Staff Psychologist - Geriatrics and Extended Care

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. Program 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.

Major duties

The Home-Based Primary Care (HBPC) Staff Psychologist provides psychological care to Veterans receiving care from the HBPC Team at the Richard L. Roudebush VAMC. In collaboration with the HBPC Team and requesting providers, this Staff Psychologist evaluates the Veteran's presenting clinical concerns and problems conceptualized within the biopsychosocial model and facilitates access to the resources that will best promote recovery from and management of the presenting concerns. Provide a full range of psychodiagnostics services including assessment, and using the most appropriate, evidence-based psychotherapeutic techniques and treatments in providing quality care for Veterans in their homes, enrolled in Home Based Primary Care. Participate in tele-mental health or similar activities in order to provide services for Veterans as clinically indicated Participates in interdisciplinary team dispositions of patients within the Home-Based Primary Care Team, and provides consultation services to HBPC staff on a wide variety of patient care issues. Provides ethical individual mental health services to eligible Veterans and their social supports. Assessment and referral services, design and preparation of diagnostic assessments, formulating and providing individual treatments and completing documentation in the electronic health record. The incumbent will operate independently in all areas, consulting with peers and supervisors when warranted. The incumbent will serve as a consultant to other medical center staff and trainees and assist in their formulation of the psychological characteristics and appropriate treatment expectations regarding their patients. The incumbent may need to work some early morning/evening hours and/or work variable tours of duty to accommodate needs of Veterans. Function as a fully integrated member of the HBPC Team Ability to diagnose mental disorders, conduct psychological and/or neuropsychological assessments, with special emphasis on, and awareness of the mental health, social, and medical need of individuals receiving Home Based Primary Care Ability to treat mental disorders through a variety of modalities and provide adjunctive interventions for treatment of medical disorders in Veterans and their families. Specialized knowledge and awareness of assessment and treatment for Geriatric Population and Home-Based Primary Care needs, is necessary The provision of mental health services via telehealth technologies Provides a full range of psychotherapeutic services including assessment and using the most appropriate psychotherapeutic techniques in providing quality care to Veterans and their families in their homes. Consults with medical center staff on a wide variety of patient care issues, but with specific emphasis on the identification, diagnosis and treatment of individuals receiving Home Based Primary Care, and the service needs of their family members Required to participate in Interdisciplinary Team Meetings Staff psychologists may be involved in program evaluation and/or research activities Work Schedule: Monday through Friday, 7:30 am to 4:00pm Functional Statement #: 93433-A EDRP Authorized: Former EDRP participants ineligible to apply for incentive. Contact VISN10HREDRPSLRP@va.gov , the EDRP Coordinator for questions/assistance. Learn more Telework: Not Eligible Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Recruitment Incentive: Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (Relocation Assistance): Not Authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Not required VA Careers - Psychologist: https://youtube.com/embed/77qHlLw9Xck Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional

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. (1) 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. For the purpose of meeting this requirement, the term "specialty area" refers to the specific specialty areas recognized by the accrediting body and not to specific job duties that might require special skills. Currently, APA accredits doctoral programs in the specialty areas of clinical psychology, counseling psychology, school psychology, or combinations of two or more of those areas. PCSAS accredits doctoral programs in psychological clinical science. CPA accredits doctoral programs in clinical psychology, counseling psychology, clinical neuropsychology, and school psychology. There are no job assignments in VHA that require the skills of a school psychologist; therefore, an applicant with a degree in the specialty area of school psychology is not eligible for appointment. Strictly for the purpose of determining eligibility for appointment as a psychologist in VHA, there is no distinction between the specialty areas (with the exception of school psychology). OR (2) Have a doctoral degree in any area of psychology and, in addition, successfully complete a re- specialization program (including documentation of an approved internship completed as part of the 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 the applicant is retrained must be consistent with the assignment for which the applicant is to be employed. OR (3) Have a doctoral degree awarded between 1951 and 1978 from a regionally-accredited institution, with a dissertation primarily psychological in nature. AND (4) Internships (a) 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 (b) 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 (c) 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 (d) 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 (e) 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. 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 ColumbiaEnglish 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.Staff Psychologist, GS-13:Experience. 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 KSAs: Knowledge of, and ability to apply, professional psychological treatments to the 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. Preferred Experience: Experience providing services to patients/caregivers in their homes. Experience with the Geriatric population. Experience working with Veterans with mental health concerns such as Anxiety, PTSD and Depression existing with medical co-morbidities. Experience working with an interdisciplinary team. Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/. The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-13. Physical Requirements: The physical demands of the position involve standard office requirements such as using the telephone, retrieving files, writing reports, data entry and maintenance of computer databases, etc. The position requires regular travel to Veterans' homes, including driving/operating a vehicle for extended periods and in varied weather and road conditions. The incumbent must be able to enter and navigate a variety of home environments, which may include stairs, uneven surfaces, and limited-access dwellings. The position may require long periods of continued driving, walking, standing, sitting, bending, pulling and carrying necessary equipment and supplies.The incumbent is an incidental operator who is required to operate a government owned or leased vehicle to properly care out his or her assigned duties. An ability to lift objects such as laptop cases, homecare bag and other homecare supplies in and out of vehicles and into homes is necessary.

Education

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/. * Transcript must be submitted with application.

Requirements

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. 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 identification 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). 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. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may consider: your performance and conduct; the needs and interests of the agency; whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service. Upon completion of your trial period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.