The Occupational Therapist Assistant (OTA) is under the clinical direction of and in partnership with an Occupational Therapist (OT) provide preventative, remediation and rehabilitative services to persons with mental, physical, emotional, or developmental impairments. This OTA will be a OTA within the Joliet CBOC PM&R occupational therapy department and assigned to see patients in the Joliet CBOC clinic.

Duties

Clinical Duties: contribute to the screening, evaluation, and re-evaluation process by administering delegated assessments and reporting observations and patient performance to the OT plan, coordinate and administer occupational therapy treatment for prevention, remediation, and rehabilitation of diverse diagnoses in all practice areas to both individuals and groups as well as develop and implement new programs recommend and modify assistive devices and instruct patients on their care and use provide patient care and support services to an adult population with various conditions along with other co-morbidities that can include amputations, general surgical, and other medical conditions. provide evidence based skilled interventions including, but not limited to, therapeutic exercise, therapeutic activities, therapeutic modalities, transfer training, manual treatment, neuromuscular re-education, self-care management and training, patient/caregiver's education, and group therapy accurately assess both positive and negative responses to treatment adapts approaches of treatment plans for patients who are not critically or acutely ill presents oral and written reports on patient's progress Writes progress notes in the patient's record for the patients assigned to them by the physical therapist knowledge of occupational therapy data collection and assessment techniques in order to perform specific interventions and to monitor and capture progress of the patient/client Administrative Duties: Attends and participates in scheduled and appointed professional program committee meetings, workshops, conferences, and seminars. covers for absent staff members, as appropriate to their scope of practice, within the occupational therapy department Other Duties: Assist the occupational therapist in patient care. Responsible for the disposal and maintenance of linen supply, neatness and cleanliness of the clinic beyond that which is the function of the Environmental Management Service Assist with maintaining clinic supply Participate in peer review chart audits, when requested. Other duties as assigned Work Schedule: Monday - Friday 8:00am-4:30pm Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Not required

Requirements

Qualifications

Applicants pending the completion of educational or certification/licensure requirements may be referred and tentatively selected but may not be hired until all requirements are met. 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. Education: Individuals must meet at least one of the requirements below (transcripts required): Associate's [or higher] degree in occupational therapy from a college or university accredited by the Accreditation Council for Occupational Therapy Education (ACOTE) of the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA). Completion of a military training program in an OTA program accredited by the ACOTE. Certification: OTAs must have written documentation that they have passed the entry-level certification examination for OTAs administered by the National Board for Certification in Occupational Therapy (NBCOT). Licensure: OTAs must hold a full, current, and unrestricted state license to practice occupational therapy in a State, Territory, a Commonwealth of the United States (i.e. Puerto Rico) or in the District of Columbia. English Language Proficiency: OTA candidates must be proficient in spoken and written English [in accordance with 38 U.S.C. § 7403(f). May qualify based on being covered by the Grandfathering Provision as described in the VA Qualification Standard for this occupation (only applicable to current VHA employees who are in this occupation and meet the criteria). (1) Employees may be reassigned, promoted up to and including the full performance (journey) level or changed to lower grade within the occupation, but may not be promoted beyond the journeyman level or placed in supervisory or managerial positions. (2) Employees in an occupation that requires a licensure/certification/registration only at higher grade levels must meet the licensure/certification/registration requirement before they can be promoted to those higher grade levels. (3) Employees who are appointed on a temporary basis prior to the effective date of the qualification standard may not have their temporary appointment extended or be reappointed, on a temporary or permanent basis until they fully meet the basic requirements of the standard. (4) Employees who are converted to title 38 hybrid status under this provision and subsequently leave the occupation lose protected status and must meet the full VA qualification standard requirements in effect at the time of reentry to the occupation. (5) Employees initially grandfathered into this occupation, who subsequently obtain additional education and/or licensure/certification/registration that meet all the basic requirements of this qualification standard must maintain the required credentials as a condition of employment in the occupation. Grade Determinations: Occupational Therapy Assistant, GS-07 Experience: One year of creditable experience equivalent to the next lower grade level, GS-6. AND Knowledge, Skills and Abilities: In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate the following KSAs: (a) Skill in promoting occupational therapy services effectively, providing training and interventions within the assigned areas (b) Ability to perform in depth chart review to identify treatment goals and implement treatment plans. (c) Ability to use problem-solving skills when providing therapeutic interventions for patients. (d) Ability to provide multi-step instructions to patients, caregivers and other health care professionals adapting instructions to meet the learning needs of the individual. Occupational Therapy Assistant, GS-08 Experience: One year of creditable experience comparable to the next lower grade level, GS-7. AND Knowledge, Skills and Abilities: In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate the following KSAs: (a) Ability to implement delegated assessments. (b) Ability to provide reports of observations and patient performance. (c) Ability to use complex therapeutic techniques and interventions, utilizing problem-solving skills to maximize patient's functional status. (d) Ability to modify therapeutic interventions for simple and complex cases with a wide range of diagnoses and disabilities. (e) Ability to recommend complex adaptive and assistive devices and durable medical equipment. (f) Ability to consult with health care practitioners about the patient's treatment plan and the occupational therapy scope of practice and services. References: VA Handbook 5005/145, PART II, APPENDIX G22The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-8. The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is in the range of GS-5 to GS-8. May qualify based on being covered by the Grandfathering Provision as described in the VA Qualification Standard for this occupation (only applicable to current VHA employees who are in this occupation and meet the criteria). References: VA Handbook 5005/145, PART II, APPENDIX G22The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-8. The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is in the range of GS-7 to GS-8. Physical Requirements: The position requires professional/clinical skills to perform occupational therapy procedures/treatments as requested by physicians and directed by plan of care determined by Registered Occupational Therapists. Procedures/treatments will be completed for Veterans in all states of health and illness with specialization in the areas of acute care, extended care, acute and chronic psychiatry, gero-psychiatry, home-based primary care, employees.

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: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/.

Contacts

• Address Edward Hines Junior Hospital 5000 South 5th Avenue Hines, IL 60141 US
• Name: Amanda Smithy
• Phone: 708-768-3202
• Email: [email protected]