Staff Psychologist-Pain Management

Summary

The Active Pain Management (AMP) Psychologist position primary duties are to provide pain services as an integrated part of the Pain Clinic and in support of the Pain Management Team.

Duties

• Position(s) listed under this Open Continuous Announcement (OCA) MAY be eligible for the Education Debt Reduction Program (EDRP), a student loan payment reimbursement program. Applicants selected for an EDRP-eligible position will be notified in their conditional job offer. The selectee must meet specific eligibility requirements per VHA policy and submit an EDRP application within four months of appointment. Program approval, award amount (up to $200,000), and 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 are ineligible to apply. DUTIES: . Remainder of time spent providing patient care in person or within team format to include IDT and individual evaluation. . Provides comprehensive, evidence-based behavioral interventions for pain, including individual and group therapy. . Demonstrates an understanding of the biopsychosocial approach to pain care, and need to work in an integrated, collaborative, team-based fashion with other pain specialists. . Provides a full range of psychological assessment services and diagnoses mental health disorders based on patient presentation and need; refers to other mental health providers and specialists in facility as indicated. . Provides pain-focused education to patients, family members, and significant others. . Demonstrates expertise in assessing, planning, implementing, and evaluating treatment plans for adult patients with complex pain problems. As part of the pain team, provides feedback and coordinates care with associated health care team members. . Coordinate and employ a multimodal treatment approach to accomplish complex treatment objectives. . Demonstrates expertise in assessing, planning, implementing, and evaluating treatment plans for adult patients with complex pain problems. As part of the pain team, provides feedback and coordinates care with associated health care team members . Evaluation and treatment are completed in a timely fashion; chart review will allow the opportunity to assess appropriateness of the referral. Consults are scheduled considering priority and frequency of care, and coordination of schedules with other members of the treatment team. . Functions independently as a member of the Facility Medical Staff, with full clinical privileges; assumes complete professional responsibility for his/her clinical assessment findings, patient care decisions, and documentation. . Utilizes evaluation data to plan and implement comprehensive patient treatment, involving patient in the goals setting and treatment processes as feasible. Modifies treatment plan according to evaluative findings to meet short- and long-term goals. . Assesses patient's learning needs, and plans and implements appropriate patient education, involving the patient, family, and significant others in the instructional process. . Exercises the highest degree of independence and professional judgment in planning and carrying out treatment plans to meet complex objectives for the chronic pain population. Demonstrates originality in solving problems not covered by these guides, making innovative adaptations and modifications of treatment plans and procedures in order to meet the complex and highly varying needs of patients, and routinely collaborates with other health care team members Administrative . Participates in program development activities related to AMP, including data collection/management, policy development/adherence, and documentation. . Participates in multidisciplinary team meetings, as well as pain committee meetings, as indicated by Pain Clinic leadership, as well as section and service leadership. . Complies with national and local performance measures . Complies with all electronic health record documentation procedures, including timeliness standards for documentation and proper patient check out procedures Program Evaluation/Research: . Provides clinic…

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. Education-By the time of hire, the applicant must: (1) 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 applicant is to be employed. OR (2) 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: (a) The re-specialization program must be completed in an APA or a CPA accredited doctoral program; and,(b) the specialty in which the applicant is retrained must be consistent with the assignment for which the applicant is to be employed. OR (3) Have a doctoral degree awarded between 1951 and 1978 from a regionally-accredited institution, with a dissertation primarily psychological in nature. Internships-By the time of hire, the applicant must: (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. 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. 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. Licensure-At the GS 13 level, the applicant 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. 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. 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). Grade Determinations: GS-11Staff Psychologist (Entry Level) (a) Experience. None beyond the basic requirements. GS-12 Staff Psychologist (Developmental Level) (a)Experience. At least one year of experience as a professional psychologist equivalent to the next lower gra…

Education

IMPORTANT: A transcript must be submitted with your application. 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/.