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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 (1 to 5 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 The incumbent serves as an RCS Vet Center Senior Senior Licensed Professional Mental Health Counselor providing direct counseling services, outreach, referral, and follow-up care coordination to eligible individuals within a VSA and has experience and training that reflects an ability to provide expert clinical consultation to staff on complex psychosocial conditions and readjustment stress. The incumbent provides services to a broad range of Veterans, service members and family members with different military experiences, and from various socioeconomic, cultural, ethnic, educational and other diversified backgrounds. In this capacity the incumbent functions as a member of a small multi-disciplinary team, usually of 4 or more members inclusive of licensed professional counselors, other mental health professionals, outreach workers and office management staff, but provides clinical consultation to other clinicians. As the Vet Center Senior Licensed Professional Mental Health Counselor, the incumbent plays a core role in the coordination of client care and Vet Center staff professional development. Provide multiple modalities of direct service readjustment counseling, including individual, couple, group, and family. Within the context of family services, will also have established expertise in providing bereavement services to surviving family members of active-duty Service members killed while on active military duty. NOTE: This position can be recruited multi-disciplinary and can be filled by: Social Worker, Licensed Professional Mental Health Counselor, and Marriage & Family Therapist. Each discipline is announced separately, and applicants must apply to the announcement for which they are qualified. Functions and responsibilities include, but are not limited to: Screening and Assessment: Works directly with eligible individuals to establish a therapeutic relationship sufficient for completing all required readjustment counseling intake procedures to include an assessment of risk for self-harm and psychosocial stressors. Counseling Planning/Goal Setting: Based on the outcome of the intake, will develop and periodically update an individualized readjustment counseling service plan that reflects a course of therapeutic and psychosocial interventions, inclusive of outcome measurements. Direct Service Provision: Independently implement professional clinical practice applications in the provision of readjustment counseling to individuals, couples, families, and groups. Risk Assessment and Crisis Intervention: Above full performance, the individual provides consultation and associated support for staff developing crisis intervention strategies, which includes assessment, safety planning, and complex treatment planning using independent clinical judgment using family systems theory/therapy. Care coordination: Links the Veteran with other community services, resources, and opportunities to maximize the Veteran's independence, health, and well-being. Outreach: Acts as clinical consultant to the Vet Center outreach workers to improve their sensitivity to clinical indicators and basic interviewing questions to expedite the transition of prospective clients contacted on outreach to actual Vet Center readjustment counseling clients. Documentation/Administrative Responsibilities/Consultation: Actively participate in one-to-one clinical and administrative oversight during administrative and clinical staff meetings as directed by the Vet Center Director. Clinical Supervision, Consultation, Training, Review and Evaluation: provides clinical consultation services to other staff members with clinical service responsibilities under the supervision of the Vet Center Director. The scope of clinical consultation services will include all aspects of direct readjustment counseling service such as advising on the clinical assessment, service planning, and case coordination with community providers when the individual's needs are beyond the scope of services available at a Vet Center. Team cohesion and coordination: Actively participate in staff meetings designed to promote team building and staff development. Other Duties: May perform other duties as assigned as appropriate for the grade and assignment and which are within the scope of practice. Work Schedule: 0800-1630 Monday thru Friday some evenings and weekends possible, standard operational hours with occasional evenings based on operational need of the facility Compressed/Flexible: Not Available Telework: Not Available Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Functional Statement #: 822630 Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized EDRP Authorized: Former EDRP participants ineligible to apply for incentive. Contact [email protected] for questions or assistance., the EDRP Coordinator for questions/assistance. Learn more Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized PCS Appraised Value Offer (AVO): Not Authorized Requirements Conditions of Employment You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job. All applicants tentatively selected for VA employment in a testing designated position are subject to urinalysis to screen for illegal drug use prior to appointment. Applicants who refuse to be tested will be denied employment with VA. 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. Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements (https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/form-i-9-acceptable-documents). Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued dentification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment. Must pass pre-employment physical examination. Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP). Physical Requirements: The work does not inherently include physical requirements essential for successful job performance that could not otherwise be performed with a workplace accommodation. A pre-placement exam is not required.https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/. Qualifications BASIC REQUIREMENTS. The basic requirements for employment as a LPMHC are prescribed by statute in 38 U.S.C. §7402(b)(11). To qualify for appointment as a LPMHC all applicants must meet the following: 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.) Education: Candidates must meet one of the following: Hold a master's 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. English Language Proficiency: Senior LPHMCs must be proficient in spoken and written English in accordance with VA Handbook 5005, Part II, Chapter 3, Section A, paragraph 3j. Grade Determinations Senior Licensed Professional Mental Health Counselor, GS-12: In addition to the basic requirements for employment, the following criteria must be met when determining the grade of candidates. Experience, Education, and Licensure: In addition to the basic requirements, candidates must have: At least one year of progressively complex LPMHC experience equivalent to the GS-11 grade level. Senior LPMHCs must have five years of post-licensed experience that demonstrates possession of advanced practice skills and judgment, demonstrating progressive professional competency and expertise and be licensed to provide clinical supervision to trainees or unlicensed LPMHCs. ~AND~ Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills and Abilities (KSAs): In addition, candidates must demonstrate the KSAs below: Advanced knowledge of and mastery of theories and modalities used in the specialized treatment of complex mental illness. Ability to incorporate complex multiple causation in differential diagnosis and treatment of veteran patients, including making psychosocial and psychiatric diagnoses within approved clinical privileges or scope of practice. Ability to determine priority of services needed and provide specialized treatment. Advanced and expert skill in a range of specialized interventions and treatment modalities for Veterans with complex needs. This includes individual, group, and/or family counseling, or psychotherapy and advanced level psychosocial, and/or case management interventions used in the treatment of Veterans. Ability to coordinate the delivery of specialized psychosocial services and programs. Ability to design system changes based on data. Ability to provide subject matter consultation to colleagues and trainees on the psychosocial treatment of patients, rendering professional opinions based on experience, expertise and role modeling effective clinical skills. Ability to teach, mentor staff and trainees, and provide supervision for licensure or for specialty certifications. Ability to engage in written and oral communication with leadership/staff and community stakeholders regarding policies, procedures, practice guidelines, and issues pertaining to the practice of the profession. References: VA Qualifications Standards - Office of the Chief Human Capital Officer (OCHCO) The full performance level of the GS-0183 series is GS-11. This position is being filled at the GS-12 grade, above the full performance level. Education IMPORTANT: A transcript must be submitted with your application. 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. 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 applicant's 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.