Supervisory Licensed Professional Mental Health Counselor

Summary 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. Responsibilities Principle Duties and Responsibilities: Supervisory Responsibilities Directs and coordinates clinical and administrative operations for multiple programs within the Behavioral Health Service. Manages multiple mental health programs across multiple locations providing administrative and clinical supervision of all program staff. Assures that programs contribute to the delivery of health care services to mentally ill veterans, in alignment with VHA and facility mission and vision. Provides overall program development, implementation, and evaluation activities. Works with Coordinator for M2VA and Vocational Rehabilitation Services Program Director to ensure appropriate oversight and compliance with national directives and accrediting body standards. Provides support and guidance to these programs during surveying body site visits and helps to proactively prepare materials. Develops and assures the maintenance of professional and clinical standards for all assigned programs and personnel. Participates in program evaluation and other research related to program activities. Reports program data, as required, to facility leadership, North East Programs Evaluation Center, the VA Central Office, VISN20 and other reviewing agencies. Provides oversight to ensure timely documentation and reporting is completed. Directs each programs clinical activities. Provides administrative and clinical direction to program staff, including nurse and therapist care managers, supported employment specialists, peer specialists, and clerks within programs. Assigns work, giving consideration to relative difficulty and requirements of assignments. Evaluates work performance of supervisees and helps them adjust short term priorities, as needed. Interviews job candidates and recommends hiring, promotions, and other personnel actions. Counsels employees on work and administrative matters and hears complaints from or about employees, referring unresolved complaints to the Section Chief, Psychiatry or other appropriate sources. Fosters staff development, including making clinical and administrative training available to supervisees. Participates on and facilitates a variety of service-, facility- and VISN-level committees, task groups or special projects groups to assure compliance with agency directives and goals. Participates in community or field activities in a variety of situations to better coordinate care resources for veterans. Provides consultation for VAMC and community program staff regarding program interventions and resources, such as Veteran employment resources, and services for chronically mentally ill veteran population. Clinical Responsibilities Provides a full scope of direct patient care to Veterans within the facilitys Cross Continuum of Care Programs, working at an Advanced Practice Level. Applies their clinical expertise by providing consultation and guidance to colleagues regarding the most complex and challenging cases, role modeling effective clinical practice. Maintains licensure and clinical standards of practice as a licensed professional mental health counselor. Work Schedule: Monday-Friday, 8am-4:30pm Telework: Available, Ad-hoc Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Functional Statement #: 000000 Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized EDRP Authorized: Former EDRP participants ineligible to apply for incentive. Contact VHAEDRPProgramSupport@va.gov, the EDRP Coordinator for questions/assistance. Learn more Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized Requirements Conditions of Employment You 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. 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. 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 This position may also be filled by a Supervisory Social Worker, Internal Posting – USAJOBS – Job Announcement; External Posting – USAJOBS – Job Announcement To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements within 30 days of the closing date of this announcement. Basic Requirements: Citizenship. Be a citizen of the United States. (Non-citizens may be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Handbook 5005, Part II, Chapter 3, Section A, paragraph 3.g.). English Language Proficiency. LPMHCs must be proficient in spoken and written English in accordance with VA Handbook 5005, Part II, chapter 3, section A, paragraph 3.j. Education. Hold a masters or doctoral degree in: Clinical Mental Health Counseling; Clinical Rehabilitation Counseling; Clinical Mental Health Counseling and Clinical Rehabilitation Counseling; OR a related field, from a program accredited by the Council on Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP). Examples of related mental health counseling fields include, but are not limited to Addiction Counseling; Community Counseling; Gerontology Counseling; Marital, Couple, and Family Counseling. CACREP defines the date when graduates are considered to have graduated from a CACREP accredited program. Additional information may be obtained from http://www.cacrep.org/directory/. NOTE: Traditional Rehabilitation counseling programs that are accredited by CACREP do not meet the LPMHC qualification standards as Traditional Rehabilitation counseling differs from Clinical Rehabilitation counseling. Licensure. Persons hired or reassigned to LPMHC positions in the GS-0183 series in VHA must hold a full, current, and unrestricted license to independently practice as a Licensed Professional Mental Health Counselor, which includes diagnosis and treatment. 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: Supervisory Licensed Professional Mental Health Counselor, GS-12. (1) Experience, Education, and Licensure. In addition to the basic requirements, candidates must have at least one year of progressively complex experience equivalent to the GS-11 grade level. Experience must demonstrate possession of advanced practice skills, judgment, and competency. (2) Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (KSAs). In addition to meeting the KSAs for the GS-11 grade level, the candidate must demonstrate all of the KSAs below: (a) Ability to administratively supervise other providers and conduct meetings. (b) Ability to maintain a professional environment by following organizational policies, guidelines and safety standards. (c) Ability to establish and clearly communicate guidelines and performance expectations for staff. Preferred Experience: Federal supervisory experience; experience with veterans. 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. Physical Requirements: Light lifting (under 15 lbs.); Use of fingers; Ability to see computer screen; Hearing (aid may be permitted). Environmental factors include working closely with others and working alone. Education 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. During the application process you may have an option to opt-in to make your resume available to hiring managers in the agency who have similar positions. Opting in does not impact your application for this announcement, nor does it guarantee further consideration for additional positions. 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. Under the Fair Chance to Compete Act, the Department of Veterans Affairs prohibits requesting an applicants criminal history prior to accepting a tentative job offer. For more information about the Act and the complaint process, visit Human Resources and Administration/Operations, Security, and Preparedness (HRA/OSP) at The Fair Chance Act.