Social Work Program Coordinator-Medical Foster Home Coordinator

Clarification from the agency

This is ONLY open to current permanent federal employee at the Salt Lake City VAHS, VA nationwide employees NOTE: The 2-page Resume requirement does not apply to this position.

• Markets MFHs to VA staff members, Veterans and families, Veterans Service Organizations, and the community.
• Establishes working relationships with all internal and external stakeholders.
• Recruits MFHs and MFH caregivers.
• Completes assigned administrative responsibilities for clinical program development and is accountable for clinical program effectiveness and modification of service patterns.
• Provides recommendations for health screen planning, promotion, risk assessment, and management.
• Facilitates the delivery of health care services to MFH Program Veterans.
• Collaborates with other members of the treatment team to provide comprehensive health care services to Veterans, ensuring equity of access, service, and benefits to this population, and ensuring the care provided is of the highest quality.
• Meets at least quarterly with the HBPC Program Manager and/or SCI Program Manager, or designees, to discuss program coordination and to review the status of each MFH resident.
• Ensures MFH caregivers receive and understand the inspection team's recommendations.
• Ensure a safe, suitable, and therapeutic environment for Veterans residing in MFH.
  Communicates with and utilizes community agencies to facilitate treatment, discharge planning, and continuity of care.
• Collaborates with a variety of community agencies and engages in problem-resolution activities to ensure quality care for Veterans.
• Screens MFH environments for needed structural alterations and provides support and guidance to Veterans who choose to apply for Home Improvement Structural Alterations (HISA) grants, as needed.
• Screens MFH caregivers for participation in the MFH Program.
• Assesses the psychosocial functioning and needs of Veterans and family members, identifying the Veteran's strengths, challenges, coping skills, and psychosocial acuity.
• Delivers clinically appropriate treatment interventions/recommendations that address complex psychosocial, behavioral health, and health-related social needs for Veterans and their families across diverse backgrounds.
• Identifies concerns of the Veteran, the inspection team, or any member of the care team, and discusses those concerns and resolutions with the MFH caregiver.
• Provides leadership, direction, orientation, coaching, in-service training, staff development, and continuing education programs for MFH caregivers.
• Provides clinical supervision for social workers working toward independent or advanced practice licensure. Serve as a practicum instructor for a social work health professional trainee and provide opportunities for shadowing and/or education for trainees on the MFH program.
• Deliver specialized clinical interventions-including individual, group, and family counseling and/or psychotherapy-and provide psychosocial and case management services tailored to the needs of Veterans participating in the MFH program.
• Utilizes supportive listening skills.
• Participates in case consultation, as needed.
• Provides supportive counseling and resources to the MFH caregiver.
• Applies advanced clinical judgment to integrate complex, multi-factorial causes into differential diagnoses and deliver appropriate, privilege-aligned treatment interventions within assigned social work scope of practice.
• Communicates with supervisors and co-workers to support treatment planning and collaborate with diverse multidisciplinary team members to improve coordination of comprehensive Veteran care.
• Other duties, as assigned.

Work Schedule: M-F 8:00am-4:30pm
Recruitment/Relocation Incentives (Sign-on Bonus): Not Authorized
Permanent Change of Station (Relocation Assistance): Not Authorized
Pay: 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).
Paid Time Off: 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.
Parental Leave: 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.
Child Care Subsidy: 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.
Retirement: Traditional federal pension (5 years vesting) and federal 401K with up to 5% in contributions by VA
Insurance: Federal health/vision/dental/term life/long-term care (many federal insurance programs can be carried into retirement)
Telework: Not Available
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Functional Statement #: 557080
Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized

Conditions of employment

• You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job.
• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959.
• Must be proficient in written and spoken English.
• Subject to background/security investigation.
• Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements (https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/form-i-9-acceptable-documents). Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued identification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.
• Must pass pre-employment physical evaluation/examination.
• Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP).
• Complete all application requirements detailed in the "Required Documents" section of this announcement.

As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1 or 2-year trial period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may consider:

• your performance and conduct;
• the needs and interests of the agency;
• whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and
• whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service.

Upon completion of your trial period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.

Qualifications

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.
• English Language Proficiency: Candidates must be proficient in spoken and written English to be appointed as authorized by 38 U.S.C. § 7403(f).
• Education: Have a master's degree in social work from a school of social work fully accredited by the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE). Graduates of schools of social work that are in candidacy status do not meet this requirement until the School of Social Work is fully accredited. A doctoral degree in social work may not be substituted for the master's degree in social work. Verification of the degree can be made by going to http://www.cswe.org/Accreditation to verify that the social work degree meets the accreditation standards for a masters of social work.
• Licensure: Persons hired or reassigned to social worker positions in the GS-0185 series in VHA must be licensed or certified by a state to independently practice social work at the master's degree level. Current state requirements may be found by going to http://vaww.va.gov/OHRM/T38Hybrid.
• Driver's License Requirement: A current, Valid State issued Driver's License is required for this position.

Grade Determinations:

Social Worker Program Coordinator, GS-12

Experience and Education. One year of experience equivalent to the GS-11 grade level. Experience must demonstrate possession of advanced practice skills and judgment, demonstrating progressively more professional competency. Candidate may have certification or other post-master's degree training from a nationally recognized professional organization or university that includes a defined curriculum/course of study and internship, or equivalent supervised professional experience.
Licensure/Certification. Individuals assigned as social worker program coordinator must be licensed or certified at the advanced practice level, and must be able to provide supervision for licensure.
Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSAs:

(a) Knowledge of program coordination and administration which includes consultation, negotiation, and monitoring.
(b) Knowledge and ability to write policies, procedures, and/or practice guidelines for the program.
(c) Ability to supervise multidisciplinary staff assigned to the program.
(d) Skill in organizing work, setting priorities, meeting multiple deadlines, and evaluating assigned program area(s).
(e) Ability to provide training, orientation, and guidance within clinical practice.

Assignments. For all assignments above the full performance level, the higher-level duties must consist of significant scope, complexity (difficulty), and variety and be performed by the incumbent at least 25% of the time. Program coordinators at the GS12 grade level are administratively responsible for a clinical program providing treatment to Veterans in a major specialty area, such as but not limited to: Spinal Cord Injury, Homeless Continuum Veteran Program, Hospice and Palliative Care Program, Suicide Prevention Program, Veterans Justice Outreach, Caregiver Support Program and Community Nursing Home Program. The program coordinator may be the sole practitioner in this specialty at the facility and typically provide direct patient care services in the program area


Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/.


Physical Requirements: Must be in overall good health, able to sit at a desk working at a computer, engage in light to moderate physical activity including sitting, walking, bending, and carrying supplies. Social Worker must be able to perform primarily light and sedentary duties with occasionally moderate physical demands, exercise patience, and control emotions, with reasonable accommodation, if necessary, without endangering the health and safety of the social worker or others.

Incumbent must possess and maintain a current valid state driver's license and local travel to provide community-based care to Veterans. The position requires significant travel in the community, through use of a government vehicle or other individual arrangements, to meet with representatives/stakeholders who provide assistance and support to Veterans in clinics, medical centers, Community Clinics, etc. This position also requires close visual acuity to perform an activity such as preparing and analyzing data and figures; transcribing; viewing a computer terminal; extensive reading; and repetitive motions of the wrists, hands, and/or fingers.

How you will be evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE MAY NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. Your application, resume, C.V., and/or supporting documentation will be verified. Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect consideration for employment.

Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religions; spiritual; community; student; social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.

The Department of Veterans Affairs performs pre-employment reference checks as an assessment method used in the hiring process to verify information provided by a candidate (e.g., on resume or during interview or hiring process); gain additional knowledge regarding a candidate's abilities; and assist a hiring manager with making a final selection for a position.

It is the policy of the VA to not deny employment to those that have faced financial hardships or periods of unemployment.

Veterans and Transitioning Service Members: Please visit the VA for Vets site for career-search tools for Veterans seeking employment at VA, career development services for our existing Veterans, and coaching and reintegration support for military service members.

To apply for this position, you must provide a complete Application Package which includes:

• Long-form resume/Curriculum vitae (CV)
• SF-50/ Notification of Personnel Action

The following documents are accepted, and may be required if applicable to your eligibility and/or qualifications for this position. Please ensure you have included all documents required for your application, such as a copy of your transcript (if using education to qualify), SF-50's (current/former Federal employees), etc.

• Cover Letter
• DD-214/ Statement of Service
• Disability Letter (VA)
• License
• Long-form resume/Curriculum vitae (CV)
• Other (1)
• Other (2)
• Other (3)
• Professional Certification
• SF-15
• SF-50/ Notification of Personnel Action
• Transcript

Next steps