Clarification from the agency

NOTE: The 2-page Resume requirement does not apply to this position. For more information, refer to Required Documents below. This position is Open to current permanent Department of Veteran Affairs employees, current permanent VA Nationwide employees; current permanent Federal employees from other agencies. If you are not a current permanent employee of Veterans affairs, please apply to Job Announcement CBSY-12931385-26-TC.

Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional

Major duties include, but are not limited to:

• The physical therapist and facility Safe Patient Handling and Mobility (SPHM) coordinator works under facility guidance and SPHM program office requirements. Therapist is responsible for all medical facilities and clinics within the healthcare system and maintains continuous responsibility and accountability for the SPHM program across all services and disciplines.
• Veteran care aimed at maximizing functional ability and SPHM coordination responsibilities. The incumbent independently develops and modifies physical therapy treatment plans based on changing medical conditions.
• The incumbent participates in planning, design, and construction phases of facility projects in veteran-occupied spaces while following VHA design standards. They complete ergonomic assessments, implement appropriate SPHM technology, and work with stakeholders to report unsafe conditions and initiate corrective actions.
• They conduct comprehensive rounding throughout the facility to monitor performance, investigate employee and patient handling incidents, provide recommendations, and track related injuries in collaboration with workers' compensation, safety personnel, OSHA record keepers, and the patient safety manager.
• Serves as a resource person for matters related to physical therapy in the treatment of Veterans. Routinely updates knowledge and skills through continuing education for Physical Therapy and Safe Patient Handling. Maintains state licensure as required by VHA.
• The coordinator selects and coordinates the acquisition of SPHM equipment and provides expertise to all individuals and workgroups involved in patient handling. They establish and maintain local SPHM procedures, evaluate and direct program activities, and ensure alignment with local, regional, and national standards, including Joint Commission and VHA Office of Academic Affiliations.
• The incumbent makes autonomous clinical decisions in a direct access environment and collaborates effectively with the treatment team, veterans, and families to coordinate care.
• They communicate clearly through electronic medical records and other channels and perform examinations and evaluations for conditions related to musculoskeletal, neuromuscular, cardiovascular, pulmonary, and integumentary systems while considering psychosocial and environmental factors.
• They interpret findings, select outcome measures, integrate results into the plan of care, and determine prognosis and treatment goals based on veteran preferences to maximize functional independence.
• They develop and support evidence-based treatment programs, remain knowledgeable of research, and refer to other professionals when appropriate.
• Discharge planning includes follow-up resources and outcome comparisons.
• Other duties may be assigned.

Work Schedule: Full-Time, Monday - Friday; 0730-1600
Telework: Ad-hoc only
Pay: Competitive salary and regular salary increases. When setting pay, a higher step rate of the appropriate grade may be determined after consideration of higher or unique qualifications or special needs of the VA (Above Minimum Rate of the Grade).
Paid Time Off: 37-50 days of annual paid time offer per year (13-26 days of annual leave, 13 days of sick leave, 11 paid Federal holidays per year)Selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual, based on prior [work experience] or military service experience.
Parental Leave: After 12 months of employment, up to 12 weeks of paid parental leave in connection with the birth, adoption, or foster care placement of a child.
Child Care Subsidy: After 60 days of employment, full time employees with a total family income below $144,000 may be eligible for a childcare subsidy up to 25% of total eligible childcare costs for eligible children up to the monthly maximum of $416.66.
Retirement: Traditional federal pension (5 years vesting) and federal 401K with up to 5% in contributions by VA
Insurance: Federal health/vision/dental/term life/long-term care (many federal insurance programs can be carried into retirement)
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Functional Statement #: 000000
Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized

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.
• Subject to background/security investigation.
• Must pass pre-employment physical examination.
• 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.
• 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.

As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1 or 2-year trial period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may consider:

• your performance and conduct;
• the needs and interests of the agency;
• whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and
• whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service.

Upon completion of your trial period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.

Qualifications

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

BASIC REQUIREMENTS:

(a) Citizenship. Citizen of the United States.
(b) Education and Experience: The individual must meet at least one of the requirements below:

1. Bachelor's degree in Physical Therapy AND five (5) years of progressively independent experience as a physical therapist.
2. Master's degree in Physical Therapy AND two (2) years of progressively independent experience as a physical therapist.
3. Doctorate degree in physical therapy.

• NOTE: Individuals must be a graduate of a Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education (CAPTE) accredited college or university. The CAPTE is the only accreditation agency recognized by the United States Department of Education (USDE) and the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA) to accredit entry-level physical therapy programs. Verification of accredited programs may be obtained from the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA) at www.apta.org.

Foreign Graduates. Graduates of foreign physical therapy programs meet the requirements in subparagraph 3b if they have a full unrestricted and current license to practice physical therapy in a State, Territory or Commonwealth of the United States, or in the District of Columbia.

(c) Licensure. Individuals hold a full, current, and unrestricted license to practice physical therapy in a State, Territory or Commonwealth of the United States, or in the District of Columbia. Non-licensed PTs, who otherwise meet the basic requirements in this standard, may be given a temporary appointment as a graduate PT at the GS-11 grade level under the authority of 38 U.S.C. 7405 (a)(1)(D) for a period not-to-exceed two years from the date of employment on the condition that such PT provide care only under the supervision of a PT who is licensed. Failure to obtain licensure during that period is justification for termination of the temporary appointment.


Grade Determinations:

GS-13 Physical Therapist (Program Coordinator)

(a) Experience. In addition to meeting the basic requirements, one year of progressively complex experience equivalent to the GS-12 grade level. In addition, the candidate must demonstrate all the following KSAs.

(b) Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities
1. Ability to apply advanced knowledge of contemporary physical therapy within specialty area to provide clinical guidance, training or education for internal and external stakeholders.
2. Ability to serve as a consultant within the assigned program area for intra-agency and interagency planning and to provide service coordination to optimize program continuity, efficiency and effectiveness.
3. Knowledge of and skill in management, administration and/or education methodologies. This includes the ability to monitor and track data, utilize available resources effectively, evaluate program quality, and generate reports for local, and/or VISN and/or VACO leadership.
4. Ability to develop and coordinate treatment and/or educational programs within a concentrated field or specialty area, such as, but not limited to, amputee, spinal cord injury, chronic pain, student clinical education/residency programming, polytrauma/traumatic brain injury.
5. Ability to establish and maintain collaborative relationships within department and with other departments or affiliated programs.
6. Ability to guide the work of a multi-disciplinary team

(c) Assignment. For all assignments above the full performance level, the higher-level duties must consist of significant scope, complexity (difficulty), and variety, and be performed by the incumbent at least 25% of the time. PTs at this level have experience that demonstrates advanced practice skills and judgment across one or more areas of physical therapy. The individual may be assigned broad administrative responsibility. The individual is assigned a major content specialty area to include assessing, planning, evaluating and delivering care within a special clinical program or component of a Rehabilitation Service, which usually involves multiple disciplines. See the definition for specialty areas in paragraph 2. i, that includes Polytrauma/Traumatic Brain Injury, Chronic Pain, Amputation, Spinal Cord Injury and clinical education programs. PTs provide administrative direction and decisions related to the program. The Physical Therapy Program Coordinator is responsible for the coordination of multiple professionals from a variety of disciplines for optimal clinical care and educational programming. He/she implements programs, policies, and procedures to meet program goals, policy and external accreditation requirements. He/she monitors outcomes, participates in strategic planning and implements strategies for program improvement particularly in assigned content specialty area. The Program Coordinator supports the rehabilitation service and serves as a point of contact providing guidance to facility leadership on matters related to specialty content area. He/she collaborates with Clinical Specialists and with Rehabilitation Service leaders to assist with administrative processes to obtain resources and equipment for operations of content specialty area. He/she assists with developing local policy for new or emerging practices and technologies.

Preferred Experience: Two years outpatient physical therapy experience.

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

Physical Requirements: You will be asked to participate in a pre-employment examination or evaluation as part of the pre-employment process for this position. Questions about physical demands or environmental factors may be addressed at the time of evaluation or examination.

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.

Area of Consideration - Eligible applications will be reviewed and referred in the following order:

1. Current permanent VA employees of the facility
2. All other permanent VA employees
3. Current permanent Federal Employees of other agencies

Note: Veterans' Preference is not applicable to VA employees or employees of other Federal agencies.

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

• License
• Resume
• SF-50/ Notification of Personnel Action
• Transcript

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.

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
• License
• *Highly Recommended* Write to the Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (KSAs) on a separate document - KSAs are found under qualification/grade requirements in the announcement.
• Resume/CV exceeding two-pages
• Performance Appraisal
• Resume
• SF-50/ Notification of Personnel Action
• Transcript

Next steps