Social Worker - Housing And Urban Development And VA Supportive Housing

Social Worker

This position is located at Lebanon VA Medical Center in Lebanon, PA. The Social Worker will serve Veterans assigned to the Housing and Urban Development/VA Supportive Housing (HUD/VASH) Program and provides services within the community.

Responsibilities include:

• Assessing needs and providing case management for Veterans in the Healthcare for Homeless Veteran Program (HCHV).
• Assisting housing insecure Veterans in identifying permanent housing placements.
• Reviewing agreements between Section 8, landlords, Public Housing Authorities, and the VA in establishing appropriate referral sites for HUD-VASH placements.
• Performing site visits and assisting Veterans in securing HUD-VASH apartments to ensure that Veterans reside in safe environments in compliance with local housing codes.
• Verifying the Veteran's status, eligibility for VA medical care, and eligibility of program participation.
• Ensuring that homeless Veterans are considered as primary participants for program acceptance.
• Collecting and submitting HUD-VASH Program participant data as outlined by NEPEC evaluation procedures.
• Completing assessments, case management, and support in identifying permanent placement for housing insecure Veterans.
• Coordinating care including serving as an advocate on behalf of the Veterans to ensure comprehensive service delivery and linking and referring Veterans to the VA Medical Center, VA Regional Offices and/or community agencies.
• Following local policy and SOP for the HUD-VASH Program.
• Participating in program planning and development, advising the supervisor of shifting trends with caseloads and identifying the need for and making recommendations on program procedure or policy changes based upon work experiences.
• Taking responsibility for improving professional skills, participating in planning, and executing specific staff development projects, attending seminars and institutes, and participating in training programs of other disciplines as requested.
• Documenting all contacts with patients/families in the medical charts; completing statistical and other reports in accordance with VA Medical Center and respective professional discipline service policies.
• Working with VA Medical Center multi-disciplinary teams and community agencies to strive for developing more effective and efficient ways of delivering healthcare services to HUD-VASH Program Veterans.

Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional

Work Schedule: 8:00 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.

Recruitment Incentive (Sign-on Bonus): Not Authorized

Permanent Change of Station (Relocation Assistance): Not Authorized

Parental Leave: After 12 months of employment, up to 12 weeks of paid parental leave in connection with the birth, adoption, or foster care placement of a child.

Child Care Subsidy: After 60 days of employment, full time employees with a total family income below $144,000 may be eligible for a childcare subsidy up to 25% of total eligible childcare costs for eligible children up to the monthly maximum of $416.66.

Retirement: Traditional federal pension (5 years vesting) and federal 401K with up to 5% in contributions by VA

Insurance: Federal health/vision/dental/term life/long-term care (many federal insurance programs can be carried into retirement)

Telework: Not Authorized Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized

Requirements

Conditions of Employment:

You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job.

Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959.

Must be proficient in written and spoken English.

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.

Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued identification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.

Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP).

Complete all application requirements detailed in the "Required Documents" section of this announcement.

As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1 or 2-year trial period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest.

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.

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.

Licensure. Persons hired or reassigned to social worker positions in the GS-0185 series in VHA must be licensed or certified by a state to independently practice social work at the master's degree level.

Exception. VHA may waive the licensure or certification requirement for persons who are otherwise qualified, pending completion of state prerequisites for licensure/certification examinations. This exception only applies at the GS-9 grade level. For the GS-11 grade level and above, the candidate must be licensed or certified.

At the time of appointment, the supervisor, chief social work or social work executive will provide the unlicensed/uncertified social worker with the written requirements for licensure or certification, including the time by which the license or certification must be obtained and the consequences for not becoming licensed or certified by the deadline.

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).

English Language Proficiency. Candidates must be proficient in spoken and written English to be appointed as authorized by 38 U.S.C. § 7403(f).

Grade Determinations:

In addition to the basic requirements for employment, the following criteria must be met when determining the grade of candidates.

Social Worker, GS-9 Experience, Education, and Licensure. None beyond the basic requirements.

Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSAs:

Ability to utilize a Veteran centric approach when providing interventions and counseling for Veterans, their family members, caregivers, and survivors.

Ability to assess the psychosocial functioning and needs of Veterans and their family members, and to formulate and implement a treatment plan, identifying the Veterans problems, strengths, weaknesses, coping skills, and assistance needed.

Ability to implement treatment modalities in working with individuals, families, and groups to achieve treatment goals. This requires judgment and skill in utilizing supportive, problem solving, or crisis intervention techniques.

Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships and communicate with clients, staff, and representatives of community agencies.

Fundamental knowledge of medical and mental health diagnoses, disabilities, and treatment procedures. This includes acute, chronic, and traumatic illnesses/injuries; common medications and their effects/side effects; and medical terminology.

Social Worker, GS-11 Experience and Licensure. Appointment to the GS-11 grade level requires completion of a minimum of one year of post-MSW experience equivalent to the GS-9 grade level in the field of health care or other social work-related settings, (VA or non-VA experience) and licensure or certification in a state at the independent practice level. Or, Education. In addition to meeting basic requirements, a doctoral degree in social work from a school of social work may be substituted for the required one year of professional social work experience in a clinical setting.

Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. In addition to the experience above, candidates must demonstrate all of the following KSAs:

Knowledge of community resources, how to make appropriate referrals to community and other governmental agencies for services, and ability to coordinate services.

Skill in independently conducting psychosocial assessments and treatment interventions to a wide variety of individuals from various socio-economic, educational, and other backgrounds.

<