Summary The incumbent will participate in a full range of psychotherapeutic diagnostic and training activities under the supervision of the Chief of Psychology and is responsible for the provision of mental health and substance use disorder services. The majority of the time will be providing integrated care to patients primarily referred by the Primary Care Service and/or some time spent in the Mental Health Outpatient Clinic. Responsibilities Duties to include at all GS levels but not limited to the following: Apply a wide range of professional psychological theories, evidence based therapies and assessment methods to a variety of patient populations. The should have specific knowledge and experience treating clients with substance use disorders. Provide a full range of evidence based therapeutic interventions in group and individual formats with an emphasis on integrated care. Develop comprehensive treatment plans. The psychologist has knowledge of the recovery model, and integrates it in the treatment of Veterans experiencing mental illness. Develop and document clear treatment goals that are thorough, include measurement based care, based in recovery, and utilize symptoms severity and intensity to inform treatment frequency. Develops and implements clinical procedures that balance clinical demand and therapeutic resources, resulting in successful meeting of performance measures and strives to continually improve clinical systems. They are responsible for timely completion of all clinical record keeping and documentation required by the Behavioral Health Service and Medical Center, as appropriate. Performs evaluations of Veterans with a variety of psychological, mood, substance abuse and personality disorders. The assessment is integrated it into an overall plan of care in collaboration with the interdisciplinary treatment team, the Veteran, family members and significant others, whenever possible. The goal of the assessment is to determine the Veteran's treatment needs to address presenting symptoms and to highlight the Veteran's strengths, limitations, and internal/external supports and service needs in order to optimize the effectiveness of these treatments. The assessment requires a structured diagnostic evaluation and integration of patient self-reported symptoms on relevant clinical measures. It is the responsibility of the incumbent, working within the interdisciplinary treatment team, to develop a treatment plan with the Veteran based on this assessment. Incumbent possesses the advanced practice skills to independently make a clinical mental health diagnosis and offer psychosocial interventions, and then measures outcomes to interventions. Evaluations are completed in a comprehensive and timely manner. Consults with medical center staff on a wide variety of patient care issues, especially related to substance use disorder. They serve as a consultant to other medical center staff as requested and assists in their formulation of the psychological characteristics and appropriate treatment expectations regarding their patients. The incumbent may provide clinical supervision to various disciplines and levels of training, including trainees seeking licensure in psychology. They may be involved in training of medical students, medical and psychiatric residents, and other graduate and postgraduate trainees, as appropriate. Act as an advocate when it serves the best interest of the Veteran/family. When appropriate and feasible, psychologist will educate and encourage the Veteran/family to advocate on own behalf, thus fostering a sense of independence and empowerment. Experienced in making rapid assessments and developing crisis management plans for admission to mental health inpatient programs when needed. The psychologist has access to multiple resource directories in addition to previously developed resources to meet the demands of a crisis. Work Schedule: Monday - Friday 8:00 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Functional Statement #: 000000 Financial Disclosure Report: Not required Requirements Conditions of Employment You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job. All applicants tentatively selected for VA employment in a testing designated position are subject to urinalysis to screen for illegal drug use prior to appointment. Applicants who refuse to be tested will be denied employment with VA. Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959. Must be proficient in written and spoken English. You may be required to serve a probationary period. Subject to background/security investigation. Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Must pass pre-employment physical examination. Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP). Participation in the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccination program is a requirement for all Veterans Health Administration Health Care Personnel (HCP) - See "Additional Information" below for details. 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: United States Citizenship: Non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy. English Language Proficiency. Psychologists must be proficient in spoken and written English in accordance with VA Handbook 5005, Part II, Chapter 3, section A, paragraph 3j. Education: Have a doctoral degree in psychology from a graduate program in psychology accredited by the American Psychological Association (APA), the Psychological Clinical Science Accreditation System (PCSAS), or the Canadian Psychological Association (CPA) at the time the program was completed. The specialty area of the degree must be consistent with the assignment for which the applicant is to be employed. For the purpose of meeting this requirement, the term "specialty area" refers to the specific specialty areas recognized by the accrediting body and not to specific job duties that might require special skills. Currently, APA accredits doctoral programs in the specialty areas of clinical psychology, counseling psychology, school psychology, or combinations of two or more of those areas. PCSAS accredits doctoral programs in psychological clinical science. CPA accredits doctoral programs in clinical psychology, counseling psychology, clinical neuropsychology, and school psychology. There are no job assignments in VHA that require the skills of a school psychologist; therefore, an applicant with a degree in the specialty area of school psychology is not eligible for appointment. Strictly for the purpose of determining eligibility for appointment as a psychologist in VHA, there is no distinction between the specialty areas (with the exception of school psychology). OR, Doctoral degree in any area of psychology and, in addition, successfully complete a re specialization program (including documentation of an approved internship completed as part of the re specialization program) meeting both of the following conditions: (a) The re-specialization program must be completed in an APA or a CPA accredited doctoral program; and, (b) the specialty in which the applicant is retrained must be consistent with the assignment for which the applicant is to be employed. OR, Doctoral degree awarded between 1951 and 1978 from a regionally-accredited institution, with a dissertation primarily psychological in nature. AND, Internships ((a) Have successfully completed a professional psychology internship training program that was accredited by APA or CPA at the time the program was completed and that is consistent with the assignment for which the applicant is to be employed. OR (b) New VHA psychology internship programs that are in the process of applying for APA accreditation are acceptable in fulfillment of the internship requirement, provided that such programs were sanctioned by the VHA Central Office Program Director for Psychology and the VHA Office of Academic Affiliations at the time that the individual was an intern; OR, (c) VHA facilities that offered full-time, one-year pre-doctoral internships prior to PL 96-151 (pre 1979) are considered to be acceptable in fulfillment of the internship requirement; OR, (d) Applicants who completed an internship that was not accredited by APA or CPA at the time the program was completed may be considered eligible for hire only if they are currently board certified by the American Board of Professional Psychology in a specialty area that is consistent with the assignment for which the applicant is to be employed.) Licensure: Candidates must hold a full, current, and unrestricted license to practice psychology at the doctoral level in a State, Territory or Commonwealth of the United States, or the District of Columbia. Licensure*. Candidates must hold a full, current, and unrestricted license to practice psychology at the doctoral level in a State, Territory or Commonwealth of the United States, or the District of Columbia. NOTE: At the GS-11 and GS-12 levels non-licensed applicants who otherwise meet the eligibility requirements may be given a temporary appointment as a "graduate psychologist" for a period not to exceed two years from the date of employment on the condition that such a psychologist provide care only under the supervision of a psychologist who is licensed. Failure to obtain licensure during that period is justification for termination of the temporary appointment. *Exception. Non-licensed applicants who other wise meet the eligibility requirements, may be given a temporary not-to-exceed 2 year appointment as a graduate psychologist at the GS-11 or GS-12 grade under the authority 38 U.S.C 7405(a)(1)(D) from the date of employment under the condition that such a psychologist provide care only under the supervision of a psychologist who is license. Failure to obtain licensure during that period is justification for termination of the temporary appointment. 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: Staff Psychologist GS-11 (Entry Level)Experience. None beyond the basic requirements. Creditable Experience at this level includes: Creditable Experience: Current Professional Psychology Practice. To be creditable, psychological work experience can be obtained through paid or non-paid employment providing psychological work or through participating in a supervised postdoctoral psychology training program (i.e., fellowship or residency). Psychological work experience must have occurred after the doctoral degree was obtained and must have required the use of knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics associated with current professional psychology practice. "Professional psychology practice" includes but is not limited to the following psychology-oriented job duties: providing professional clinical services, conducting research, carrying out education and training activities, carrying out program evaluation activities, clinical consultation, supervision and administration Or, Quality of Experience. Experience is only creditable if it is post-doctoral experience as a professional psychologist directly related to the duties to be performed. Qualifying experience must also be at a level comparable to or exceeding professional psychology experience at the next lower level. Or, Part-time Experience. Part-time experience is creditable according to its relationship to a fulltime workweek. For example, a psychologist employed 20 hours per week, or on a half time basis, would receive one full-time workweek of credit for each two weeks of service. Or, Post-Doctoral Degree Fellowships. Postdoctoral fellowships or residencies are training programs in an advanced area of clinical practice. Training as a fellow or resident is considered to be creditable experience on a year-for-year basis. Staff Psychologist GS-12 (Developmental Level)Experience: At least one year of experience as a professional psychologist equivalent to the next lower grade level GS-11. Examples of the specialized experience are: Diagnose mental disorders. Conduct psychological or neuropsychological assessments. Treat mental disorders through a variety of modalities. Provide adjunctive interventions for treatment of medical disorders, and may conduct research. And Education (continued from above) Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. In addition to the grade level experience above, the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSAs: Knowledge of, and ability to apply, professional psychological treatments to a full range of patient populations. Ability to design and implement effective treatment strategies. Ability to incorporate new clinical procedures Ability to conduct research activities, such as designing and implementing clinical research projects (staff psychologists with specified research job duties). Ability to perform basic research tasks of scholarship and research execution within the context of an established research team, including research participant relations, research documentation, data acquisition, maintenance, and collaboration. Additional Grade requirements are continued in the Education section below. Staff Psychologist, GS-13 (Full Performance, Level) Applicants must have at least two years of experience as a professional psychologist, with at least one year equivalent to the GS-12 grade level. Examples of specialized experience include: Diagnose mental disorders. Conduct psychological or neuropsychological assessments. Treat mental disorders through a variety of modalities. Provide adjunctive interventions for treatment of medical disorders, and may conduct research. They may be assigned to any program area. And Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. In addition to the specialized experience above, the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSAs: Knowledge of, and ability to apply, professional psychological treatments to the full range of patient populations. Ability to provide professional advice and consultation in areas related to professional psychology and behavioral health. Knowledge of clinical research literature. References: VA Handbook 5005The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-13. The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is in the range of GS-11 to GS-13. Physical Requirements: See VA Directive and Handbook 5019. IMPORTANT: A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education. Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/. If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/. Additional Information Receiving Service Credit or Earning Annual (Vacation) Leave: Federal Employees earn annual leave at a rate (4, 6 or 8 hours per pay period) which is based on the number of years they have served as a Federal employee. Selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual, based on prior work experience or military service experience. This credited service can be used in determining the rate at which they earn annual leave. Such credit must be requested and approved prior to the appointment date and is not guaranteed. This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies. This position is in the Excepted Service and does not confer competitive status. VA encourages persons with disabilities to apply. The health-related positions in VA are covered by Title 38, and are not covered by the Schedule A excepted appointment authority. Pursuant to VHA Directive 1193.01, VHA health care personnel (HCP) are required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 subject to such accommodations as required by law (i.e., medical, religious or pregnancy). VHA HCPs do not include remote workers who only infrequently enter VHA locations. If selected, you will be required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and submit documentation of proof of vaccination before your start date. The agency will provide additional information regarding what information or documentation will be needed and how you can request a legally required accommodation from this requirement using the reasonable accommodation process. If you are unable to apply online or need an alternate method to submit documents, please reach out to the Agency Contact listed in this Job Opportunity Announcement.