Occupational Therapist

Summary The Occupational Therapist provides skilled occupational therapy services to the Oscar G. Johnson VA Medical Center (OGJ VAMC) and Community Based Outpatient Clinics (CBOC) Home Based Primary Care Program (HBPC) with the primary focus on the home setting. The duties and responsibilities are carried out throughout the medical center including all clinical and patient care areas involved with the service. Responsibilities Serves as the HBPC Occupational Therapist and is responsible for providing comprehensive evaluation for all Occupational Therapy needs of HBPC and Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Services (PMRS) patients. This may require an: assessment of mentation relative to successful therapy participation, neuromuscular status, respiratory status, and functional capabilities. Major Duties: Determines attainable goals for each patient and designs the initial treatment plan. Modifications are made as the patient progresses and goals are met. Provides occupational therapy to acutely and chronically ill patients requiring ongoing assessment and frequent treatment modifications. Able to perform complex treatment procedures required in the management of adult and geriatric patients. Recommends equipment the patient will need for optimal functioning in their home environment. Attends conferences, workshops, and other continuing education programs to gain insight into therapeutic and motivational patient strategies. Attendees are expected to disseminate this learned information to appropriate staff via report; in-service or case study presentation. Provides formal and informal nursing and support staff education including, but not limited to, proper utilization of ambulation aids, proper wheelchair seating, activities of daily living status, and range of motion. Communicate patient progress and proposed occupational therapy interventions to facilitate that progress via electronic notes, phone, or staff meetings. Assesses patient/family educational needs, abilities, and barriers to learning. From this information, the Occupational Therapist establishes appropriate educational agendas. The therapist instructs the patient and/or caregiver in therapeutic exercises, living environment safety, strategies to enhance AOL status, work simplification, and the appropriate utilization of durable medical equipment or prosthetics and related topics. Visibly demonstrates the ICARE (Integrity, Commitment, Advocacy, Respect, Excellence) Core Values in interactions with Veterans, staff, and other stakeholders. Additional duties as assigned by the Supervisory Physical Therapist. Work Schedule: Full Time Mon-FRI 0800AM- 4:30PM Telework: Available; as determined by the agency policy. Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Financial Disclosure Report: Not required Requirements 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. You may be required to serve a probationary period. Subject to background/security investigation. Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. 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). Participation in the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccination program is a requirement for all Veterans Health Administration Health Care Personnel (HCP) – See “Additional Information” below for details. Qualifications Applicants pending the completion of educational or certification/licensure requirements may be referred and tentatively selected but may not be hired until all requirements are met. Basic Requirements: English Proficiency. Candidates must be proficient in spoken and written English to be appointed as authorized by 38 U.S.C. § 7403(f). Education: (1) The individual must meet at least one of the following requirements below: (a) Bachelors degree in occupational therapy from an approved program prior to the AOTA January 1, 2005 decision that the Accreditation Council for Occupational Therapy Education (ACOTE) would only accredit master or doctoral degree programs in occupational therapy and two (2) years of experience as an occupational therapist; OR (b) Bachelors degree in occupational therapy from an approved program prior to the AOTA January 1, 2005 decision that ACOTE would only accredit master or doctoral degree programs in occupational therapy and two (2) full years of graduate education in a related field; OR (c) Masters Degree or higher in occupational therapy. (2) Individuals must be a graduate of a degree program in occupational therapy approved by the ACOTE or predecessor organizations. Certification. Candidates must possess a current NBCOT certification as an occupational therapist. State Licensure. Candidates must possess a full, current, and unrestricted state license [ ], to practice occupational therapy in a state, territory or Commonwealth of the United States (i.e., Puerto Rico), or in the District of Columbia. May qualify based on being covered by the Grandfathering Provision as described in the VA Qualification Standard for this occupation (only applicable to current VHA employees who are in this occupation and meet the criteria). Grade Determinations: In addition to the basic requirements for employment, the following criteria must be met in order to qualify at the GS-12 grade level. GS-12 Completion of one year of experience equivalent to the GS-11 grade level and directly related to the position being filled. AND In addition to the experience or education above, the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSAs to qualify at the GS-12 level: (a) Knowledge of occupational therapy principles and techniques consistent with current clinical standards based on OT theory and evidence based practice. Knowledge is inclusive of physical, occupational, cognitive, and psychosocial functional deficits. (b) Ability to collaborate and communicate orally and in writing with all internal and external stakeholders. (c) Ability to use critical analysis, clinical reasoning, and creativity to independently solve complex problems related to adapting and modifying assessments, treatment plans, activities and procedures to meet the needs of patients. (d) Skill in procuring, fabricating, adjusting, adapting, and modifying orthoses, splints, and adaptive equipment for activities of daily living (inclusive of durable medical equipment). (e) Ability to conduct OT related in-service and clinical training. Creditable Experience. To be creditable, the experience must have required the use of knowledge, skills, and abilities associated with current professional occupational therapy practice. Creditable experience can be obtained through employment as an OT. This may be evidenced by one or both of the following: (1) Active professional practice. Active professional practice includes paid/non-paid employment as a professional OT, and as defined by the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA). Experience gained after graduation but prior to licensure/certification is creditable, provided the candidate was utilized as a graduate OT and subsequently passed the National Board for Certification in Occupational Therapy (NBCOT) certification, and the required state regulatory requirements. (2) Completion of a post-graduate fellowship or a post-graduate residency program can be substituted for creditable experience on a year for year basis. Fellowships or post-graduate training programs are typically in specialty areas such as advanced practice, research, mental health, gerontology, enhanced education, health policy, leadership and therapeutic sciences. (3) Quality of Experience. Experience is only creditable if it is post-graduate experience as a professional OT directly related to the duties to be performed. Qualifying experience must be at a level comparable to professional occupational therapy experience at the next lower level. For all assignments above the full performance level, the higher level duties must consist of significant scope, administrative independence, complexity (difficulty) and range of variety as described in this standard at the specified grade level and be performed by the incumbent at least 25% of the time. Part-Time Experience. Part-time experience is creditable according to its relationship to a full-time workweek. For example, an OT employed 20 hours per week, or on a half time basis, would receive one (1) full-time workweek of credit for each two (2) weeks of service. Content Specialty/Specialty area. Specialized content areas of occupational therapy include, but are not limited to, geriatrics, mental health, neurology, cardiopulmonary, spinal cord injury, amputee, low vision, chronic pain, polytrauma, brain injury, lymphedema, assistive technology, hand therapy, driving and community mobility, and seating and mobility. As health care evolves content specialty will change. References: VA Handbook 5005/127, Part II, Appendix G14 Occupational Therapist Qualification Standard GS-0631, Veterans Health Administration The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-12. Physical Requirements: The work requires long periods of standing, walking, and sitting. Work involves constant bending, lifting, and twisting. The work requires pushing wheelchair and stretcher patients. Positioning patients who are unconscious or disabled requires considerable effort and working in awkward positions. Lifting of totally incapacitated patients is done only with the help of other employees. Education IMPORTANT: A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on 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: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/. 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: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/. Additional Information Receiving Service Credit or Earning Annual (Vacation) Leave: Federal Employees earn annual leave at a rate (4, 6 or 8 hours per pay period) which is based on the number of years they have served as a Federal employee. Selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual, based on prior work experience or military service experience. This credited service can be used in determining the rate at which they earn annual leave. Such credit must be requested and approved prior to the appointment date and is not guaranteed. 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. Pursuant to VHA Directive 1193.01, VHA health care personnel (HCP) are required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 subject to such accommodations as required by law (i.e., medical, religious or pregnancy). VHA HCPs do not include remote workers who only infrequently enter VHA locations. If selected, you will be required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and submit documentation of proof of vaccination before your start date. The agency will provide additional information regarding what information or documentation will be needed and how you can request a legally required accommodation from this requirement using the reasonable accommodation process. 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 applicants 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.