Psychology Program Manager

Summary

This Psychology Program Manager is located in the Mental Health Service Line. The Program Manager has oversight of administrative and programmatic resources and responsibilities for assigned Community Based Outpatient clinics (CBOC) that deliver outpatient mental health services. The incumbent is responsible for directing the activities of the multidisciplinary clinical teams at each assigned CBOC which also includes program support staff with the assigned Medical Director.

Duties

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Major duties include, but are not limited to:

Program Management Responsibilities:

• Duties include directing, administering, and managing all aspects of the program, including comprehensive planning, developing and implementing programs, policies and procedures; determining program needs; overseeing the type, quality and quantity of services provided; setting priorities; and establishing short-and-long range program goals, initiatives, and direction.
• Coordinates programming with program managers from other programs in the Mental Health Service Line (MHSL) and with other CBOC's with responsibility to negotiate service agreements and other forms of collaboration.
• Collaborates with discipline supervisors including psychiatry, psychology, social work, and nursing by providing input in hiring, performance reviews, incentives, and discipline. Collaborates with clerical supervisors for similar input.
• Duties with the clinical staff includes providing clinical consultation in utilizing evidence based therapeutic practices and clinical practice guidelines; creating a work environment that acknowledges and respects widely divergent interests, points of view and discipline perspectives; and providing support, encouragement and direction to all staff.
• Triages and assigns referrals for services in a systematic way and makes treatment recommendations. Monitors for the provision of services to be delivered in a manner that meets VA guidelines and standards.
• Implements ongoing program evaluation and outcome projects using data-driven quality assurance processes including establishing and monitoring team production and performance standards; implementing treatment outcome and satisfaction projects.
• As delegating authority for all non-VA care mental health outpatient services, duties include pre authorizing fee care through a process that includes thorough reviews of fee care requests, completion of clinical reviews of necessary utilization and concurrent reviews, and completion of consults for fee basis office staff to obligate sufficient funds for approved fee care according to program guidelines.

Clinical Responsibilities:

• Has direct responsibility for all aspects of psychological services in the program, including those conducted by trainees and staff.
• Consults with and serves as a resource for other medical center staff regarding the need for and development of psychological services, case conceptualization, treatment planning, and utilization of evidenced based treatments and clinical practice guidelines.
• Consults with and serves as a resource for other professional personnel concerning the need for and development of psychological services.
• Provides a full range of interventions using the most appropriate psychotherapeutic, psychoeducational and psychosocial rehabilitation techniques in providing quality care.

Academic/Teaching/Training:

• May hold faculty appointment at affiliated university (i.e. University of Minnesota).
• May be involved in Psychology Training Program and Training Committee.
• Provides leadership guidance and consultation to staffs of units to which assigned.
• May be involved in the training of psychology practicum students, interns, and postdoctoral residents and coordinates with the social work training program with the larger training programs and discipline supervisors.
• Identifies and facilitates continuing education training opportunities for staff members; establishes team work groups to study evidence based practices; fosters research and dissemination of results at major conferences; and supports staff members during their grant submission process.

Research/Program Evaluation:

• Responsible for timely completion of all program evaluations and documents required by the Medical Center, VISN and VACO, ensuring compliance with appropriate accrediting bodies such as JCAHO.
• Plans and oversees the completion of research programs designed to provide information regarding program planning and relevant treatment approaches.

Work Schedule: 08:00 to 16:30; Monday through Friday

Telework: Ad-Hoc only

Virtual: This is not a virtual position.

Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

• You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job.
• All applicants tentatively selected for VA employment in a testing designated position are subject to urinalysis to screen for illegal drug use prior to appointment. Applicants who refuse to be tested will be denied employment with VA.
• 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, driver's licenses or state-issued dentification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.
• Must pass pre-employment physical examination.
• 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 interest. In 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.

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.

English Language Proficiency: Applicants must meet the English Language Proficiency requirement for positions in this occupation. To be appointed under authority of 38 U.S.C., chapter 73 or 74, or to serve in a direct patient-care capacity in VHA, applicants must be proficient in written and spoken English.

Education:

• 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. Strictly for the purpose of determining eligibility for appointment as a psychologist in VHA, there is no distinction between the specialty areas (with the exception of school psychology).

OR

• 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.

OR

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

Internships:

• 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 full-time, one-year pre-doctoral internships prior to PL 96-151 (pre1979) 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.)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: 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.

Grade Determinations:

Psychology Program Manager, GS-14:

Experience: 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:

1. Ability to organize work, set priorities, delegate tasks, and meets multiple deadlines.

2. Knowledge of and ability to utilize evidence based practices and clinical practice guidelines appropriately and ability to guide staff in using these tools.

3. Ability to deal effectively with individuals or groups representing widely divergent backgrounds, interests, and points of view.

4. Skill in managing and directing the work of others to accomplish program goals and objectives.

5. Ability to translate management goals and objectives into well-coordinated and controlled work operations.

6. Ability to establish and monitor production and performance priorities and standards.

7. Ability to analyze organizational and operational problems and to develop and implement solutions that result in sound operation of the program.

References: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit .

Physical Requirements: You will be asked to participate in a pre-employment examination or evaluation as part of the pre-employment process for this position. Questions about physical demands or environmental factors may be addressed at the time of evaluation or examination.

Education

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: . 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: .

Additional information

During the application process you may have an option to opt-in to make your resume available to hiring managers in the agency who have similar positions. Opting in does not impact your application for this announcement, nor does it guarantee further consideration for additional positions.

This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies.

This position is in the Excepted Service and does not confer competitive status.

VA encourages persons with disabilities to apply. The health-related positions in VA are covered by Title 38, and are not covered by the Schedule A excepted appointment authority.

If you are unable to apply online or need an alternate method to submit documents, please reach out to the Agency Contact listed in this Job Opportunity Announcement.

Under the Fair Chance to Compete Act, the Department of Veterans Affairs prohibits requesting an applicant's criminal history prior to accepting a tentative job offer. For more information about the Act and the complaint process, visit Human Resources and Administration/Operations, Security, and Preparedness (HRA/OSP) at The Fair Chance Act.

Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.

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