These positions are located within the Geriatric Research, Education, and Clinical Center (GRECC) at the Baltimore campus of the VA Maryland Health Care System (VAMHCS). The Research Physiologist develops and conducts a comprehensive exercise and health promotion program for older and physically handicapped Veterans primarily aimed at maintaining or improving their fitness and physical functioning and thereby improving weight loss/weight management and health.

Duties

***THIS IS NOT A VIRTUAL POSITION, YOU MUST LIVE WITHIN OR BE WILLING TO RELOCATE WITHIN A COMMUTABLE DISTANCE OF THE DUTY LOCATION*** The GRECC conducts multiple lifestyle intervention programs to improve independence, health, and quality of life in older Veterans. The largest program is Gerofit, a patient-centered, supervised exercise clinical demonstration program for eligible Veterans 65 years and older. Duties include, but may not be limited to the following: Implements and evaluates multidisciplinary and integrated exercise physiology, physical activity, physical fitness, and exercise programs within the GRECC foci; Develops, designs, and conducts an exercise program tailored to the individual patient taking into consideration their age, health conditions, and physical functioning; Develops progressive physical fitness plans of care by designing and modifying treatment programs, developing goals, and using multifaceted approach determined by the Veteran's physical and mental conditions that draws upon the use of both standard and nonstandard treatment procedures; Monitors Veterans' conditions and records response to treatment in the medical record as indicated; Recognizes abnormalities and modifies the treatment program accordingly and/or brings them to the attention of the referring provider; Administers, scores, and interprets the results of various tests of physical fitness; Provides health education in a manner understood by the Veteran and involves the Veteran in the development of the plan of care; Works with Veterans with physical disabilities, injuries, or diseases by using a wide range of physical fitness techniques and procedures; Designs and teaches group exercise classes suitable for both face-to-face group exercise and virtual group exercise; Assists with the development of translational models of Gerofit physical activity outreach programming, including the use of Clinical Video Telehealth, telephone exercise counseling, VA Video Connect, and new and innovative use of VA approved technology; In conjunction with the PM, ensures program goals and objectives are met, indicating successful program accomplishment; Assists with developing strategies to meet short, medium, and long-range goals for the Gerofit program; Participates in operation, planning, budgetary, marketing, and dissemination meetings; Organizes the data collection and data management process; Serves as a specialist and resource for the Gerofit Enterprise Wide Initiative for geriatric exercise and health promotion curriculum development; Assists with completing required documentation to applicable Institutional Review Boards (IRBs) for initial and continuing human subjects research review for funded research in the GRECC foci; and Performs other related duties as assigned. Work Schedule: Monday through Friday, 7:00am to 3:30pm Recruitment & Relocation Incentives: Not authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Not Required Telework: VA supports the use of telework as a way to help attract and retain talented individuals in public service, increase worker productivity, and better prepare the agency to operate during emergencies. This position may be authorized for telework. Telework eligibility will be discussed during the interview process.

Requirements

Qualifications

English Language Proficiency: In accordance with 38 U.S.C. 7402(d), No person shall serve in direct patient care positions unless they are proficient in basic written and spoken English. You must be proficient in basic written and spoken English in order to meet the requirements of this position. ~AND~ To qualify for this position, you must meet the Basic Education Requirement for the job series and the minimum qualification requirement for the GS-9 level Research Physiologist - Exercise position. Basic Education Requirement: You must have successfully completed a Bachelor's degree (or higher level degree) in one of the basic animal sciences or physiology; or a related discipline or field of science that included at least 24 semester hours in the basic animal sciences, of which 10 semester hours were in animal physiology. Courses such as anatomy; cytology; invertebrate and vertebrate zoology; embryology; entomology; animal, dairy and poultry husbandry; nutrition; genetics; and physiology may be used to meet the 24-semester-hour requirement in the basic animal sciences. Courses in physiology, animal or human physiology, cellular physiology or courses that were well oriented toward animal or human physiology, e.g., some advanced courses in biochemistry, are qualifying as animal physiology courses. Courses in related fields such as cytology and microbiology (including microbial physiology) may also be qualifying, provided the course work dealt directly with the application of scientific principles underlying animal physiology, or with the methodology and techniques applied in animal physiology work. NOTE: Transcripts (unofficial or official) must be submitted with your application materials. Education cannot be credited without documentation. ~AND~ In addition to meeting the English Language Proficiency and Basic Education Requirement above, to qualify for this position at the GS-9 level, you must meet one of the following: Experience: You must have at least one (1) full year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade level (GS-7) in the Federal service that has given you the particular knowledge, skills and abilities required to successfully perform the duties of a Research Physiologist - Exercise, and that is typically in or related to the work of the position to be filled. Specialized experience includes: assisting in developing, implementing, and coordinating prescribed exercise programs for patients; conducting exercise testing; assessing body composition; administering and interpreting physical performance tests and recording responses to treatment; and collecting and entering data. NOTE: Experience must be fully documented on your resume and must include job title, duties, month and year start/end dates AND hours worked per week. ~OR~ Education: Successfully completed two (2) years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to a master's degree or master's or equivalent graduate degree that provided the knowledge, skills and abilities necessary to do the work of a Research Physiologist - Exercise. This education must have been obtained in an accredited in an accredited college or university. NOTE: Transcripts (unofficial or official) must be submitted with your application materials. Education cannot be credited without documentation. ~OR~ Combination: A combination of successfully completed graduate level education (beyond the first year) and specialized experience, as described above, which may be used to meet total experience requirements for this grade level. This education portion must include graduate courses that provided the knowledge, skills and abilities necessary to do the work of a Research Physiologist - Exercise and must have been obtained in an accredited college or university. NOTE: Transcripts (unofficial or official) must be submitted with your application materials. Education cannot be credited without documentation. You will be rated on the following Competencies as part of the assessment questionnaire for this position: Clinical Data Collection/DocumentationCommunicationsPatient CarePhysical StrengthResearch IMPORTANT: A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week. All experience listed on your resume must include the month and year start/end dates. Part-time experience will be credited on the basis of time actually spent in appropriate activities. Applicants wishing to receive credit for such experience must indicate clearly the nature of their duties and responsibilities in each position and the number of hours a week spent in such 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; religious; 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. Physical Requirements: The work involves a wide range of physical demands from sedentary work in a standard office setting to moderate to heavy physical demands which include the ability to lead exercise classes, move exercise equipment, and transfer patients in an emergency setting. On occasion, the person in this position will be required to lift over 50 pounds. Work is performed in the physical fitness areas, rehabilitation areas, and inpatient and outpatient areas. The work environment involves risks typically associated with clinical work in Geriatric Medicine and Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation health care settings. The work involves regular and recurring exposure to moderate risks and discomforts which require special safety and health precautions, e.g., working regularly with Veterans and in situations where there is a risk of exposure to contagious diseases. For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/.

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: http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ous/international/usnei/us/edlite-visitus-forrecog.html.

Contacts

• Address VA Maryland Health Care System 10 North Greene Street Baltimore, MD 21201 US
• Name: VHA National Recruitment Center
• Phone: (844)456-5208
• Email: [email protected]