Career Center

Summary

This Peer Specialist position may only be filled with a Veteran that meets statutory requirements that are detailed in the qualifications section.

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
• BASIC REQUIREMENTS FOR PEER SPECIALISTS: a
• Statutory Requirements
• Section 405 of Public Law 110-387 - as codified in 38 U.S.C. 7402(b)(13) - established that to be eligible to receive appointment to a Peer Specialist position - a person must: (1) be a veteran who has recovered or is recovering from a mental health condition
• and (2) be certified by - (a) a not-for-profit entity engaged in peer specialist training as having met such criteria as the Secretary shall establish for a peer specialist position
• or (b) a State as having satisfied relevant State requirements for a peer specialist position
• b
• Length of Experience as a Consumer of Mental Health Recovery Services
• Veterans eligible under 38 U.S.C. 7402(b)(13) must have spent a minimum of 1 year in personal recovery from a mental health condition
• NOTE: You MUST provide copies of your DD-214 - Drivers License and Peer Specialist Certification - with your application package
• Time-In-Grade Requirement: Applicants who are current Federal employees and have held a GS grade any time in the past 52 weeks must also meet time-in-grade requirements by the closing date of this announcement
• For a GS-06 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-05 level
• For a GS-07 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-06 level
• For a GS-08 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-07 level
• For a GS-09 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-08 level
• The grade may have been in any occupation - but must have been held in the Federal service
• An SF-50 that shows your time-in-grade eligibility must be submitted with your application materials
• If the most recent SF-50 has an effective date within the past year - it may not clearly demonstrate you possess one-year time-in-grade - as required by the announcement
• In this instance - you must provide an additional SF-50 that clearly demonstrates one-year time-in-grade
• Note: Time-In-Grade requirements also apply to former Federal employees applying for reinstatement as well as current employees applying for Veterans Employment Opportunities Act of 1998 (VEOA) appointment
• Specialized Experience for GS-07: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-06 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization
• Examples of specialized experience would typically include - but are not limited to: progressively responsible - post-personal mental health recovery experience as a mentor providing counseling to support peers in mental health and/or addiction recovery - a recovery advocate directly involved with consumers of mental health services - a psychiatric therapy aide - or equivalent work involving in-person communication to support others in mental health recovery
• At this level - routine work has been completed with minimal supervisory oversight and review - however close supervision will have been provided for complex and unusual tasks
• Specialized Experience for GS-08: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-07 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization
• Examples of specialized experience would typically include - but are not limited to: progressively responsible - post-personal mental health recovery experience as a mentor providing counseling to support peers in mental health and/or addiction recovery - a recovery advocate directly involved with consumers of mental health services - a psychiatric therapy aide - or equivalent work involving in-person communication to support others in mental health recovery
• At this level you have the ability to work with general instructions for the performance of routine duties and detailed instructions and/or training in performance of the non-routine functions and special assignments
• Non-routine/novel work will have been reviewed by spot checking and after completion to evaluate the adequacy of methods - procedures - results - ability to solve new and changing problems - etc
• Specialized Experience for GS-09: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-08 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization
• Examples of specialized experience would typically include - but are not limited to: progressively responsible - post-personal mental health recovery experience as a mentor providing counseling to support peers in mental health and/or addiction recovery - a recovery advocate directly involved with consumers of mental health services - a psychiatric therapy aide - or equivalent work involving in-person communication to support others in mental health recovery
• At this level work will have been performed with considerable independence and you are responsible for making recommendations to the interdisciplinary treatment team that can be relied on for soundness of judgment and maturity of insight on problem cases
• The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-9. The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is in the range of GS-6 to GS-9. Physical Requirements: The applicant must be able to perform primarily light and sedentary duties with occasionally moderate physical demands - exercise patience - and control emotions - with reasonable accommodation if necessary - without endangering the health and safety of the applicant or others
• (See also VA Directive and Handbook 5019.)

Duties

• The Peer Specialist functions as an interdisciplinary team member - assisting physicians and other professional/non-professional personnel in a rehabilitation treatment program
• Peer specialists perform a variety of therapeutic and supportive tasks that include assisting Veterans in articulating their goals for recovery and personal wellness - learning - and practicing new skills - helping them monitor their progress - assisting them in their treatment - modeling effective coping techniques and self-help strategies based on the peer specialist's own recovery experience - and supporting them in advocating for themselves to obtain effective services
• Duties include - but not limited to the following: Participates in the service - training - consultation - and other professional activities of VA health care services and functions as a fully vested member of the multidisciplinary team
• Uses personal recovery experiences to model coping techniques and recovery tolls to coach Veterans to relevant skills need for self-management of their health condition(s) and pursuit of their personal wellness
• Observes behaviors that might indicate difficulty adapting or responding to treatment (e.g. - missed assessment appointments - failure to attend or maintain abstinence - risk to self or others - disruptive behavior) - completes appropriate documentation - and reports concerns to the treatment team in a timely manner
• Uses ongoing individual and group meetings to teach Veterans how to identify and combat negative self-talk and overcome fears by providing a forum that allows Veteran to share their experiences
• As necessary - handles crisis interventions for Veterans and addresses other emergent situations without the benefit of specific instructions
• Informs Veterans about VA and community supports and resources - including how to effectively utilize them in the recovery and wellness process
• Maintains a working knowledge of current trends and developments in holistic approaches in wellness and recovery by reading books - journals - and other relevant materials
• Performs other related duties as assigned
• Work Schedule: Monday-Friday 8:00am-4:30pm Position Description/PD#: Peer Specialist/PD99702S Promotion Potential: This position involves a multi-grade career ladder
• The selectee may be promoted to the full performance level without further competition when all regulatory - qualification - and performance requirements are met
• Selection at a lower grade level does not guarantee promotion to the full performance level.