Occupational Therapist- Fee Basis

Clarification from the agency

NOTE: The 2-page Resume requirement does not apply to this position. For more information, refer to Required Documents below.

Major Duties to include but not limited to:

• Plans and carries out the full range of treatment where therapeutic objectives are complex, and procedures involved require the application of highly specialized skills and knowledge. Established treatment procedures are not always applicable and at times must be substantially adapted and applied with critical concern for patients who are acutely or chronically ill or have a combination of severe mental or physical disabilities with secondary complications.
• Treatment plans require frequent medication in response to subtle but significant changes in the condition of the patient. The employment of unusual and innovative treatment techniques is often necessary to obtain the best medical/surgical outcome. Incumbent must coordinate and employ multiple treatment approaches simultaneously to accomplish complex treatment objectives.
• Exhibits and demonstrates expertise in assessing, planning, implementing and evaluation treatment programs for a diverse patient caseload. They should demonstrate skill in evaluating patient who have or may develop impairments, activity limitations and participation restrictions related to conditions of the musculoskeletal, neuromuscular, cardiovascular, pulmonary, Mental Health, and/or integumentary systems while considering the effects attributable to unique psychosocial and environment factors. They will provide feedback and instruction to all associated health care team members and students. Primary responsibility will be in Home Based Primary Care (HBPC) but may serve in other OT services.
• Completes evaluation and treatment in a timely fashion; chart review will allow the therapist an opportunity to assess appropriateness of the referral and possible contraindications for treatment. Consult are scheduled considering priority, frequency of care, and coordination of schedules with other members of the treatment team. Flexibility of schedule must be maintained to allow for unscheduled patient and for mentoring/consultation.
• Therapist 's evaluation includes a medical history, results, and interpretation of the appropriate test/measurement s performed. Tests are frequently complex and may need to be adapted because of multiple physical and emotional disability or present conditions.
• Therapist utilizes evaluation data to plan and implement comprehensive patient treatment programs immediately involving the veteran in the goal setting and treatment processes as feasible. Therapist modifies treatment plan according to evaluation findings on an ongoing basis to meet short and long-term goals.
• Therapist demonstrates a full professional and current understanding of the theories of occupational therapy treatment and their proper application.
• Therapist recognizes even subtle response or adverse reactions to treatment, initiates effective action immediately, and advises other health care team members as indicated.
• Therapist involves the patient, family, significant others (per Veteran's choice) and pertinent health care staff in the treatment process by ongoing communication through demonstration, instruction, team conferences, and chart documentation appropriate to each veteran's treatment goals.
• Therapist assess veteran's learning needs and plans/implements appropriate patient education programs, involving the veteran, family, and significant others (as directed by Veteran) in the instructional process.
• Therapist demonstrates advanced knowledge and expert skill in a range of specialized interventions and treatment modalities used in occupational therapy. He/she can serve as a consultant for other health providers for the delivery of care in occupational therapy. Can teach and mentor other providers to include students in the specialized field of occupational therapy.
• Therapist has advanced skills to perform and interpret specialized evaluative procedures and tests in evaluating the treatment outcomes.
• Therapist can oversee specialized areas in the field of occupational therapy such as, Home Based Primary Care (HBPC), Mental Health, Inpatient Rehab, acute and outpatient settings and may serve as the sole provider.
• Therapist provide oversight to Occupational therapy assistants and delegate patient care responsibilities to them. May also delegate non-patient care duties to a non-licensed staff.
• Perform ancillary assignments as deemed appropriate given the needs of the facility.

Work Schedule: Fee basis- Intermittent hours per week as assigned by service; 8:00am- 4:30pm.
Telework: Not Available
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Functional Statement #: 00483-553

Conditions of employment

• You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job.
• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959.
• Must be proficient in written and spoken English.
• Subject to background/security investigation.
• Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements (https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/form-i-9-acceptable-documents). Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued dentification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.
• 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).
• Complete all application requirements detailed in the "Required Documents" section of this announcement.
• Loss of Credential. An employee in this occupation who fails to maintain the required state or territorial licensure and the NBCOT certification, both current and in good standing,] must be removed from the occupation, which may result in termination of employment.

Qualifications

Basic Requirements:

• United States Citizenship: Be a Citizen of the United States. (Non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with 38 U.S.C.7407(a)).
• English Language 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. Individuals 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. OR
   • (c) Master's 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. 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.

• Foreign Graduates. Graduates of foreign occupational therapy programs meet the requirements of subparagraph 3b(2) if they have a current, full, active and unrestricted license referred to in subparagraph [3e] of this appendix.
• Certification. Candidates must possess a current NBCOT certification as an OT
• 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.
• Loss of Credential. An employee in this occupation who fails to maintain the required state or territorial licensure and the NBCOT certification, both current and in good standing,] must be removed from the occupation, which may result in termination of employment.

Grade Determinations:
GS-9:
Education, Experience, or Licensure: None beyond the basic requirements.

GS-11
Education, Experience, or Licensure:

• Completion of one year of experience equivalent to at least the GS-9 grade level and directly related to the position being filled;
• OR
• Three years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to a degree in occupational therapy or a directly related field;
• OR
• Doctorate in occupational therapy.

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

1. Knowledge of occupational therapy practice.
2. Ability to administer/interpret evaluation findings to develop and coordinate intervention plans, including goals and methods of treatment.
3. Ability to implement intervention plans directly or in collaboration with others.
4. Skill in monitoring an individual's response to interventions and modify treatment plans and reevaluating as indicated.
5. Ability to communicate and or collaborate with patients, family members, caregivers, interdisciplinary professionals and/or other individuals verbally and in writing.
6. Knowledge of health and safety regulations to minimize risk in the provision of patient care and the environment of care.
7. Knowledge of applicable regulations governing documentation, reimbursement and workload entry in accordance with established professional practice.

GS-12
Education, Experience, and Licensure: Completion of one year of experience equivalent to at the GS-11 grade level and directly related to the position being filled.

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

1. Knowledge of occupational therapy principles and techniques consistent with current clinical standards based on OT theory and evidence based practice. 7 Knowledge is inclusive of physical, occupational, cognitive, and psychosocial functional deficits.
2. Ability to collaborate and communicate orally and in writing with all internal and external stakeholders.
3. 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.
4. Skill in procuring, fabricating, adjusting, adapting, and modifying orthoses, splints, and adaptive equipment for activities of daily living (inclusive of durable medical equipment).
5. Ability to conduct OT related in-service and clinical training

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

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.

Physical Requirements: Heavy lifting and carrying (45+ lbs); Moderate carrying (44 lbs.); straight pulling (<1 hour); pushing (_<1 hour); reaching above shoulder; use of fingers; both hands required; walking (2 hours); standing (3 hours); kneeling (<1 hour). See VA Directive and Handbook 5019.

How you will be evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE MAY NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. Your application, resume, C.V., and/or supporting documentation will be verified. Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect consideration for employment.

Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religions; spiritual; community; student; social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.

The Department of Veterans Affairs performs pre-employment reference checks as an assessment method used in the hiring process to verify information provided by a candidate (e.g., on resume or during interview or hiring process); gain additional knowledge regarding a candidate's abilities; and assist a hiring manager with making a final selection for a position.

It is the policy of the VA to not deny employment to those that have faced financial hardships or periods of unemployment.

Veterans and Transitioning Service Members: Please visit the VA for Vets site for career-search tools for Veterans seeking employment at VA, career development services for our existing Veterans, and coaching and reintegration support for military service members.

To apply for this position, you must provide a complete Application Package which includes:

1. Resume (must include the following information):

• Job Title
• Duties (be as detailed as possible)
• Month and year start/end dates (e.g. June 2024 to April 2025)
• Full-time or part-time (include hours worked per week)

NOTE: Do not include a photograph or video of yourself, or any sensitive information (age, date of birth, marital status, protected health information, religious affiliation, social security number, etc.) on your resume or cover letter. Including any of this information may result in an ineligibility rating.

Special Note for Applications: To complete your application, please use the following link https://vacareers.va.gov/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/Resume.docx to download the standard Clinical Resume Document. This one-page document does not need to be modified and must be uploaded into the two-page restricted 'Resume' document upload field.
Your full resume/CV may be uploaded without page limitation into the 'Other' document upload field.

2. Transcript (must include the following information):

• Your Name
• Name of the college or university
• Full address of the college or university
• Degree Received
• Date Conferred

REMINDER: A transcript, either official or unofficial, must be submitted with your application. A copy of your certificate/degree or screenshot of your current classes are not a replacement of your transcript and they will not be used in the qualifying process.

3. License (must include the following information):

• Name on License
• Issuing state or territory
• Complete license number
• Expiration date

4. Certification. Candidates must possess a current NBCOT certification as an OT.

The following documents are accepted, and may be required if applicable to your eligibility and/or qualifications for this position. Please ensure you have included all documents required for your application, such as a copy of your transcript (if using education to qualify), SF-50's (current/former Federal employees), etc.

• Cover Letter
• DD-214/ Statement of Service
• Disability Letter (Schedule A)
• Disability Letter (VA)
• License
• Your full resume/CV may be uploaded without page limitation here.
• NBCOT Certification
• Other (3)
• Performance Appraisal
• Professional Certification
• Resume
• Separation Notice (RIF)
• SF-15
• SF-50/ Notification of Personnel Action
• Transcript

Veterans' Preference: When applying for Federal Jobs, eligible Veterans should claim preference for 5pt (TP), 10pt (CP/CPS/XP), or for Sole Survivor Preference (SSP) in the questionnaire. You must provide a legible copy of your DD214(s) which shows dates and character of service (honorable, general, etc.). If you are currently serving on active duty and expect to be released or discharged within 120 days you must submit documentation related to your active duty service which reflects the dates of service, character of service (honorable, general, etc.), and dates of impending separation. Additionally, disabled veterans and others eligible for 10-point preference (such as widows or mothers of eligible Veterans) must also submit an SF-15 "Application for 10 Point Veteran Preference" with required proof as stated on the form. Documentation is required to award preference. For more information on Veterans' Preference, please visit Feds Hire Vets - Veterans - Job Seekers - Veterans' Preference.

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