Senior Psychologist (Chief Psychology Service)

Description:

The Battle Creek VA Medical Center is hiring a Senior Psychologist to serve as the Service Chief for Psychology Service. This position is aligned under the Associate Chief of Staff for Mental Health (ACOS MH). Responsibilities are complex in scope, involving supervision and management of several
specialty mental health programs, as well as oversight of the practice of Psychology throughout the Medical Center and its Community Based Outpatient Clinics.

Requirements:

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 Requirement - Per VA Handbook 5005, Part II, Chapter 3, Section A, Paragraph 3j: No person will be appointed under authority of 38 U.S.C., chapter 73 or 74, to serve in a direct patient-care capacity in VHA who is not proficient in written and spoken English. Education Requirement - You must 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, have a doctoral degree in any area of psychology and, in addition, successfully completed a 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 you were retrained is consistent with the assignment you are am applying for; OR, have a doctoral degree awarded between 1951 and 1978 from a regionally-accredited institution, with a dissertation primarily psychological in nature. Internship Requirement - You must 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, 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, VHA facilities that offered fulltime, one-year pre-doctoral internships prior to PL 96-151 (pre-1979) are considered to be acceptable in fulfillment of the internship requirement; OR, 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). NOTE: 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: Candidates 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. Experience: In additional to meeting the basic requirements as stated above, you must have the following:
At least four years of experience as a professional psychologist, with at least one year equivalent to the GS-14 level

Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities: In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSAs: Ability to supervise and manage a large group of professional staff effectively. Skill in interpersonal relationships, including conflict resolution and ability to work collaboratively with supervisors from other units. Ability to accurately apply the qualification standards, assesses the potential of current and prospective employees, and promotes their professional development. Ability to develop appropriate productivity standards for professional staff, often across multiple program lines. Knowledge of the goals and objectives of the medical center and VISN and ability to communicate these to subordinates. References: Reference: VA Regulations, specifically VA Handbook 5005, Part II, Appendix G18 Psychologist Qualification Standard.

The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-15.

Physical Requirements: Work is primarily sedentary in nature in climate controlled environments. Exposure to patients experiencing Serious Mental Illness may be frequent or recurring.