Psychology Program Manager

SummaryIncumbent serves as Program Manager for the outpatient Mental Health clinics of the Amarillo VA Health Care System and as supervisor for staff psychologists and several Mental Health social workers.

Position reports directly to the Chief, Mental Health Service (a physician).

A Recruitment/Relocation Incentive may be authorized for a Highly Qualified Individual.

This vacancy will remain open until filled.

The first cut-off date is 03/05/2021.

Additional applications will be referred as needed.ResponsibilitiesDuties include, but are not limited to: Broad responsibility for Program Management of the Mental Health Clinics at the Amarillo VA Health Care System’s three sites Developing short
– and long-range goals and plans Developing and implementing policies and procedures to ensure goal attainment Managing of administrative and programmatic resources and outcomes monitoring using data-driven quality assurance processes Very wide latitude and independent judgment are exercised in making decisions affecting staff and other resources associated with the Mental Health Clinics.

Serving as senior psychology supervisor Providing a full range of psycho-diagnostic services including assessment and using the most appropriate psychotherapeutic techniques in providing quality care Performing psychological and neuropsychological evaluations for all areas of the Health Care System on a consult basis Serving as the VA Health Care System representative to the VISN Mental Health Committee Participating in conferences/meetings with higher-ranking managers, supervisors, and staff from other disciplines or work units, and/or, as needed with representatives of local public interest groups, congressional district offices, and employees of State and local governments Work Schedule: Monday thru Friday 8:00 a.m.

to 4:30 p.m.

(compressed work schedule available if needed)Financial Disclosure Report: Not requiredThis is not a Bargaining Unit position.RequirementsConditions of EmploymentQualificationsBasic 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: (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.

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.

There are no job assignments in VHA that require the skills of a school psychologist; therefore, an applicant with a degree in the specialty area of school psychology is not eligible for appointment.

OR (2) Have a doctoral degree in any area of psychology and, in addition, successfully complete a respecialization program (including documentation of an approved internship completed as part of the respecialization 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.

NOTE: The applicant must provide an official transcript and/or certificate documenting the completion of the re-specialization program, which includes completion of an APA or CPA internship.

Psychologists who have successfully completed a re-specialization program as described above and who were employed by the Department of Veterans Affairs prior to the implementation of this standard are considered to have fully met the educational requirements of these qualification standards.

OR (3) Have a doctoral degree awarded between 1951 and 1978 from a regionally-accredited institution, with a dissertation primarily psychological in nature.

AND 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.

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.

NOTE: Psychologists who meet the requirements of this revision and who were employed by the Department of Veterans Affairs prior to the implementation of this standard are considered to have fully met the requirements of this qualification standard.

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.

Grandfathering Provision.

All persons employed in VHA as a psychologist on the effective date of this qualification standard are considered to have met all qualification requirements for the title, series and grade held, including positive education (i.e., degree and internship requirements) and licensure/certification that are part of the basic requirements of the occupation.

(1) Employees grandfathered under this provision for this revision may be reassigned, promoted up to and including the full performance (journey) level, or changed to lower grade within the occupation, but may not be promoted beyond the journey level or placed in supervisory or managerial positions or beyond the assignment currently held for those being grandfathered to assignments above FPL.

(2) Psychologists who are appointed on a temporary basis prior to the effective date of the qualification standard may not have their temporary appointment extended or be reappointed on a temporary or permanent basis until they fully meet the basic requirements of the standard.

(3) Psychologists initially grandfathered into this occupation who subsequently obtain additional education and/or licensure that meet all of the basic requirements of this qualification standard must maintain the required credentials as a condition of employment in the occupation.

NOTE: If psychologists who are grandfathered under this provision leave the occupation, the employee loses protected status and must meet the full VA qualification standard requirements in effect at the time of reentry to the occupation.

Physical Requirements.

See VA Directive and Handbook 5019 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.

Preferred Experience: Minimum of one year of experience as a supervisor or a program manager Experience and proficiency in providing neuropsychological evaluations Experience and proficiency in developing multi-disciplinary mental health treatment plans Proficiency in providing evidence-based psychotherapy (EBP) and experience in supervising others in the provision of EBP Grade Determinations:GS-14 Psychology Program ManagerExperience.

At least three years of experience as a professional psychologist, with at least one year equivalent to the GS-13 grade level.Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities.

In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSAs: SEE ADDITIONAL INFORMATION BELOW FOR ADDITIONAL QUALIFICATION INFORMATIONEducationIMPORTANT: A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education.Accreditation Information: The doctoral degree must be fully accredited by the American Psychological Association (APA) https://www.apa.org/, the Psychological Clinical Science Accreditation System (PCSAS) https://www.pcsas.org/ , or the Canadian Psychological Association (CPA)https://cpa.ca/.

NOTE: If your school has changed names, or is no longer in existence, you must provide this information in your applic