Duties

This position is organizationally located in the Mental Health Behavioral Science (MHBS) Service Line, reporting to the Chief of Psychology, Prescott, Arizona. The incumbent serves as staff psychologist in the Mental Health Residential Rehabilitation Treatment Program (MHRRTP) in a comprehensive, multidisciplinary outpatient program; directed toward assisting Veterans with comorbid substance use disorders, mental illness, homelessness and vocational rehabilitation. The major duties and responsibilities include but are not limited to:

• Provides a full range of psycho-diagnostic clinical services including assessment with a special emphasis on Substance Abuse Recovery and co-morbid conditions such as Traumatic Brian Injury (TBI), PTSD, or other mental health disorders and medical conditions, in providing quality care to Veterans in the MHRRTP setting.
• Provides a full range of therapeutic interventions including individual, group, couples/family, crisis therapy; and psychoeducational
  classes to include Evidence-Based Treatments (e.g., Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT), Trauma-Informed Therapy, Motivational Interviewing (MI), and/or other empirically supported treatment approaches including Short-term Solution Focused and supportive therapy to MHRRTP patients whose conditions indicate a need for the advanced skill and training of a licensed psychologist.
• Evaluates the success of the therapy through measurement-based assessment (MBC), adjusting treatment accordingly.
• Reviews and translates psychological research into practical interventions for improved patient treatment outcomes, and may be involved in program evaluation and/or research activities.
• Provides clinical supervision and/or consultation to various disciplines and levels of training.
• Serves as a consultant to other medical center staff and trainees and assist in their formulation of the psychological characteristics and appropriate treatment expectations regarding their patients.
• Serves on Medical Center or Healthcare System, VISN, and/or National VA committees or task forces.

Work Schedule: Flexible, may need coverage to include weekends, but typical clinic hours.
Compressed/Flexible:Available after completing at least 90 days continuous service.
Telework: Not Available
Virtual: This is a virtual position.
Functional Statement #: 000000
Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Authorized
EDRP Authorized: Contact Miriam.Ubiles@va.gov or Natasha.Brant@va.gov, the EDRP Coordinators for questions/assistance. Learn more
Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized
Financial Disclosure Report: Not required

Requirements

Conditions of Employment

• You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job
• All applicants tentatively selected for VA employment in a testing designated position are subject to urinalysis to screen for illegal drug use prior to appointment. Applicants who refuse to be tested will be denied employment with VA.
• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959
• You may be required to serve a probationary period
• Subject to a background/security investigation
• Must be proficient in written and spoken English
• Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process
• Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP)
• Participation in the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Personnel

Qualifications

Basic Requirements:

Citizenship. Citizen of the United States. Licensure. Applicants 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. [Exception: Non-licensed applicants who otherwise meet the eligibility requirements may be given a temporary appointment as a " graduate psychologist " at the GS-11 or GS-12 grade under 38 U.S.C. 7405(c)(2)(B) not to exceed 2 years from date of employment on the condition that such a psychologist provide care only under the supervision of a psychologist who is licensed]. [Copy of Licensed Required to be submitted with application if applicable] Education. Applicant 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) at the time the program was completed. The specialty area of the degree must be consistent with the assignment for which the applicants are 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; 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: [Transcripts showing date of conferral required to be submitted with application]

The re-specialization program must be completed in an APA or a CPA accredited doctoral program; and

• The specialty in which the applicant is retrained must be consistent with the assignment for which the applicant is to be employed. OR
• Have a doctoral degree awarded between 1951 and 1978 from a regionally-accredited institution, with a dissertation primarily psychological in nature.

AND

Internships. Applicants must 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 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 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 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 OR 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.

Grade Determinations:

GS-11 Experience: None beyond the basic requirements listed above.

GS-12 Experience: Applicants must have at least 1 year of experience as a professional psychologist equivalent to the next lower grade level (GS-11). In addition, the candidate must demonstrate the following KSAs:

Knowledge of and ability to apply a wide range of professional psychological treatments or assessment methods to a variety of patient populations.

Ability to design and implement effective treatment strategies.

Ability to incorporate new clinical procedures.

Ability to conduct research activities, such as designing and implementing clinical research projects (staff psychologists with specified research job duties).

Ability to perform basic research tasks of scholarship and research execution within the context of an established research team, including research participant relations, research documentation, data acquisition, maintenance, and collaboration.

Assignment. Staff psychologists at this level diagnose mental disorders, conduct psychological or neuropsychological assessments, treat mental disorders through a variety of modalities, provide adjunctive interventions for treatment of medical disorders, and may conduct research. They may be assigned to any program area.

GS-13 Experience: Applicants must have at least 2 years of experience as a professional psychologist, with at least one year equivalent to the GS-12 level. In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate the following KSAs:

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.

Assignment. This is the full performance level for staff psychologists. At this level, psychologists are licensed to practice independently in the provision of psychological services, consulting with peers and supervisors as appropriate. They may be assigned to any VHA program and setting, such as inpatient or outpatient medicine, primary care, surgery, mental health, neurology, rehabilitation medicine, geriatrics, Compensation and Pension, Vet Centers, and the VHA National Center for Organization Development. Psychologists diagnose mental disorders, conduct psychological or neuropsychological assessments, treat mental disorders through a variety of modalities, and provide adjunctive interventions for treatment of medical disorders. Among the modalities provided are individual, family, and group psychotherapies and other interventions such as behavioral health and community interventions. Psychologists consult with medical center staff on a wide variety of patient care issues. Staff psychologists may be involved in program evaluation, teaching, training, and research activities.
The full performance level of this vacancy is 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.

References: VA Handbook 5005/103, Part II, Appendix G18, Psychologist Qualification Standard GS-180 Veterans Health Administration.

Physical Requirements: Involve active listening, reading, observing, and evaluating verbal and nonverbal behavior, walking, speaking, writing reports, writing policies and procedures, writing clinical notes, using office equipment such as computers, telephones, fax machines, and photocopy machines. Must also be able to perform CPR and remain current in BLS certification.

Education

IMPORTANT: A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education.

Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/ . If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit: http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ous/international/usnei/us/edlite-visitus-forrecog.html .

Additional information

This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies.

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

This position is in the Excepted Service and does not confer competitive status.

VA encourages persons with disabilities to apply. The health-related positions in VA are covered by Title 38, and are not covered by the Schedule A excepted appointment authority.

If you are unable to apply online or need to fax a document you do not have in electronic form, view the following link for information regarding an Alternate Application .