Staff Psychologist

Job Title

VA Careers - Psychologist

The staff psychologist works in the PTSD Firm in the Mental Health Care Line. The psychologist addresses the specialty mental health issues involving PTSD and Anxiety Disorders of Veterans presenting for care in the PTSD Firm under the supervision of a licensed psychologist. Services provided by the staff psychologist will include assessment, individual, group, couples, and family psychotherapy. Evidence-based trauma treatments include Prolonged Exposure Treatment, Cognitive Processing Therapy, Written Exposure Treatment, and EMDR, among others.

Other duties listed:

• Provides a full range of psychological interventions to patients, including individual, couples/family, and group therapy. Interventions will address broad mental health conditions, although the central focus will be specialized PTSD and Anxiety Disorder treatments.
• Works as a key team member to promote, create, and maintain a psychotherapeutic atmosphere among the staff. Educates and trains staff around mental health issues and treatments, recovery-oriented care, boundaries, ethics.
• Presents informed reports or educates multi-disciplinary teams on the use of newly proven or evidence-based intervention techniques.
• Stays current with assessment and therapy techniques by reviewing and/or participating in research, and by promoting, initiating, assisting or engaging in program evaluation and/or other basic and applied research activities.
• Within the Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Clinical Team (PCT), screens new referrals and coordinates appropriate referrals. Reviews new referrals for mental health treatment from both within and outside the PTSD Firm.
• The staff psychologist will function as a member of various ad hoc committees with regards to all aspects of the clinical program.

40 Hours a week, Full-time, Monday-Friday-8:00am-4:30pm, EST

Competitive salary and regular salary increases When setting pay, a higher step rate of the appropriate grade may be determined after consideration of higher or unique qualifications or special needs of the VA (Above Minimum Rate of the Grade).

37-50 days of annual paid time offer per year (13-26 days of annual leave, 13 days of sick leave, 11 paid Federal holidays per year) Selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual, based on prior [work experience] or military service experience.

After 12 months of employment, up to 12 weeks of paid parental leave in connection with the birth, adoption, or foster care placement of a child.

After 60 days of employment, 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

Federal health/vision/dental/term life/long-term care (many federal insurance programs can be carried into retirement)

Available at Supervisor discretion.

GS-11 689-F08659, GS-12 689-F08652, : 689-F08653

• The full performance level of this vacancy is a GS-13. The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is in the range of GS-11 to GS-13.
• Applicants must have experience treating PTSD using evidence-based trauma-informed treatments (Prolonged Exposure, Cognitive Processing Therapy, EMDR, Written Exposure Therapy, etc.)
• This position is in the Excepted Service.
• This is a Bargaining Union Position.
• This occupational series has a Special Salary Rate.
• Current and former Federal employees must submit copies of their most recent SF-50, (Notice of Personnel Action). The SF-50 must identify the position title, series, grade, step, tenure and type of service (Competitive or Excepted). In some cases, more than one SF-50 may be required to show a higher grade previously held.