This position is eligible for the Education Debt Reduction Program (EDRP), a student loan payment reimbursement program. You must meet specific individual eligibility requirements in accordance with VHA policy and submit your EDRP application within four months of appointment. Approval, award amount (up to $200,000) and eligibility period (one to five years) are determined by the VHA Education Loan Repayment Services program office after complete review of the EDRP application.

Duties

Functions and Scope of Assigned Duties: The Occupational Therapist will function in accordance with: - Federal law. - The North Carolina Occupational Therapy Practice Act published by the North Carolina Board for Occupational Therapy. - The Standards of Practice for Occupational Therapists and the Occupational Therapy Code of Ethics as published by the American Occupational Therapy Association. In addition to functions at the GS 12 level, specific duties include: A. Providing Occupational Therapy Treatment: The OT is responsible for: - Treating patients presenting with complex mental health problems by using comprehensive evidenced-based knowledge and experience in group or individual treatment settings. - Functioning with a high level of autonomy in carrying out specialized patient treatment, education and applying advanced occupational therapy procedures for which competency has been established and in accordance with: o Standards, scope and ethics of the practice of occupational therapy as defined by the American Occupational Therapy Association and the North Carolina Board of Occupational Therapy, o Policies and procedures within the VA system, Durham VA Medical Center and the Mental Health Service Line, and o Evidenced-based best practices in psychiatric recovery and rehabilitation. - Using considerable judgment when guidelines are not available to adapt procedures and techniques to accommodate individual deficits, ranges of progress, and problems that may occur. - Reviewing pertinent patient data using the medical record and, as needed, remote data from VistaWeb, JLV and other remote data sources - Scheduling and coordinating treatment with other VA services. Treatment may take place within the PM&R/MH Service clinic space, within patient's hospital rooms, elsewhere on the hospital grounds or off site at a community -based location when appropriate training has been completed and while maintaining privacy and confidentiality as appropriate. - Modifying the treatment plan, therapeutic activities and interventions based on the changing needs, goals and performance of the patient. - Recommending, modifying and / or fabricating adaptive equipment, aids, or supplies as indicated. Recognizing and reporting any needed equipment repairs or unsafe conditions. Documentation: The OT is responsible for: - Accurately documenting OT services in the medical record within the timeframes, formats and standards established by the PM&RS department and the Durham VA Medical center. - Entering consults within the PM&RS Service (i.e., to Physical or Recreational Therapy) or to the Prosthetics service for rehabilitation equipment in accordance with PM&RS and medical center policies. Triage & Workload Distribution The OT: - Utilizes technology (including telehealth as indicated) to ensure maximum efficiency and to meet urgent patient care needs. - Monitors his/her own productivity and clinics and identifies challenges and implements strategies to improve workload efficiency. - Identifies clinical priorities and allocates time and resources accordingly. Interdisciplinary Coordination & Discharge Planning: The OT is responsible for: - Participating in and/or leading interdisciplinary team meetings and care planning. - Recommending, designing, implementing and coordinating interdisciplinary programming efforts in the provision of care. - Recommending additional consultations or resources when the needs of the client can best be served by the expertise of other professional or services. - Identifying when patients have attained maximum benefit from occupational therapy services and terminating services as appropriate. - Effectively communicating the patient's response to care, occupational therapy recommendations and the patient's potential needs at discharge. Evaluation and Consultation Screening / Evaluation & Re-evaluation: The Occupational Therapist is responsible for: - Screening of potential clients as needed. - Accepting and responding to OT mental health consults in compliance with PM&RS policies. - Evaluating complex mental health patients to determine current level of functioning using advanced evaluation methodologies, standardized or specialized tests, interviews, observations, medical record review, and consultation with other professional staff. Supervision: The OT is responsible for: - Acting as primary supervisor for the OT Fellow with administrative oversight through the Occupational Therapy Supervisor and consultation from OAA. - Supervising individuals who are volunteering in an official capacity through the Volunteer Service. - Providing leadership for Fellows assigned to the Mental Health program. - Participating in the clinical education/supervision of OT and OTA students. Work Schedule: 7:45AM - 4:30PM - Monday - Friday Telework: Ad-Hoc EDRP Authorized: Authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Not required

Requirements

Qualifications

BASIC REQUIREMENTS. The authority to set requirements is provided by 38 U.S.C. § 7402(b)(14). Citizenship. Be a citizen of the United States. (Non-citizens may be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with 38 U.S.C. § 7407(a)). 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. 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. Physical Requirements. See VA Directive and Handbook 5019. English Proficiency. [Candidates must be proficient in spoken and written English to be appointed as authorized by 38 U.S.C. § 7403(f).] References: December 13, 2019; VA Handbook 5005/127 PART II APPENDIX G14 The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-13. The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is GS-13 GRADE [DETERMINATIONS. In addition to the basic requirements for employment, the following criteria must be met when determining the grade of candidates.] 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) A minimum of 2,000 hours of clinical practice directly in the advanced practice area. This time must be within the past five years; (b) Certification in an area recognized by the AOTA; (c) Completion of a fellowship/residency or advanced degree program in the advanced practice area; or (d) 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:] (a) Knowledge of contemporary occupational therapy across multiple areas of practice[ ]. (b) [Ability to provide clinical guidance in the advanced practice area to other OT practitioners. (c) Knowledge of advanced specialized evaluation, interventions and services to independently develop treatment strategies for area of specialization. (d) Skill in developing protocols and procedures for intervention programs based on current occupational therapy theory, recent research, and practice. (e) Ability to provide consultation to other health care practitioners and outside groups about occupational therapy scope of practice for area of specialization. (f) Ability to implement, revise/update evidence based occupational therapy services and programming in area of specialization.] (3) 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.]

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 Durham VA Medical Center 508 Fulton Street Durham, NC 27705 US
• Name: Gary Byles
• Phone: 919-286-0411 X4949
• Email: [email protected]