Senior Licensed Professional Mental Health Counselor (BHIP)

About the role

The position is open to all US Citizens and offers the Eligible for the Education Debt Reduction Program (EDRP), a student loan payment reimbursement program. Applicants will be referred in the following order: current, permanent employees of other federal agencies; all other applicants based on Veterans' Preference.

Responsibilities

• Complete thorough psychosocial assessments to determine the psychosocial functioning and needs of Veterans and/or their families.
• Participate as a member of a BHIP treatment team and actively participate through collaboration with Veterans and family as well as interdisciplinary treatment team members, including but not limited to Psychiatrists, Nurse Practitioners, Psychologists, LPMHCs, Social Workers, RNs, Peer Support Specialists, trainees and Administrative Support staff, in the development and implementation of a treatment plan.
• Facilitate discharge planning through collaboration with Veterans and their families as well as interdisciplinary treatment team members to ensure that appropriate discharge plans are executed in a timely manner.
• Serve as a liaison between Veterans and/or their families and VA and community resources in order to ensure thorough delivery of services.
• Provide consultation and education to Veterans and their families regarding community resources, VA benefits, specialty programs, and advanced directives. This includes the incumbent's 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.
• Provide consultation to other treatment team and staff members regarding psychosocial needs of Veterans and/or their families and the impact of the identified psychosocial problems on the Veteran's health care planning, compliance with treatment, and discharge planning.
• Provide case management services to Veterans and their families throughout the continuum of care.
• Provide emergency/crisis intervention services to outpatients experiencing acute psychological crises, helping to stabilize these individuals assisting in the referral arrangements for transfer to a psychiatric facility for inpatient care if necessary and providing follow up care as needed.

Requirements

• Licensed Professional Mental Health Counselor (LPMHC) with 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 CACREP-accredited program.
• Full, current, and unrestricted license to independently practice as a Licensed Professional Mental Health Counselor, which includes diagnosis and treatment.
• Proficient in written and spoken English.

Qualifications

• At least one year of progressively complex LPMHC experience equivalent to the GS-11 grade level.
• 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.

Skills

• Advanced knowledge of and mastery of theories and modalities used in the specialized treatment of complex mental illness.
• Advanced and expert skill in a range of specialized interventions and treatment modalities for Veterans with complex needs.
• 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.

Benefits

Eligible for the Education Debt Reduction Program (EDRP), a student loan payment reimbursement program. 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 (one to five years) are determined by the VHA Education Loan Repayment Services program office after review of EDRP application. Former EDRP participants ineligible to apply.

Pay

Grade Determinations: Senior Licensed Professional Mental Health Counselor, GS-12

Schedule

Work Schedule: 8am - 4:30pm Monday through Friday