Senior Social Worker - Community Based Outpatient Clinic

01Basic 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 chapter 3, section A, paragraph 3g this part). English Language Proficiency. Candidates must be proficient in spoken and written English to be appointed as authorized by 38 U.S.C. 7403(f). 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 the 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 masters of social work. (COPY OF TRANSCRIPT WITH CONFERRED DATE REQUIRED) Licensure/Certification.

Senior social workers must be licensed or certified by a state at the advanced practice level which included an advanced generalist or clinical examination, unless they are grandfathered by the state in which they are licensed to practice at the advanced practice level (except for licenses issued in California, which administers its own clinical examination for advanced practice) and they must be able to provide supervision for licensure. (COPY OF ADVANCE PRACTICE LICENSE REQUIRED FOR GS-12) 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).

02Grade Determinations

Senior Social Worker, GS-12 Experience/Education. The candidate must have at least two years of experience post advanced practice clinical licensure and should be in a specialized area of social work practice of which, one year must be equivalent to the GS-11 grade level. Senior social workers have experience that demonstrates possession of advanced practice skills and judgment. Senior social workers are experts in their specialized area of practice.

Senior social workers may have certification or other post-masters training from a nationally recognized professional organization or university that includes a defined curriculum/course of study and internship or equivalent supervised professional experience in a specialty. Licensure/Certification.

Senior social workers must be licensed or certified by a state at the advanced practice level which included an advanced generalist or clinical examination, unless they are grandfathered by the state in which they are licensed to practice at the advanced practice level (except for licenses issued in California, which administers its own clinical examination for advanced practice) and they must be able to provide supervision for licensure. Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (KSAs).

In addition to the experience above, candidates must demonstrate all of the following KSAs: (a) Skill in a range of specialized interventions and treatment modalities used in specialty treatment programs or with special patient populations.

This includes individual, group, and/or family counseling or psychotherapy and advanced level psychosocial and/or case management. (b) Ability to incorporate complex multiple causation in differential diagnosis and treatment within approved clinical privileges or scope of practice. (c) Knowledge in developing and implementing methods for measuring effectiveness of social work practice and services in the specialty area, utilizing outcome evaluations to improve treatment services and to design system changes. (d) Ability to provide specialized consultation to colleagues and students on the psychosocial treatment of patients in the service delivery area, as well as role modeling effective social work practice skills. (e) Ability to expand clinical knowledge in the social work profession, and to write policies, procedures, and/or practice guidelines pertaining to the service delivery area.

References: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://department.va.gov/employees/va-qualifications-standards/. The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-12.

03Physical Requirements

There are no physical requirements for this occupation per OCHCO Communications email to VA Handbook 5019, updated on 4/17/2026.

Conduct psychosocial assessments to determine needs of veterans and family members. Active participant in the treatment planning process with other disciplines. Participate in discharge planning with other disciplines and will be responsible for ensuring that discharge plans are executed in a manner that is timely and appropriate. Provide individual, family and group counseling as appropriate. Provide consultation/education to veterans and families on community resources, advance directives and VA benefits.

Act as a consultant to other team/staff members. Provide consultation/education to medical teams and providers on social work practice and VA policy and procedures. Act as liaison between VA and community resources, to include marketing and public relation duties as needed. Provide case management to veterans and families, as needed, throughout the continuum of care.

Provide a full range of social work services within commonly accepted standards of social work practice which includes case work, individual, family and group counseling, discharge planning, case management and other services as appropriate. Address issues such as Advance Directives and organ donation in accordance with the standards of their work area. Provide wellness/prevention education and facilitate patient/family support groups as appropriate.

As appropriate, supervise the practice of social work students, or be a lead and mentor for less experienced social workers. Coordinate treatment and communicate with the care lines to facilitate continuity of care for veterans. Participate in committee assignments, as deemed necessary by the service manager. Maintain data and statistical compilations to comply with JCAHO, VA and medical center policies and procedures.

Assist patients and their significant others with coping and dealing with loss and grief experiences in disability, terminal illness and death. Document social work interventions and activities which will include in patient's clinical record utilizing CPRS and/or Report of Contacts. The incumbent will ensure appropriate hand off when the Veteran is transferring care. Work independently with Veterans and their caregivers in a community setting.

Perform other duties as assigned Work Schedule: Monday-Friday 8:00am-4:30pm Compressed/Flexible: May be authorized Telework: Available, Ad-Hoc Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Functional Statement #: 000000 Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized