As others have said, it varies by VA, largely because the decision on whether or not to approve is (in my understanding) up to facility leadership. So even if you meet criteria for a QSI, they may still deny.
Bloodwork to check immunization titers, urine test to screen for illicit substances (some facilities do, some don't - you should have received forms to sign in advance if this is required) and a very brief physical (bend down and touch your toes and asking if you have problems lifting light objects kind of thing).
I've had a couple physicals and they were very different from each other. Blood work (bring your immunization records to potentially cut down on this), maybe a urine drug screen, varying degrees of actual physical stuff (check mobility, vision, hearing). In general I've found the employee health staff very kind.
I think you should reach out like you’re planning, 2-3 weeks ahead.
Thank you, Psycycle! I am not licensed yet. I just passed the EPPP yesterday and I will submit the last required document for my application, Verification of Supervised Experience when I complete my postdoc next month. I thought that I will be eligible for GS-13 a year after being licensed, but I will look into it to make sure.
If you want a specific start date, I would contact your chief now to clarify that date since your ultimate start date will depend on when HR processes you and the chief would be the person to communicate that to HR and who might be able to speed up processing or help maintain that course.
I'm only a few years into my VA career but the people that I know who did not start at step 1 were mid-career professionals newly entering the VA.
Yep, I started as a GS-12 after postdoc and was licensed and credentialed within a few months of starting. Make sure you remind your chief during the summer of 2022 to process your GS-13 promotion to ensure that you can get that promoted as close to 1 year from your start date (mine missed like 1 or 2 pay cycles IIRC due to admin processes).
Thank you for the clarification and for sharing your experience, summerbabe! Too bad about the delayed pay increase. 1-2 pay cycles are very significant for GS-13 promotion. I will be reaching out to the chief to clarify the start date, and I will stay on top of the level change next year around this time.
Thank you, AcronymAllergy! It is a hard-to-fill position that was vacant for a while. So maybe that is why HR was more willing to be flexible. It makes sense that only directly related experience is counted. I am glad that I asked here and able to receive clarification.
I did a VA postdoc and then got hired into a GS-12 and know of others who followed a similar path so I don’t think there’s any issues getting HR to recognize that 1 additional year of experience beyond the GS-11 level in this scenario.
My experience has been similar to yours. My current position was offered to me very quickly after my interviews (I think a week or less), while other positions took a few weeks or a month to get back to me with updates. There's so much variability across sites that it's almost impossible to say what would be "normal."
Did they ask for references and follow-up? I think some departments do their own checks while others leave it to HR or bypass it all-together (terrible ideas IMO).
I know of VAs that don’t reference check and those places tended to have either major MH access problems leading to high provider burnout or had poor MH management which would lead to greater than necessary turnover so in both scenarios, they are often happy to take anybody who can pass the background check and show up to NEO.
I know one psychologist who retired from there. Maybe I will reach out. My student had two interviews and they said they were impressed with her during both the first and second interview. She is a perfect candidate for that position imo so I am hoping for a positive outcome. There was another VA job that she wanted but they took an internal candidate. She is feeling pretty bad.
Hope there’s a good outcome! One other thing I can think of that could be impacting an otherwise positive interview is whether or not that facility has a supervisory psychologist who is willing to supervise and sign off on every note until your student is licensed and credentialed.
absolutely! Postdoc is not required in some states. It is a choice depending upon your readiness for independent practice. If you are in a VA system, you have so much support and great access to resources. You will be in good hands
I think this is highly dependent on the specifics of the locations/local leadership and your own personal preferences.
Agreed with the above post that it probably varies pretty significantly by area. I'm also not familiar with Vet Center positions in terms of pay and other benefits, day-to-day headaches, etc. As far as salaried positions go, VA typically tends to be one of the better offers out there, at least early career. They're also pretty open about doing extra non-VA work (e.g., essentially no non-compete). And they seem to have a lot of masters-level providers in mid-management positions, if that fits with you.
Not too familiar with Vet Centers besides the basics but here are some possible differences that pop to mind:
Unless you for sure you don't need/want a postdoc, I'd look at both. Postdoc apps start in late fall/winter with offers usually going out early spring, which leaves plenty of time to still consider job options.
Re: bolded part, doesn’t the VA have some “graduate psychologist” positions that are essentially regular staff jobs with supervision built in? I’m not clear on specifics but I’ve heard it mentioned as an alternative to post doc. Main benefit being earning a full salary sooner.
Yes, VA commonly hires psychologists who aren't yet licensed and sets them up with supervision as they work toward licensure. They do it in my VA all the time. There's usually a specified time frame to licensure, after which you may lose your position if not licensed.
Yup. On internship at a high turnover VA, there were 4 BHIP grad psychologists who met with one of the supervisory PhDs for an hour a week as a group to fulfill the required supervision component but that's at least 80+ extra notes to review and sign weekly. But that can be harder to swing for a single grad psychologist position, especially if they can find a licensed psychologist to fill that position.
I think it's 2 years. There should also be an automatic promotion from GS11 to GS12 after 1 year.
I appreciate the insight. I am looking to transition out of a Vet Center due to multiple reasons and have accepted a tentative offer for a PCMHI position at a CBOC. Vet Centers can be great places to work if you enjoy long-term psychotherapy and couples/family counseling. I’m an entry level clinician, and although I’m still looking for where I fit best clinically, after being at Vet Center for over 1 year I know that couples/family counseling is not my jam. There are productivity pressures at Vet Centers as well, although it is measured differently than at VA.
Yes
For trainees, you receive credit for their RVUs. For pre-licensure psychologists, I don't know, but I don't think so. You should get your clinical expectations adjusted to allow time for supervision, though (e.g., if you're expected to have 30 hours of bookable/patient care activity per week and you're providing 2 hours of supervision, you should then be expected to have 28 bookable hours).
You'll probably start getting the emails for Healing Touch and Reiki soon.
Soon? I recall a VA I trained at offering Reiki for cancer patients 13 years ago.
Seems a lot of folks posting here are not distinguishing between formal postdocs/fellowships and the potential of acquiring a VA staff position that could provide postdoc hours (aka graduate psychologist, GS-11). Many of these jobs will give you the two hours a week of supervision if you ask/negotiate and you can then get licensed anywhere.
I don't think so. As your friend found out, IT (or a system CAC) has to specifically authorize consult actions. For example, I am on a specialty team and only my direct supervisor and one of my colleagues (as the backup) has the ability to accept or discontinue incoming consults.
Only people who are authorized by IT/the CAC can close a consult by submitting an appropriate note. In the case of an intake, when you select your note title, there's a small part in the bottom that allows you to link to the consult. If that prompt doesn't show up, you haven't been authorized. Even if you complete the clinical work and document appropriately, somebody with consult admin access will have to go in and manually 'link' the note, visit, and consult and then administratively close it.
