Licensed Professional Mental Health Counselor (Behavioral Health Interdisciplinary Program)

Major duties include but are not limited to:

• Provides a full range of services within commonly accepted standards of practice and prioritizes mental health psychotherapy activities as the primary job function including intake assessment suicide risk screening and safety planning individual and group psychotherapy needs assessment chart reviews care or case management (as needed) discharge planning and other services as appropriate.
• Conducts biopsychosocial assessments to determine care coordination and treatment needs of Veterans.
• Provides consultation/education to Veterans and families on VA resources (including self-management tools) community resources Advance Directives and VA benefits.
• Acts as a clinical resource/point-of-contact to Veterans and other team/staff members.
• Provides individual family and group counseling as appropriate.
• Documents interventions and activities in patients electronic health record and ensure appropriate hand-off communication and documentation when transferring patient care.
• Maintains familiarity and share responsibility with other team members for performance measures relevant to the BHIP team.
• Participates in committee assignments as deemed necessary by the service manager.

Work Schedule: 8:00am-4:30pm Monday-Friday
Telework: Available Ad-Hoc
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Functional Statement #: 60115F
Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized
Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized

• 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 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 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.

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. In accordance with 38 U.S.C. 7402(d) no person shall serve in direct patient care positions unless they are proficient in basic written and spoken English.
• Education - Masters or doctoral degree in one of the following:
  • 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 Traditional Rehabilitation counseling programs that are accredited by CACREP do not meet the Licensed Professional Mental Health Counselor (LPMHC) qualification standards as Traditional Rehabilitation counseling differs from Clinical Rehabilitation counseling.

Licensure - Must hold a full current and unrestricted license to independently practice as a Licensed Professional Mental Health Counselor which includes diagnosis and treatment.

Grandfather Provision: An LPMHC employed in VHA on the effective date of the qualification standard (4/3/2018) who did not meet all the basic requirements in this standard may not be promoted beyond the full performance level (GS-11) or be newly placed in supervisory or managerial positions until meeting the full qualification requirements.Grade Determinations:GS-11 LPMHC: In addition to meeting the basic requirements to qualify for the GS-11 you must have at least one year of post-masters or post- doctoral degree mental health counseling experience (VA or non-VA experience) that demonstrates the following Knowledge Skills and Abilities:

1. Ability to make professional evaluations decisions and recommendation for treatment planning and implementation.
2. Advanced knowledge and mastery of the fundamentals of the counseling process which includes defining patient/family problems and maintaining an effective counseling relationship.
3. 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.
4. Ability to provide complex crisis intervention and stabilization to patients who are in psychological distress. Requires independent judgment and skill.
5. Ability to establish goals/treatment through a collaborative process with the patient utilizing advanced counseling skills including evidenced- based practices screening and psychosocial assessment.
6. Ability to use a wide variety of individual group or family counseling interventions.
7. 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.
8. 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.

Reference: For more information on this qualification standard please visit Requirements: Traveling throughout the medical center is required as is performing activities involving sitting walking standing bending and carrying such items as books papers and carrying out responsibilities it may be necessary for the incumbent to travel into the community where they conduct interviews with the Veterans their families representatives of community health and welfare agencies and law enforcement agencies. The incumbent must possess a current Drivers License and drive a government vehicle in carrying out professional duties when deemed necessary.

The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-11.