Senior Social Worker

Job Title

The duties and responsibilities of this position are outlined below.

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Primary duties include but are not limited to the following:

• Managing all Beckley VAMC Social Work consults, tracking timeliness of completion, and working with the Social Work Supervisor to create action plans to ensure compliance, including reviewing consults to identify and address outliers
• Leading daily huddles and reporting outcomes
• Leading all PACT Social Workers in reviewing and monitoring high-risk Veterans in need of case management, utilizing high-risk identifiers such as CAN scores and Ambulatory Care Sensitive Conditions, and assigning work based on these identifiers
• Reviewing and supporting revisions of policy, procedures, and practice guidelines pertaining to service delivery, and reporting recommendations
• Expanding clinical social work knowledge through consultation and guidance to colleagues and role-modeling effective social work practice skills
• Mentoring less experienced social workers and collaborating with the Social Work Supervisor and Senior Social Workers to facilitate orientation of new employees, acting as clinical expert in case consultation, and maintaining the PACT SW onboarding document as a current resource
• Coordinating PACT Social Worker coverage of the Emergency Department (ED) during normal business hours, including training PACT Social Workers on ED coverage and educating ED staff on how to contact Social Work for assistance
• Working with the Social Work Supervisor to develop best practices ensuring consistency and excellence in social work practice within assigned areas(s)
• Representing VA Social Work at community meetings, workshops, and conferences, and actively nurturing new community partnerships
• Mentoring or serving as a field instructor for trainees, and providing clinical supervision for social work licensure or certification

• Establish/ maintain effective therapeutic relationships with Veterans in the Primary Care Clinic and/or their families, working independently with Veterans and families experiencing complex medical, psychiatric, emotional, behavioral, financial, legal, and psychosocial problems, often over a series of visits
• Assessing suicide/homicide risk factors using standardized and validated measures, identifying protective factors, interpreting safety and recommended level of care, and collaborating with the Suicide Prevention program for Veterans at increased risk
• Providing immediate psychosocial assessments to individuals and families presenting to the Emergency Department, consultation to ED staff, and assistance with creating an appropriate plan of care
• Independently completing thorough psychosocial assessments to determine psychosocial functioning and needs, utilizing assessments to facilitate the Veteran's maximum use of treatment, and documenting interventions using the national template Social Work notes
• Leading interdisciplinary treatment team discussion on social work needs and collaborating with Veterans, families, and treatment team members in developing and implementing treatment goals and interventions
• Maintaining working knowledge of medical and mental health diagnoses, disabilities, and treatment procedures, including acute, chronic, and traumatic illnesses, substance use disorders, common medications and their effects/side effects, and medical terminology

Work Schedule: Full-time, Monday-Friday, 8:00am-4:30pm

Telework: Not Available

Virtual: This is not a virtual position.

Functional Statement #: F

Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized

Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized