Senior Licensed Professional Mental Health Counselor-Primary Care Mental Health Integration

This position will be based at Montrose CBOC and will provide virtual appointments in the other CBOCs

The Primary Care Mental Health Integration (PCMHI) licensed professional mental health counselor (LPMHC) provides functional assessment triage brief intervention education and consultative services upon referral from primary care providers and allied Patient Aligned Care Team (PACT) members. The Senior LPMHC uses population-based practice management strategies and maintains competences in the following core domains:

• Conducts brief focused functional assessments (e.g. 30 minutes or less) to assess substance use concerns and triage/refer to specialty care as appropriate. Apply principals of population-based care (defines role and identifies problems rapidly).
• Uses brief measurement-based care assessments routinely (e.g. BAM-IOP PHQ-9 PCL-5 AUDIT C etc.).
• Bases initial consultation appointments on the PCMHI Functional Assessment model and develops recovery-oriented treatment goals based on functional outcomes.
• Maintains daily same day access slots.
• Regularly reviews schedule/grid and works to maintain next available scheduled appointment within two weeks.
• Provides brief time-limited evidence based mental and behavioral health interventions (e.g. 1-6 sessions) in both individual and group therapy formats.
• Coordinates daily with PACT teams to coordinate population level based care
• Frequently screens for safety concerns and assists in safety planning with veteran while also determining disposition of care for veteran. Frequently consults with PACT teams on safety assessments as needed.
• Completes all clinical charting and documentation required by the Medical Center or healthcare system as appropriate.
• Completes Phase I & II of VA PCMHI standardization training within first year of employment if available

• Supports activities of training programs and participates in relevant educational seminars.
• When opportunities are available and it is deemed clinically appropriate participates in improvement of clinical supervision skills.
• When opportunities are available and it is deemed clinically appropriate provides training and guidance to other behavioral health staff in primary care setting.

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 ( Effective May 7 2025 drivers licenses or state-issued dentification 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.

• 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.

Qualifications

***This is an OPEN CONTINUOUS ANNOUNCEMENT and will remain open until May 11th 2026. The initial cut-off date for referral of eligible applications will be December 14th 2025 with subsequent cut-off dates on the 1st of each month. Eligible applications received after that date will be referred at regular intervals or as additional vacancies occur on an as-needed basis until positions are filled.

* Cut off date has been updated to

***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 LPMHCs must be proficient in spoken and written English in accordance with VA Handbook 5005 Part II chapter 3 section A paragraph 3.j.

Education Hold a masters or doctoral degree in: Clinical Mental Health Counseling; Clinical Rehabilitation Counseling; Clinical Mental Health Counseling and Clinical Rehabilitation Counseling; or a related field from a program accredited by the Council on Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP). Examples of related mental health counseling fields include but are not limited to Addiction Counseling; Community Counseling; Gerontology Counseling; Marital Couple and Family Counseling. CACREP defines the date when graduates are considered to have graduated from a CACREP accredited program. Additional information may be obtained from NOTE: Traditional Rehabilitation counseling programs that are accredited by CACREP do not meet the LPMHC qualification standards as Traditional Rehabilitation counseling differs from Clinical Rehabilitation counseling.

Licensure- Persons hired or reassigned to LPMHC positions in the GS-0183 series in VHA must hold a full current and unrestricted license to independently practice as a Licensed Professional Mental Health Counselor which includes diagnosis and treatment.

Grade Determinations:

Senior Licensed Professional Mental Health Counselor

GS-12 Experience Education and Licensure. In addition to the basic requirements candidates must have at least one year of progressively complex LPMHC experience equivalent to the GS-11 grade level. Senior LPMHCs must have five years of post-licensed experience that demonstrates possession of advanced practice skills and judgment demonstrating progressive professional competency and expertise and be licensed to provide clinical supervision to trainees or unlicensed LPMHCs.

Demonstrated Knowledge Skills and Abilities In addition to meeting the KSAs for the GS-11 grade level the candidate must demonstrate all of the KSAs below:

• Advanced knowledge of and mastery of theories and modalities used in the specialized treatment of complex mental illness. Ability to incorporate complex multiple causation in differential diagnosis and treatment of veteran patients including making psychosocial and psychiatric diagnoses within approved clinical privileges or scope of practice. Ability to determine priority of services needed and provide specialized treatment.
• Advanced and expert skill in a range of specialized interventions and treatment modalities for Veterans with complex needs. This includes individual group and/or family counseling or psychotherapy and advanced level psychosocial and/or case management interventions used in the treatment of Veterans.
• Ability to coordinate the delivery of specialized psychosocial services and programs. Ability to design system changes based on data.
• Ability to provide subject matter consultation to colleagues and trainees on the psychosocial treatment of patients rendering professional opinions based on experience expertise and role modeling effective clinical skills.
• Ability to teach mentor staff and trainees and provide supervision for licensure or for specialty certifications.
• Ability to engage in written and oral communication with leadership/staff and community stakeholders regarding policies procedures practice guidelines and issues pertaining to the practice of the profession.

• Ability to make professional evaluations decisions and recommendation for treatment planning and implementation.
• Advanced knowledge and mastery of the fundamentals of the counseling process which includes defining patient/family problems and maintaining an effective counseling relationship.
• Ability to provide subject matter consultation to colleagues and trainees on the counseling process within various specialty areas build on the foundation of competence through regular meetings and discussions to explain assignments review progress of cases and confer about the counseling perspectives and orientation.
• Ability to provide complex crisis intervention and stabilization to patients who are in psychological distress. Requires independent judgment and skill. Ability to establish goals/treatment through a collaborative process with the patient utilizing advanced counseling skills including evidenced- based practices screening and psychosocial assessment.
• Ability to use a wide variety of individual group or familial counseling interventions; demonstrates sensitivity to diversity and possesses multicultural counseling skills.
• Ability to fully utilize the current DSM in making diagnoses and formulation of treatment goals and application of appropriate clinical intervention using professional counseling practices.
• Ability to develop and facilitate psychotherapy and psycho- education groups that include life skills family support and community integration. This may include evidence based psychotherapy.