PCMHI Colocated Collaborative Care Behavioral Health Consultant - Psychologist

This position is eligible for the Education Debt Reduction Program (EDRP), a student loan payment reimbursement program. You must meet specific eligibility requirements per VHA policy and submit your EDRP application within four months of appointment. Program Approval, award amount (up to $200,000) & eligibility period (one to five years) are determined by the VHA Education Loan Repayment Services program office after review of the EDRP application. Former EDRP participants ineligible to apply. The Primary Care Mental Health Integration (PCMHI) Psychologist position is administratively aligned with the Mental Health Service and is assigned as a Colocated Collaborative Care (CCC) behavioral health consultant in Primary Care. PCMHI is a component of the interdisciplinary Patient Aligned Care Team (PACT). Duties includes but are not limited to: Collaborates with PCPs and the interdisciplinary PACT to support high quality, effective, and coordinated service delivery at the patient and programmatic levels Maintains daily open access slots and encourages same day warm handoffs within PACT Completes most individual appointments (e.g., 75%) within 30 minutes Uses Measurement Based Care (MBC) in accordance with nationally recommended guidelines for PCMHI Conducts initial functional assessments that are focused on the main reason(s) for referral and are less extensive than traditional mental health intake evaluations (e.g., 30 minutes vs. 60 or 90 minutes for traditional evaluation) Writes clear, concise notes that are optimized for collaboration within PACT based on the PCMHI CCC functional assessment and follow up visit guidelines Notes document important elements for team collaboration (e.g., MBC, curbside consultation/team care discussion, liaison with specialty care providers) as appropriate Engages in PACT huddles and meetings to cultivate collaborative team functioning and serve as a subject matter expert for behavioral health considerations Provides education to PACT on behavioral health and health behavior issues, as well as tips to promote effective patient communication, motivational enhancement, and behavior change Serves on Medical Center or Healthcare System, VISN, and/or National VA committees or task forces, as endorsed by supervisors Work Schedule: Monday • Friday 8:00am • 4:30pm Telework: Available for Ad-hoc Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Functional Statement #: GS-11: 40982F / GS-12: 40983F / GS-13: 40984F Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized EDRP Authorized: Former EDRP participants ineligible to apply for incentive. Contact VISN9HREDRP@va.gov, the EDRP Coordinator for questions/assistance. Learn more Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized. 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. English Language Proficiency. Psychologists must be proficient in spoken and written English in accordance with VA Handbook 5005, Part II, Chapter 3, section A, paragraph 3j Education. (a) 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. • OR- (b) 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: 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. 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. 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. 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: Staff Psychologist GS-11 (Entry Level) Experience: None beyond the basic requirements 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. Psychologists who are not licensed must practice under the close supervision of a licensed psychologist. Staff Psychologist, GS-12 (Developmental Level) Experience: At least one year of experience as a professional psychologist equivalent to the next lower grade level (GS 11). Psychologists who are not licensed must practice under the supervision of a licensed psychologist but with less intense supervision than at the GS-11 grade level. Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities: In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate all of 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. Staff Psychologist, GS-13 (Full Performance, Level) Experience: At least two years of experience as a professional psychologist, with at least one year equivalent to the GS-12 grade level. Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities: In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate all of 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. Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/. 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. Physical Requirements: Work is typically performed in a clinical setting that exposes the incumbent to communicable diseases common of the client population. 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. 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. 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. 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: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/.