Occupational Therapist

Description:

Thank you for your interest in the Occupational Therapist position in Physical Medicine and Rehab (PM&R) at VA Connecticut Healthcare System. This position will work directly with the Housing and Urban Development - VA Supported Housing (HUD-VASH) Program. HUD-VASH is an intensive case management program for homeless Veterans aimed at providing psychosocial services to Veterans while residing in stable housing through HUD's Section 8 voucher system.

Requirements:

Basic Requirements :

United States Citizenship: Non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy.

English Language Proficiency: Candidates must be proficient in spoken and written English to be appointed as authorized by 38 U.S.C. 7403(f) (a)).

Education and/or Experience: The candidate must meet one of the following requirements below for Education and/ or Experience:

• a) Bachelor's degree in Occupational Therapy and two (2) years of experience as an Occupational Therapist . or
• (b) Bachelor's degree in Occupational Therapy and two (2) full years of graduate education in a related field; or
• (c) Master's Degree or higher in Occupational Therapy.

Individuals must be a graduate of a degree program in occupational therapy approved by the ACOTE or predecessor organizations. This is inclusive of an internship (supervised fieldwork experience required by the educational institution). ACOTE is the only accreditation agency recognized by the United States Department of Education and the Council for Higher Education Accreditation. Degree programs may be verified by contacting the American Occupational Therapy Association website or at their office address: American Occupational Therapy Association, P.O. Box 31220, Bethesda, MD 20824-122

Certification: Candidates must possess a current NBCOT certification as an Occupational Therapist .

State Occupational Therapy 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.

Grandfathering Provision: 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 : Occupational Therapist, GS-12 Education, Experience, and Licensure and all KSA's .
Experience: Completion of one full year of experience equivalent to at the GS-11 grade level and directly related to the position being filled. Examples of this experience includes but is not limited to: Practice independently; responsible for the assessment of functional and occupational roles using standardized tools; modifies standardized and non-standardized evaluation tools ; select and provide direct occupational therapy interventions and procedures with routine complexity to enhance safety, wellness, performance in activities of daily living (ADL); and instrumental activities of daily living (IADL), education, work, play, leisure, and social participation; demonstrate an understanding of the theories of treatment in occupational therapy and their proper application through the use of activity analysis, behavioral intervention, frame of references, and therapeutic procedures.

AND

Demonstrated knowledge, Skills and Abilities (KSAs) : In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSAs:

• (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.

Preferred Experience: Mental Health and Physical Disabilities Experience .

Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/ .

Promotion Potential: The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-12.

Physical Requirements: The physical demands of the position involve standard office requirements such as using the telephone, retrieving files, writing reports, data entry and maintenance of computer databases, etc.. The position requires periods of walking, standing and bending. If unable to meet the physical demands for the position, reasonable accommodations may be made to enable qualified individuals with disabilities to perform essential functions. Must have good manual dexterity. Must be able to express or exchange ideas by means of spoken and written word. Must be able to view and read information on computer screens. The therapist will travel into the community to meet Veterans in a variety of areas. The therapist will be exposed to weather elements.