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. 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 Requirement: Per VA Handbook 5005, Part II, Chapter 3, Section A, Paragraph 3j: No person will be appointed under authority of 38 U.S.C., chapter 73 or 74, to serve in a direct patient-care capacity in VHA who is not proficient in written and spoken English. 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 respecialization program meeting both of the following conditions: a) the respecialization 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 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). OR 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. Grade Determinations: 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. In additional to meeting the basic requirements as stated above, you must have the following: GS-11 (Entry Level): No additional experience beyond the basic requirement GS-12 (Development Level): At least 1 full year of experience as a professional psychologist equivalent to the GS-11 level. 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. In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSAs: Knowledge of and ability to apply a wide range of professional psychological treatments or assessment methods to a variety 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. GS-13 (Full-Performance Level): At least two years of experience as a professional psychologist, with at least one year equivalent to the GS-12 grade level. In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate all of the followings KSAs: 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. *Experience is only creditable if it is post-doctoral degree experience as a professional psychologist directly related to the duties performed. Preferred Experience: Experience working with substance use disorders and dual diagnosis Experience working as part of an interdisciplinary team References: VA Regulations, specifically VA Handbook 5005/103, Part II, Appendix G18 Psychologist Qualification Standard dated February 7, 2018. This can be found in the local Human Resources Office. The 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: Patient care that includes such physical demands as light lifting (under 15 pounds), light carrying (under 15 pounds), reaching above the shoulder, use of fingers, both hands required, ability to distinguish basic colors, hearing (aid permitted), requires completion of Prevention and Management of Disruptive Behavior (PMDB), Basic Life Support (BLS), ability to read computer, documents etc.. ["The Mental Health Residential Rehabilitation Treatment Program (RRTP) Psychologist is aligned under the Chief, Mental Health RRTP (MHRRTP) under the Mental Health Product Line (MHPL). The core of the incumbent's duties is service delivery for substance abuse disorders and co-occurring mental health conditions in the MHRRTP setting, to include early identification of at-risk Veterans, relapse prevention, and management of cooccurring disorders whose exacerbation might contribute to relapse or problematic substance use. The Psychologist will provide specialized treatment to Veterans in the MHRRTP and is expected to be trained in and use evidenced based psychotherapies for the treatment of Substance Use Disorders (SUD) and co-occurring conditions such as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Substance Use Disorders (CBT-SUDS), Motivational Interviewing (MI), Motivational Enhancement Therapy (MET), and Contingency Management (CM), and COPE (Concurrent Treatment of PTSD and SUDS Using Prolonged Exposure). Providing urgent and emergency care to Veterans is expected of all staff members. Duties include, but are not limited to: Providing early identification and intervention for the full spectrum of mental health problems, chronic diseases, and health interfering behaviors related to SUDs; Collaborates with the other members of the interdisciplinary treatment team in the provision of comprehensive mental health services to Veterans, ensures equity of access, service, and benefits to this population and ensures the care provided is of the highest quality; Performs comprehensive suicide risk screenings and assessments and develops and integrates safety planning and safety goals into the Veteran's collaborative, individualized treatment plan; Develops and implements methods for measuring effectiveness of psychology practice and services in the specialty area, utilizing outcome evaluations to improve treatment services and coordinates the delivery of specialized psychosocial services and programs; Assisting with discharge planning and appropriately transitioning Veterans from the MHRRTP to a lower level of care as appropriate, and may provide some individual and education group therapy within the inpatient program regarding SUDs treatment options, SUDs diagnosis, and relapse prevention; Assisting with screening of Veterans requesting to transfer from the acute inpatient unit to community residential treatment facilities for treatment of SUDs and co-occurring disorders; Providing consultation and education to Veterans/support systems regarding community resources, VA benefits and specialty programs, and advance directives. This includes the incumbent maintaining knowledge of the process for accessing and/or coordinating community-based services, including information and referral for additional services from other VA programs, other government programs, and community programs. Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 8:00 am - 4:30 pm Telework: Not available Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Functional Statement #: 502-00267, 00268-F, 00269-F Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized EDRP Authorized: Contact Patricia Wilson, at Patricia.Wilson2@va.gov, the EDRP Coordinator for questions/assistance. Learn more Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Not required"]

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