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. 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. 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. Education Requirement: You must 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. OR, have a doctoral degree in any area of psychology and, in addition, successfully completed a 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 you were retrained is consistent with the assignment you are am applying for; OR, have a doctoral degree awarded between 1951 and 1978 from a regionally-accredited institution, with a dissertation primarily psychological in nature. Internship Requirement: You must 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, 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, 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, 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. (NOTE: Once board certified, the employee is required to maintain board certification). NOTE: Applicants who have a doctoral degree awarded between 1951 and 1978 from a regionally-accredited institution with a dissertation primarily psychological in nature may fulfill this internship requirement by having the equivalent of a one-year supervised internship experience in a site specifically acceptable to the candidate's doctoral program. If the internship experience is not noted on the applicant's official transcript, the applicant must provide a statement from the doctoral program verifying that the equivalent of a one-year supervised internship experience was completed in a site acceptable to the doctoral program. 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. Exception: Non-licensed applicants who otherwise meet the eligibility requirements may be given a temporary appointment as a "graduate psychologist" at the GS-11 or GS-12 grade under the authority of 38 U.S.C. 7405 (c)(2)(B) 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. 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. Grade Determinations: In addition to meeting the basic requirements as stated above, you must have the following: GS-11 Level: No additional experience beyond the basic requirement. GS-12 Level: At least one year of experience as a professional psychologist equivalent to the next lower grade level (GS-11). Psychologists who are not licensed must practice under the supervision of a licensed psychologist but with less intense supervision than at the GS-11 grade level. Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills and Abilities: In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSA's: 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. Ability to conduct research activities, such as designing and implementing clinical research projects (staff psychologists with specified research job duties). Ability to incorporate new clinical procedures. Ability to design and implement effective treatment strategies. Knowledge of and ability to apply a wide range of professional psychological treatments or assessment methods to a variety of patient populations. GS-13 Level: At least two years of experience as a professional psychologist, with at least one year equivalent to the GS-12 grade level. Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills and Abilities: In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSA's: Knowledge of, and ability to apply, professional psychological treatments to a 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: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/. Physical Requirements: Work is sedentary but also demands standing, walking, bending, twisting, and carrying light items. ["Duties include, but are not limited to: Providing psychological assessment services to a wide range of Veteran populations, across treatment settings, and for a broad range of psychiatric conditions, including cognitive impairment. Using measurement-based care in diagnostic decision making, treatment planning, and other decision making. Providing a full range of therapeutic interventions including a commitment to use evidence-based psychotherapies for a wide range of mental health disorders delivered via group and individual psychotherapy modalities, face to face, and via telemedicine equipment. Provides education to patients, family members, and significant others about psychological disorders and treatments Develops, implements, and documents the psychotherapeutic treatment plan that includes appropriate SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, and Timely) goals, including assessments for an assigned caseload of patients Provides comprehensive VA-approved evidence-based psychotherapeutic interventions, including individual, family, and group psychotherapy Consults with CBOC staff on a wide variety of patient care issues. Provides behavioral health services via Telehealth technologies, as appropriate. Conducts evidence-based assessments of treatment progress to inform treatment planning. Complies with national and local performance measures, including timely health care screening and completion of clinical reminders for all patients. Adheres to Psychology Service peer review procedures. Attends and participates in administrative and informational meetings held by the Chief of Psychology. Complies with all Computer Patient Record System (CPRS) documentation procedures, including timeliness standards for documentation and proper patient check out procedures (e.g., entering diagnostic and procedure codes). Adheres to operational policies and procedures for the treatment team, established by the Associate Chief of Staff for Behavioral Health Services. Work Schedule: Monday through Friday from 8:00 am- 4: 30pm Telework: After a period of orientation, possible part telework for highly qualified candidates. Functional Statement #: 000000 Psychologist (CBOC) Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Maybe authorized for highly qualified applicants Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Not required EDRP Contact: VHAVISN04HREDRP@va.gov"]
The Veterans Health Administration (VHA) is the largest integrated health care system in the United States, providing care at 1,321 health care facilities, including 172 VA Medical Centers and 1,138 outpatient sites of care of varying complexity (VHA outpatient clinics) to over 9 million Veterans enrolled in the VA health care program. VHA Medical Centers provide a wide range of services including traditional hospital-based services such as surgery, critical care, mental health, orthopedics, pharmacy, radiology and physical therapy. In addition, most of our medical centers offer additional medical and surgical specialty services including audiology & speech pathology, dermatology, dental, geriatrics, neurology, oncology, podiatry, prosthetics, urology, and vision care. Some medical centers also offer advanced services such as organ transplants and plastic surgery.
