions/assistance. Learn more Pay: Competitive salary and regular salary increases. When setting pay, a higher step rate of the appropriate grade may be determined after consideration of higher or unique qualifications or special needs of the VA (Above Minimum Rate of the Grade). Paid Time Off: 37-50 days of annual paid time offer per year (13-26 days of annual leave, 13 days of sick leave, 11 paid Federal holidays per year). Selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual, based on prior [work experience] or military service experience. Parental Leave: After 12 months of employment, up to 12 weeks of paid parental leave in connection with the birth, adoption, or foster care placement of a child. Child Care Subsidy: After 60 days of employment, full-time employees with a total family income below $144,000 may be eligible for a childcare subsidy up to 25% of total eligible childcare costs for eligible children up to the monthly maximum of $416.66. Retirement: Traditional federal pension (5 years vesting) and federal 401K with up to 5% in contributions by VA Insurance: Federal health/vision/dental/term life/long-term care (many federal insurance programs can be carried into retirement) Telework: This may be authorized at the supervisor's discretion. Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Functional Statement #: 09092-F

Qualifications: Applicants pending the completion of educational or certification/licensure requirements may be referred and tentatively selected but may not be hired until all requirements are met. Basic Requirements: The basic requirements for employment as a VHA social worker are prescribed by statute in 38 U.S.C. § 7402(b)(9), as amended by section 205 of Public Law 106-419, enacted November 1, 2000. To qualify for appointment as a social worker in VHA, all applicants must meet the following: United States Citizenship: Non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy. Education: Have a 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 a 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 Master of Social Work. Licensure: 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. Current state requirements may be found by going to http://vaww.va.gov/OHRM/T38Hybrid/. Failure to Obtain License or Certification: In all cases, social workers must actively pursue meeting state prerequisites for licensure or certification starting from the date of their appointment. Failure to become licensed or certified within the prescribed amount of time will result in removal from the GS-0185 social worker series and may result in termination of employment. Loss of Licensure or Certification: Once licensed or certified, social workers must maintain a full, valid, and unrestricted independent license or certification to remain qualified for employment. Loss of licensure or certification will result in removal from the GS-0185 social worker series and may result in termination of employment. May qualify based on being covered by the Grandfathering Provision as described in the VA Qualification Standard for this occupation (only applicable to current VHA employees who are in this occupation and meet the criteria). Grade Determinations: In addition to the basic requirements for employment, the following criteria must be met when determining the grade of candidates. Social Worker (Program Coordinator), GS-12 Experience and Education: One year of experience equivalent to the GS-11 grade level. Experience must demonstrate possession of advanced practice skills and judgment, demonstrating progressively more professional competency. Candidate may have certification or other post-master's degree training from a nationally recognized professional organization or university that includes a defined curriculum/course of study and internship, or equivalent supervised professional experience. Licensure/Certification: Individuals assigned as social worker program coordinators must be licensed or certified at the advanced practice level, and must be able to provide supervision for licensure. Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities: In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSAs: Knowledge of program coordination and administration, which includes consultation, negotiation, and monitoring. Knowledge and ability to write policies, procedures, and/or practice guidelines for the program. Ability to supervise multidisciplinary staff assigned to the program. Skill in organizing work, setting priorities, meeting multiple deadlines, and evaluating assigned program area(s). Ability to provide training, orientation, and guidance within clinical practice. Assignments: For all assignments above the full performance level, the higher-level duties must consist of significant scope, complexity (difficulty), and variety and be performed by the incumbent at least 25% of the time. Program coordinators at the GS12 grade level are administratively responsible for a clinical program providing treatment to Veterans in a major specialty area, such as but not limited to: Spinal Cord Injury, Homeless Continuum Veteran Program, Hospice and Palliative Care Program, Suicide Prevention Program, Veterans Justice Outreach, Caregiver Support Program, and Community Nursing Home Program. The program coordinator may be the sole practitioner in this specialty at the facility and typically provides direct patient care services in the program area. The program coordinator oversees the daily operation of the program, develops policies and procedures for program operation, and prepares reports and statistics for facility, VISN, and national use. They may be responsible for the program's budget, developing and monitoring staff compliance with practice, standards, and guidelines on documentation, workload, data entry, ethical practice, and service delivery. The program coordinator provides analysis and evaluation of clinical program data and computerized programs to identify system-wide trends and needs to enhance the quality of service. They may be responsible for, or contribute to, the program's resource and fiscal management, monitoring control points, developing the annual budget, operating within that budget, and accounting for appropriated funds. The program coordinator is administratively responsible for the clinical programming and prepares reports and statistics for facility, VISN, and national use. They provide leadership, direction, orientation, coaching, in-service training, staff development, and continuing education programs for assigned staff. They initiate and conduct a variety of programs or service audits and complete designated clinical practice audits and reports, including productivity assessments. They oversee program operations and evaluations, identifying areas for improvement, gathering relevant data, assessing the data, developing and implementing ideas for improvement, and evaluating the efficacy of improvement efforts. Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/. The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-12. The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is the GS-12. Physical Requirements: See VA Directive and Handbook 5019, Employee Occupational Health Services.

How to Apply: All applicants are encouraged to apply online. To apply for this position, you must complete the full questionnaire and submit the documentation specified in the Required Documents section below. The complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (ET) on 12/01/2025 to receive consideration. To preview the questionnaire click https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/12837346. To begin, click Apply Online to create a USAJOBS account or log in to your existing account. Follow the prompts to select your USA JOBS resume and/or other supporting documents and complete the occupational questionnaire. Click Submit My Answers to submit your application package. NOTE: It is your responsibility to ensure your responses and appropriate documentation is submitted prior to the closing date.

Application Deadline: 2025-12-01