Staff Psychologist - Honor Annex VA Clinic

Qualifications

• Must possess one of the following:
  • 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.
  • 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:
  • The re-specialization program must be completed in an APA or CPA accredited doctoral program.
  • The specialty in which the applicant is retrained must be consistent with the assignment for which the applicant is to be employed.
  • A doctoral degree awarded between 1951 and 1978 from a regionally-accredited institution - with a dissertation primarily psychological in nature AND Internships
  • Successfully complete 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.
  • 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.
  • 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.
  • 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.
  • 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.

Basic Requirements

• Must be proficient in both spoken and written English.
• 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).
• Internships must be completed in an APA or CPA accredited doctoral program.
• The specialty in which the applicant is retrained must be consistent with the assignment for which the applicant is to be employed.
• 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.
• 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).

Preferred Experience

• Experience in Health Psychology.
• Experience with complementary integrative health offerings such as biofeedback - guided imagery - mindfulness - and clinical hypnosis.
• Experience with sleep hygiene.

Skills

• 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.

Benefits

• Competitive salary and regular salary increases.
• 37-50 days of annual paid time off per year.
• Up to 12 weeks of paid parental leave in connection with the birth - adoption - or foster care placement of a child.
• 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.
• Traditional federal pension (5 years vesting) and federal 401K with up to 5% in contributions by VA.

Pay

• Pay is competitive and includes regular salary increases.

Duties

• Works with Clinical Care and Nursing leadership to provide specific training and consultation with Primary Care Nurses and others to facilitate effective health behavior coaching (i.e. - healthy lifestyle coaching to support patient self-management) and build and maintain competencies in health behavior coaching.
• In collaboration with the Health Promotion/Disease Prevention Program Manager (HDPD-PM) - plans - develops - adapts - implements and assesses efficacy of health behavior interventions for the promotion of general health and to address health risk behaviors as part of disease prevention and chronic disease management (e.g. - weight loss and maintenance - tobacco use cessation - promoting patient self-management interventions targeting issues such as increasing participation in regular exercise - healthy eating - sleep hygiene).
• Supervises pre-doctoral and post-doctoral Psychology trainees and may participate in the supervision of trainees in other disciplines - including medical - nursing - pharmacy - and psychiatric trainees assigned to the Primary Care Service for rotations.
• Assists the WH Program Manager and Health promotion - Disease Prevention Manager in the design - development - and implementation of clinical programs for a team of treatment providers.
• Adheres to operational policies and procedures established by the Mental Health Chief.
• Assists the WH Program Manager and HPDP Manager in the execution of ongoing program evaluation and data-driven quality improvement projects to monitor the effectiveness of the clinical program.
• Compliant with national and local performance measures - including timely health care screening and completion of clinical reminders for all patients.
• Develops and/or makes available relevant education and training programs for all Primary Care and other Service Line providers to ensure that culturally competent care is provided.
• Works with Primary Care and Mental Health Service Line staff in enhancing - maintaining - and supporting health behavior programs for the promotion of health and prevention of disease and enhancing patient self-management of chronic disease (e.g. - diabetes - COPD) to prevent secondary complications and improve long-term outcomes and enhance quality of life.
• Carries out training programs and case discussions.