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:
- United States Citizenship: Non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy.
- English Proficiency. Candidates must be proficient in spoken and written English to be appointed as authorized by 38 U.S.C. § 7403(f).
- Education and/or Experience:
(1) The individual must meet at least one of the following requirements below:
- (a) Bachelor's degree in occupational therapy and two (2) years of experience as an occupational therapist;
- NOTE: The baccalaureate degree must be 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
or
- (b) Bachelor's degree in occupational therapy and two (2) full years of graduate education in a related field;
- NOTE: The baccalaureate degree must be 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.
(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 20824-1220.
Certification-Documentation Submitted. Candidates must possess a current NBCOT certification as an OT.
State Licensure-Documentation Submitted. 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. All [persons] employed in VHA [in this occupational series or in another occupational series that are also performing the duties as described in the qualification standard on the effective date of this] qualification standard are considered to have met all qualification requirements for the [ ] grade held including positive education and [ ] licensure/certification/registration [that are part of the basic requirements of this occupation]. [ ] Employees who do not meet all the basic requirements required in this standard, but who met the qualifications applicable to the position at the time they were appointed to it, the following provisions apply:
(1) They may be reassigned, promoted up to and including the full performance level, or changed to lower grade within the occupation, but may not be promoted beyond the full performance level or placed in supervisory or managerial positions.
(2) If an OT who was retained under this provision leaves the occupation, the employee will lose protected status and must meet the full VA qualification standard requirements in effect at the time of reentry to the occupation.
(3) OTs initially grandfathered into this occupation, who subsequently obtain additional education and/or licensure/certification/registration that meet all the basic requirements of this qualification standard, must maintain the required credentials as a condition of employment in the occupation.
(4) OTs who are appointed on a temporary basis prior to the effective date of the qualification standard may not have their temporary appointment extended or be reappointed, on a temporary or permanent basis, until they fully meet the basic requirements of the standard.
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 (Clinical Specialist), GS-13
(1) Education, Experience, and Licensure. Completion of one year of experience equivalent to at least the [GS-12 grade] level and directly related to the position being filled and one of the following.
- A minimum of 2,000 hours of clinical practice directly in the advanced practice area. This time must be within the past five years;
- Certification in an area recognized by the AOTA;
- Completion of a fellowship/residency or advanced degree program in the advanced practice area; or
- An additional advanced degree in a related field.
(2) Demonstrated KSAs. In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSAs:
- Knowledge of contemporary occupational therapy across multiple areas of practice.
- Ability to provide clinical guidance in the advanced practice area to other OT practitioners.
- Knowledge of advanced specialized evaluation, interventions and services to independently develop treatment strategies for area of specialization.
- Skill in developing protocols and procedures for intervention programs based on current occupational therapy theory, recent research, and practice.
- Ability to provide consultation to other health care practitioners and outside groups about occupational therapy scope of practice for area of specialization.
- Ability to implement, revise/update evidence based occupational therapy services and programming in area of specialization.
Assignment. Clinical OT specialists at this grade level serve as subject matter experts and as consultants to occupational therapists and other medical center staff in evaluating and treating patients in the areas of occupational therapy that are beyond the general practice of occupational therapy. This individual must demonstrate skills and techniques for a specific patient population that has highly complex occupational and/or psychosocial impairments. Clinical OT specialist may initiate, lead, and support research projects related to clinical needs. This may include grant writing, guiding others in the process, and direct clinical participation in research.
Preferred Experience: Experience providing occupational therapy services to patients experiencing Chronic Pain and implementing the biopsychosocial approach to pain management .
Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit
https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/.
The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-13
Physical Requirements: See VA Directive and Handbook 5019