This Peer Specialist position may only be filled with a Veteran that meets statutory requirements that are detailed in the qualifications section. Position provides Veterans the world-class benefits/services they have earned & does so by adhering to the highest standards of compassion, commitment, excellence, professionalism, integrity, accountability & stewardship. Position may provide peer support services to both female and male Veterans. To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 12/28/2023. Time-In-Grade Requirement (TIG): Applicants who are current Federal employees & have held a GS grade any time in the past 52 weeks must also meet TIG the closing date of this announcement. For a GS-6 position must have served 52 weeks at the GS-5; for a GS-7 position must have served 52 weeks at the GS-6; for a GS-8 position must have served 52 weeks at the GS-7 & for a GS-9 position must have served 52 weeks at the GS-8. Grade may have been in any occupation, but must have been held in the Federal service. An SF-50 that shows TIG 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 1-year TIG, as required by the announcement. In this instance, you must provide an additional SF-50 that clearly demonstrates 1-year TIG. Note: TIG requirements also apply to former Federal employees applying for reinstatement as well as current employees applying for Veterans Employment Opportunities Act of 1998 appointment. BASIC REQUIREMENTS - 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 & (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. See Education for additional certification information. 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 & 30% DAV; Those eligible under the Employment Program for People with Disabilities & those eligible for CTAP/ICTAP. NOTE: You MUST provide copies of your DD-214 & 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 & spoken English. You must be proficient in basic written & spoken English in order to meet the requirements of this position. MINIMUM GRADE LEVEL QUALIFICATIONS GS-6: In addition to the basic requirements, must have at least 1 year of specialized experience at the next lower graded level, which involved post-personal mental health recovery experience as a mentor providing counseling to support peers in mental health &/or addiction recovery, a recovery advocate directly involved with consumers of mental health services, a psychiatric therapy aide, or equivalent work involving in-person communication to support others in mental health recovery. Your work has been closely monitored including having work checked in progress & reviewing completed work for accuracy, adequacy & adherence to instructions or procedures. GS-7: In addition to the basic requirements, must have at least 1 year of specialized experience at the next lower graded level, which involved post-personal mental health recovery experience as a mentor providing counseling to support peers in mental health &/or addiction recovery, a recovery advocate directly involved with consumers of mental health services, a psychiatric therapy aide or equivalent work involving in-person communication to support others in mental health recovery. At this level, routine work has been completed with minimal supervisory oversight & review, however close supervision will have been provided for complex & unusual tasks. GS-8: In addition to the basic requirements, must have at least 1 year of specialized experience at the next lower graded level, which involved post-personal mental health recovery experience as a mentor providing counseling to support peers in mental health &/or addiction recovery, a recovery advocate directly involved with consumers of mental health services, a psychiatric therapy aide, or equivalent work involving in-person communication to support others in mental health recovery. At this level you have the ability to work with general instructions for the performance of routine duties & detailed instructions &/or training in performance of the non-routine functions & special assignments. Non-routine/novel work will have been reviewed by spot checking & after completion to evaluate the adequacy of methods, procedures, results, ability to solve new and changing problems, etc. GS-9: In addition to the basic requirements, must have at least 1 year of specialized experience at the next lower graded level, which involved post-personal mental health recovery experience as a mentor providing counseling to support peers in mental health &/or addiction recovery, a recovery advocate directly involved with consumers of mental health services, a psychiatric therapy aide, 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 & you are responsible for making recommendations to the interdisciplinary treatment team that can be relied on for soundness of judgment & maturity of insight on problem situations. OREDUCATION SUBSTITUTION: (TRANSCRIPTS REQUIRED) GS-6: Successful completion 6 months of graduate education or a 1-year post-bachelor's degree internship meets the requirements for GS-6. Only education that is directly related to the work of the position is creditable. GS-7: Successful completion 1 full year of graduate education meets the requirements for GS-7. Only education that is directly related to the work of the position is creditable. GS-8: Successful completion 1½ years of graduate education meets the requirements for GS-8. Only education that is directly related to the work of the position is creditable. GS-9: Successful completion 2 full years of graduate education or a master's degree meets the requirements for GS-9. Only education that is directly related to the work of the position is creditable. You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position: Problem Solving Communication Teaches Others Experience refers to paid & unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) & other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religions; spiritual; community; student; social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge & skills & can provide valuable training & 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. 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. ["*NOTE: Applicant Expiration: Applicants will remain active for 3 months after their initial application is received and/or updated. After that time you must update your application through your USA Jobs account if you would like to be made active again for possible consideration during the open period. ***THIS IS AN OPEN CONTINUOUS ANNOUNCEMENT*** This vacancy will remain open until filled. The first cut-off date is 1/13/2023. Additional applications will be referred as needed. Promotion Potential: This position involves a multi-grade career ladder. The selectee may be promoted to the full performance level without further competition when all regulatory, qualification, and performance requirements are met. Selection at a lower grade level does not guarantee promotion to the full performance level. This Peer Specialist position will be aligned within the Behavioral Health Interdisciplinary Program (BHIP) and will have a special emphasis on recovery from Substance Use Disorders (SUD) within the BHIP setting. This position is part of a national hiring initiative aimed at serving Veterans with SUD across Mental Health settings. The Peer Specialist functions as an interdisciplinary team member, assisting physicians and other professional/non-professional personnel in a rehabilitation treatment program. Peer specialists perform a variety of therapeutic and supportive tasks that include assisting Veterans in articulating their goals for recovery and personal wellness, learning, and practicing new skills, helping them monitor their progress, assisting them in their treatment, modeling effective coping techniques and self-help strategies based on the peer specialist's own recovery experience, and supporting them in advocating for themselves to obtain effective services. Duties include, but not limited to the following: · 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 tolls to coach Veterans to relevant skills need 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: Full-Time, Monday-Friday 8am-4:30pm Compressed/Flexible: Not Available Telework: Not Available Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Position Description/PD#: Peer Specialist/PD/99696S/99697S/99701S/99702S Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Not required"]

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