The Western New York Healthcare System is looking for a Supervisory Occupational Therapist. The Supervisory Occupational Therapist is responsible for the administration, supervision, planning and organization of the Occupational Therapy Department at two separate sites: Buffalo and Batavia.

Duties

Duties include but are not limited to: Administrative Duties Responsible for all aspects of human resource management for the Occupational Therapy Department including work assignments, performance appraisals, awards recommendations for appointments, disciplinary action, staff competencies, staff selection and identification of continuing education and training needs. Tasks related to the program involve program development and evaluation, outcome management and strategic planning. Contributes to required reports concerning workload, billing and performance improvement including the Directors' Performance Measures. Provides professional oversight and consultation for therapists who may be rotating to work in the clinic area. Effectively schedules therapy activity and manages clinic's daily schedule at the Buffalo site. Reports and processes malfunctioning equipment following the policies and procedures outlined by Engineering Services at the Buffalo site. Directly supervises all Occupational Therapy staff, assigned volunteers or incentive therapy patients in his/her clinic area to include orientation to clinic, assignment of tasks and counselling regarding response to patient activities. Instructs volunteers regarding safe mobility, transfers, and proper body mechanics through regular safety sessions. Direct administrative supervision is provided by Clinical Coordinator through periodic review of written reports and discussion of changes in patient programs as needed. Assist the Clinical Coordinator for Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation with the FSOD. Will serve as one of the back-ups to the Clinical Coordinator for Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation in inputting into the database for the FSOD. Clinical Screens patients determining appropriateness of patient referral. Gathers background data, reviews referrals, selects and modifies OT evaluation tools, and evaluates patients determining the level of the patient's physical and psychosocial functioning. Reevaluates patient's progress during treatment at appropriate intervals and discontinues treatment following team consultation when no longer beneficial to the patient. Plans, implements, and changes OT patient treatment based on evaluative findings. Establishes measurable treatment goals with individual patients. Discusses treatment activities and goals with patients and/or families. Treatment activities therapist is responsible for, includes both individual and group activities involving self-care, patient education and leisure area. Develop/initiate new treatment programs which integrate outcomes and advancements in practice from current research findings. Recommends, acquires, and modifies necessary adaptive equipment to augment patients' independent functioning. Educates patients and/or families about proper, safe use and recommends methods for installation of adaptive equipment. This may include evaluation for self-care devices, positioning, home environment, major medical equipment and/or home improvement structural alterations. Provides progress records and reports on assigned patients, according to current policies and procedures. Participates as an active member of the interdisciplinary team. Communicates in an effective and professional manner with team members demonstrating good judgment. Establishes rapport and a working relationship with patients having various disabilities and backgrounds. Provides coverage in OT programs during absences of the regularly assigned therapist or as needed by program. Attends, reports, or provides information to supervisor and team, as required in clinics and conferences that pertain to assigned caseload. This includes meetings about: treatment planning, program planning, in-services, and HISA/Major Medical Board. Organizes daily schedule and adjusts workload. Education Instructs and supervises affiliating Occupational Therapy students for varied levels of fieldwork experiences. This includes orienting, educating, evaluating, and structuring the student's learning experience. Designs, conducts, and evaluates the effectiveness of the clinical training program at the VAWNY Healthcare System. Establishes, negotiates, and maintains affiliation agreements with accredited universities. Assists in the orientation of physicians, residents, allied health personnel and volunteers who assist the therapists in the Occupational Therapy clinic. Serves as liaison with the universities for the scheduling of all student training activities, including the number of students, time frames of affiliation, clinical assignment, student orientation, supervision, and evaluation. Maintains the Clinical Instructor appointments of all approved Clinical Instructors with the Occupational Therapy Department. Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 7:30 am - 4:00 pm Functional Statement #: 49201F Financial Disclosure Report: Not required

Requirements

Qualifications

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: The individual must meet at least one of the following requirements below: Bachelor's degree in occupational therapy and two (2) years of experience as an occupational therapist; OR 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 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. Grade Determinations: Supervisory Occupational Therapist, GS-13 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. Demonstrated KSAs: In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSAs: Ability to balance multiple responsibilities, set priorities, delegate tasks, meet multiple deadlines, analyze organizational problems, and develop and implement effective solutions. Ability to analyze organizational and operational problems to develop and implement solutions that result in efficient operations and use data effectively to manage workload, quality performance, and productivity within the service. Skill in dealing with employees, team leaders, and managers to include conflict resolution. Ability to utilize evidence-based practices and clinical practice guidelines in a professional area and to guide the staff in applying these tools. Assignment - Supervisory OTs at this level are generally found at complex facilities. The supervisory occupational therapist is responsible for the supervision, administrative management and direction of the occupational therapy program in an OT section or equivalent work group. They have oversight for planning and directing the staff assignments in a variety of clinical settings. The supervisory OT provides a Veteran/client centered environment while enhancing staff engagement. Typical duties include: assigning work; monitoring clinical performance; resolving staff conflicts; identifying continuing education and training needs; and preparing performance standards and ratings. They interview candidates for positions; recommend appointments, advancements, or when appropriate, disciplinary actions; administer leave; and coordinate staffing needs. Supervisory OTs may provide occupational therapy and have capacity to care for more complex patients. They develop/initiate new treatment programs which integrate outcomes and advancements in practice from current research findings. The supervisory OT serves as an instructor in the facility's in-service clinical training program. They serve as an advocate and resource consultant to the therapy staff and facility-at large through communication with other departments, physicians, external agencies and other groups regarding programs and operation of the occupational therapy section. Preferred Experience: One year of previous or current supervisory experience encouraged. References: VA Handbook 5005/127, PART II, G14 The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-13. Physical Requirements: See VA Directive and Handbook 5019.

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 Western New York Healthcare System 3495 Bailey Avenue Buffalo, NY 14215 US
• Name: Brandy Smith
• Email: [email protected]