Incumbent serves as the Program Manager and Supervisor for the Rural Access Network for Growth Enhancement (RANGE) and Vocational Rehabilitation Service (VRS) at the VA Sierra Nevada Health Care System (VASNHCS). 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 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 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. NOTE: The applicant must provide an official transcript and/or certificate documenting the completion of the re-specialization program, which includes completion of an APA or CPA internship. [Psychologists who have successfully completed a re-specialization program as described above and who were employed by the Department of Veterans Affairs prior to the implementation of this standard are considered to have fully met the educational requirements of these qualification standards.] [OR Have a doctoral degree awarded between 1951 and 1978 from a regionally-accredited institution, with a dissertation primarily psychological in nature.] AND 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. NOTE: Psychologists who meet the requirements of this revision and who were employed by the Department of Veterans Affairs prior to the implementation of this standard are considered to have fully met the requirements of this qualification standard. 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 Columbia. English Language Proficiency. Social workers must be proficient in spoken and written English. 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). Grade Determinations: Psychology Program Manager, GS-14 Experience: At least three years of experience as a professional psychologist, with at least one year equivalent to the GS-13 grade level. Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities: In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSAs: Ability to organize work, set priorities, delegate tasks, and meet multiple deadlines. Knowledge of and ability to utilize evidence based practices and clinical practice guidelines appropriately and ability to guide staff in using these tools. Ability to deal effectively with individuals or groups representing widely divergent backgrounds, interests, and points of view. Skill in managing and directing the work of others to accomplish program goals and objectives. Ability to translate management goals and objectives into well-coordinated and controlled work operations. Ability to establish and monitor production and performance priorities and standards. Ability to analyze organizational and operational problems and to develop and implement solutions that result in sound operation of the program. References: VA Handbook 5005/103, Part II Appendix G18 Preferred Experience: One year experience with program management or development. The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-14. The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is GS-14. Physical Requirements: For additional information on Physical Standards please see VA Directive and Handbook 5019. http://www.va.gov/vapubs/ ["Work Schedule: Monday through Friday, 8:00am to 4:30pm Telework: Available Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Functional Statement #: 000000 Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Not required The RANGE program provides intensive outpatient case management and mental health services for Veterans with severe mental health diagnoses in a community based model. The VRS program assists Veterans living with mental illness or physical impairment with barriers to employment who want to secure and maintain meaningful community based competitive employment. The RANGE/VRS supervisor provides leadership, coordination, oversight, and integration to ensure the smooth and effective provision of recovery and rehabilitation services. The RANGE/VRS supervisor has direct programmatic responsibility for the programs. The incumbent supervises staff on day-to-day functioning. Coordination includes day-to-day operations, administration, staffing, program mission and personnel management. The incumbent provides leadership, guidance, and coordination of staff following the mission/vision of the VA Sierra Nevada Health Care System and program direction of the Mental Health Service. Duties of the position include, but are not limited to: Required to conduct, evaluate, and coordinate the execution of the programs Coordinate day-to-day staffing schedules, coordinate of staff productivity, coordinate program/staff efficiency, coordinate program/staffing cost effectiveness, coordinate quality performance, outcomes and/or coordinate clinic effectiveness and clinic productivity. Review program analysis and provide appropriate assessments of the outcomes and make recommendations as needed. Actively participates in VISN and national calls regarding RANGE and VRS. Advise the Deputy Chief, Mental Health Service on the goals, objectives, and needs of the programs. Responsible for networking with a variety of programs both within the VASNHCS and the VISN. Require knowledge and use of Quality Performance and Improvement, survey instruments and techniques, computer analysis, research design, and VA regulations concerning program operation, business planning or operations of programs. Ensures QI activities are developed and maintained following policy(s) and procurement/vender/client/staff needs. Full understanding of the requirements of various accrediting bodies, CARF, Joint Commission, and VACO regulations, so that recommendations to correct deficiencies may be made and implemented. Assists the Deputy Chief, Mental Health Service in complex assignments often of a highly sensitive nature as needed or requested. These decisions impact on patient care, critical operations, research programs, educational and training matters, as well as day-to-day administrative activities. Provides psychological assessment services and diagnoses mental disorders, particularly for complex or unusually difficult patients. Provides a full range of comprehensive, evidence-based psychotherapeutic interventions, including individual, family, and group psychotherapy. Identifies patient problems requiring consultation with other medical center staff and making appropriate referrals. Assures that appropriate referrals to specialty programs, including community resources, are accomplished. Provides, and where appropriate, refers patients, families and significant others for counseling in health maintenance and disease prevention. Assumes complete professional responsibility for their clinical findings, patient care decisions, and documentation. Consults with peers and supervisors as appropriate. Provides clinical supervision to various disciplines and levels of training. Supervises a group of employees performing work at various levels and provides administrative and technical supervision necessary for accomplishing the work of the program. Exercise supervisor authorities and responsibilities involving work assignment and review, as well as the administrative and personnel management functions relative to the staff supervised. Plans work to be accompanied by employees under his/her span of control, setting and shifting priorities and schedules to the mission requirements of VASNHCS as it applies to the management of the RANGE and VRS programs. Establishes guidelines and performance expectations for staff. Observe workers' performance; demonstrates and conducts work performance critiques. Provides informal feedback and periodically evaluates employee performance. Resolve informal complaints and grievances. Develops work improvement plans, recommending personnel actions as necessary. Provide advice and counsel to works related to work and administrative matters. Other duties as assigned by management."]
Providing Health Care for Veterans: The Veterans Health Administration is America’s largest integrated health care system, providing care at 1,255 health care facilities, including 170 medical centers and 1,074 outpatient sites of care of varying complexity (VHA outpatient clinics), serving 9 million enrolled Veterans each year.
