Forensic Evaluator/Psychologist III

Title: Forensic Evaluator/Psychologist III

State Role Title: 49213

Hiring Range: starting at $90,000 (Salary commensurate based on experience)

Pay Band: 6

Agency: Dept Behavioral Health/Develop

Location: Western State Hospital

Agency Website: jobs.virginia.gov

Recruitment Type: General Public - G

Job Duties

This position is eligible for a sign on bonus of up to $8,000. *Must be new to state service in order to be eligible*

Western State Hospital is seeking a Forensic Evaluator to join our team! This position provides forensic assessments (Competency to stand trial, mental state at the time of the offense, Commissioner-Appointed NGRI temporary custody and second opinion evaluations, etc.) for defendants and NGRI acquittees ordered to inpatient treatment at a state facility. This position will also provide an array of psychological assessments and services as well, which include: psychological screenings, treatment team consultation, and program development for pretrial defendants. Court testimony and forensic administrative support as needed.

Western State Hospital is a 302-bed public psychiatric hospital for adults located in beautiful Staunton, Virginia. We serve an array of vulnerable patient populations with severe mental illness, including those who are justice-involved and those admitted involuntarily for emergency psychiatric care. We are a Joint Commission accredited facility. Our state-of-the-art facility opened in November 2013, and we have recently completed an expansion of the hospital to include two new patient care units. The successful candidate for this position will join 17 experienced and highly skilled licensed clinical psychologists. As a training site for many disciplines, opportunities are available to supervise clinical psychology graduate students, undergraduate psychology student, and other trainees. There are plentiful opportunities for continuing education in forensics and other areas relevant to the delivery of psychological services. Staunton is a vibrant town in the Shenandoah Valley within 45 minutes of multiple major universities. We hope that the high quality of life, collegial multidisciplinary professional staff, quality reputation, and working relationships with academic institutions will attract the psychologist we seek.

Minimum Qualifications

- Ph.D or Psy. D. in Clinical or Counseling Psychology from an APA accredited program
- Must be licensed (or be licensed-eligible) to practice clinical psychology in Virginia
- Completion (or eligible to complete) the forensic evaluation training program for Virginia
- Demonstrated experience providing forensic evaluations required.

Knowledge of psychiatric conditions that affect competency to stand trial and sanity at the time of the offense. Understand the relevant Virginia codes and psycholegal criteria for persons found incompetent to stand trial, insane at the time of the offense, and not guilty by reason of insanity. Knowledge of group and individual treatment modalities for forensic populations. Knowledge of hospital/community/agency resources for forensic populations. Experience providing expert testimony regarding forensic matters. Ability to provide consultation and/or training to the behavioral health and legal communities.

Additional Considerations

- Bilingual
- veteran

Special Instructions

You will be provided a confirmation of receipt when your application and/or résumé is submitted successfully. Please refer to “Your Application” in your account to check the status of your application for this position.

The successful applicant must pass a criminal background investigation, drug screening test and employment reference check. The applicant must have the ability to perform at the level of physical demands noted on the Employee Work Profile and the verified ability to perform the essential functions of the position.

Commonwealth’s Alternate Hiring Process: In support of the Commonwealth’s commitment to inclusion, we are encouraging individuals with disabilities to apply through the Commonwealth Alternative Hiring Process. To be considered for this opportunity, applicants will need to provide their Certificate of Disability (COD) provided by a Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor within the Department for Aging & Rehabilitative Services (DARS), or the Department for the Blind & Vision Impaired (DBVI). Veterans are encouraged to answer Veteran status questions and submit their disability documentation, if applicable, to DARS/DBVI to get their Certificate of Disability. If you need to get a Certificate of Disability, use this link: https://www.vadars.org/drs/cpid/PWContact.aspx, or call DARS at 800- 552-5019, or DBVI at 800-622-2155.

DBHDS is a healthcare organization and must comply with the federal CMS Omnibus COVID-19 Health Care staff Vaccination Regulation which requires all employees to be vaccinated or receive an exemption. Upon acceptance of a job offer, new recruits will be asked to disclose their vaccination status (and for those fully vaccinated, proof of vaccination) during the pre-employment process. New staff who are not vaccinated for any reason or choose not to disclose their vaccination status, will need to request a medical or religious accommodation. If you have questions, please contact the Office of Human Resources.

Contact Information

Name: Samantha Leep

Phone: 540-332-8306

Email: samantha.leep@dbhds.virginia.gov

In support of the Commonwealth’s commitment to inclusion, we are encouraging individuals with disabilities to apply through the Commonwealth Alternative Hiring Process. To be considered for this opportunity, applicants will need to provide their AHP Letter (formerly COD) provided by the Department for Aging & Rehabilitative Services (DARS), or the Department for the Blind & Vision Impaired (DBVI). Service-Connected Veterans are encouraged to answer Veteran status questions and submit their disability documentation, if applicable, to DARS/DBVI to get their AHP Letter. Requesting an AHP Letter can be found at AHP Letter or by calling DARS at 800-552-5019.

Note: Applicants who received a Certificate of Disability from DARS or DBVI dated between April 1, 2022- February 29, 2024, can still use that COD as applicable documentation for the Alternative Hiring Process.