This Supervisory Peer Specialist position will supervise a team comprised of peer specialists and may supervise Without Compensation (WOC) peer support employees to provide services - integrate processes - and meet program goals. As the supervisor of a team of at least three or more peer support providers - the position ensures that peer support services are delivered to Veterans in an effective manner and coordinated with other treatment services as part of best health care practices.
Qualifications
To qualify for this position - applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement. Time-In-Grade Requirement: Applicants who are current Federal employees and have held a GS grade any time in the past 52 weeks must also meet time-in-grade requirements by the closing date of this announcement. For a GS-11 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-10 grade level. The grade may have been in any occupation but must have been held in the Federal service. An SF-50 that shows your time-in-grade eligibility must be submitted with your application materials. If the most recent SF-50 has an effective date within the past year - it may not clearly demonstrate you possess one-year time-in-grade - as required by the announcement. In this instance - you must provide an additional SF-50 that clearly demonstrates one-year time-in-grade. Note: Time-In-Grade requirements also apply to former Federal employees applying for reinstatement as well as current employees applying for Veterans Employment Opportunities Act of 1998 (VEOA) appointment.
Basic Requirements:
FOR PEER SPECIALISTS a
Statutory Requirements
Section 405 of Public Law 110-387 - as codified in 38 U.S.C. 7402(b)(13) - established that to be eligible to receive appointment to a Peer Specialist position - a person must: (1) be a veteran who has recovered or is recovering from a mental health condition
and(2) be certified by -(a) a not-for-profit entity engaged in peer specialist training as having met such criteria as the Secretary shall establish for a peer specialist position
or(b) a State as having satisfied relevant State requirements for a peer specialist position
b
Length of Experience as a Consumer of Mental Health Recovery Services
Veterans eligible under 38 U.S.C. 7402(b)(13) must have spent a minimum of 1 year in personal recovery from a mental health condition
IMPORTANT NOTICE: Veteran is defined as a person who served in the active military - naval - air - or space service - and who was discharged or released under conditions other than dishonorable
Restricted to VETERANS See IMPORTANT NOTICE
Open to current - permanent employees of the VA (i.e
T38 - T38 Hybrid - and VCS employees on excepted appts covered by an interchange agreement)
Federal employees on a Career/Career-Conditional appt.
Former competitive civil service employees eligible for reinstatement
Veterans eligible under VEOA - VRA - and 30% DAV
Those eligible under the Employment Program for People with Disabilities
and those eligible for CTAP/ICTAP
NOTE: You MUST provide copies of your DD-214 and Peer Specialist Certification - with your application package
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
You must be proficient in basic written and spoken English in order to meet the requirements of this position
SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE: You must have at least one (1) full year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade level (GS-10) in the Federal Service - that is directly related to the work of the position and has equipped you with the particular knowledge - skills and abilities to successfully perform the duties as a Supervisory Peer Specialist
Qualifying specialized experience includes post-personal mental health recovery experience as a mentor providing support to others in mental health and/or addiction recovery - a recovery advocate directly involved with consumers of mental health services - or equivalent work involving in-person communication to support others in mental health recovery
At this level work will have been performed with considerable independence and leading other peer support providers
providing oversight to the peer support services available
giving advice and mentoring all peer support service providers and program managers working with peer support services
Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience - including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g. - Peace Corps - AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g. - professional
philanthropic
religions
spiritual
community
student
social)
Volunteer work helps build critical competencies - knowledge - and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment
You will receive credit for all qualifying experience - including volunteer experience
Note: A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week
Part-time experience will be credited on the basis of time actually spent in appropriate activities
Applicants wishing to receive credit for such experience must indicate clearly the nature of their duties and responsibilities in each position and the number of hours a week spent in such employment
Physical Requirements: The applicant must be able to perform primarily light and sedentary duties with occasionally moderate physical demands - exercise patience - and control emotions - with reasonable accommodation if necessary - without endangering the health and safety of the applicant or others
The work is primarily sedentary
Typically - the employee sits to do the work
There may be some walking - standing - bending - carrying of light items (such as books - papers) - and accessing transportation
The work may require occasional use of Department of Veteran's Affairs approved behavioral management techniques with Veterans who present a danger to self or others
Veterans demonstrate varying levels of wellness - recovery - and symptoms
This position must be equipped to be flexible and accept that work areas are often noisy - irregular - unpredictable - and stressful
Work is performed in a wide range of settings - including the Medical Center - group or family homes - community-based outpatient settings - community organizations - or in transport vehicles (public or government)
Reference: VA Regulations - specifically VA Handbook 5005 - Part II - Appendix F-3 Peer Support Apprentice/Peer Specialist Qualification Standard
This can be found in the local Human Resources Office.
Duties
This Supervisory Peer Specialist position may only be filled with a Veteran that meets statutory requirements that are detailed in the qualifications section
Duties include - but not limited to the following: Provides leadership to the peer support staff team - makes difficult decisions - solves day-to-day unique operational and personnel problems - represents peer support services as a subject matter expert at internal and external meetings
Manages individual peer support staff and team performance using various approaches such as quality reviews and in-person observations
Provides new employee orientation to accelerate integration and productivity
trains or provides training for peer support staff on systems - appropriate peer support practice techniques - new initiatives - ethics - privacy - etc.
coaches and motivates peer support staff to advocate for the Veterans they serve
Verifies and approves CEU credits for peer support staff and ensures peer support staff team members' competencies are maintained by coordinating and tracking training and certification status
May approve leave and review and sign timesheets
ensures the peer support staff team follows facility specific and VHA standard operating procedures - administrative practices - and policies
Recruits and selects new peer support staff using standardized position descriptions and interviewing techniques and formats
conducts peer support staff's mid-year and annual evaluations
effects performance improvement plans or takes additional disciplinary measures to address performance concerns when needed
Coordinates peer support staffing coverage to ensure that peer support services are available to Veteran health care service users as part of their comprehensive treatment and wellness recovery services
In the event the peer support staff team has concerns - feedback - or complaints - the position creates an environment where opposing views can be discussed openly and resolved appropriately
Maintains program and administrative reference materials - project files - and relevant background documents and makes available policies - procedures - and written instructions
distributes written instructions - reference materials - and resources
Maintains extensive knowledge of best practices - tools and resources related to peer support services
Maintains working knowledge of treatments and services available for appropriate referrals
Identifies training needs and assists in the development of training for peer support staff
Participates in the service - training - consultation - and other professional activities of VA health care services and functions as a fully vested member of the multidisciplinary team
Uses personal recovery experiences to model coping techniques and recovery tools to coach Veterans on relevant skills needed for self-management of their health condition(s) and pursuit of their personal wellness
Observes behaviors that might indicate difficulty adapting or responding to treatment (e.g. - missed assessment appointments - failure to attend or maintain abstinence - risk to self or others - disruptive behavior) - completes appropriate documentation - and reports concerns to the treatment team in a timely manner
Uses ongoing individual and group meetings to teach Veterans how to identify and combat negative self-talk and overcome fears by providing a forum that allows Veteran to share their experiences
As necessary - handles crisis interventions for Veterans and addresses other emergent situations without the benefit of specific instructions
Informs Veterans about VA and community supports and resources - including how to effectively utilize them in the recovery and wellness process
Maintains a working knowledge of current trends and developments in holistic approaches in wellness and recovery by reading books - journals - and other relevant materials
Performs other related duties as assigned
Work Schedule: Monday-Friday - 0730-1600 OR 0800-1630 work schedule - but work schedule may be adjusted to meet the needs of the service
Telework: This position is not authorized for telework
Virtual: This is not a virtual position
Position Description/PD#: Supervisory Peer Specialist/PD99755S Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not Approved Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized
The Veterans Health Administration (VHA) is the largest integrated health care system in the United States, providing care at 1,321 health care facilities, including 172 VA Medical Centers and 1,138 outpatient sites of care of varying complexity (VHA outpatient clinics) to over 9 million Veterans enrolled in the VA health care program. VHA Medical Centers provide a wide range of services including traditional hospital-based services such as surgery, critical care, mental health, orthopedics, pharmacy, radiology and physical therapy. In addition, most of our medical centers offer additional medical and surgical specialty services including audiology & speech pathology, dermatology, dental, geriatrics, neurology, oncology, podiatry, prosthetics, urology, and vision care. Some medical centers also offer advanced services such as organ transplants and plastic surgery.