These positions are located within the Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation (PMR) Service, Recreational Therapy Section at the VA New Jersey Health Care System (VANJHCS) at the Lyons, NJ campus. The Therapy Assistant works with Veterans who have a variety of illnesses, diseases, and/or disabling conditions with varying degrees of impairment.

Duties

***THIS IS NOT A VIRTUAL POSITION, YOU MUST LIVE WITHIN OR BE WILLING TO RELOCATE WITHIN A COMMUTABLE DISTANCE OF THE DUTY LOCATION*** Major duties and responsibilities include but are not limited to: Carries out a full range of therapeutic recreation services inclusive of recreation therapy modalities and general recreation activities and documents progress in the Computerized Patient Record System. Completes a preliminary review of patient data and compiles and organizes patient information. Develops a patient profile to be used in assessing patient needs for therapy services. Plans and carries out direct patient care activities in accordance to individual and group treatment plans. Provides training to staff, volunteers interns/practicum students on infection control measures. Assists Recreation Therapists in carrying out special therapeutic activities. Plans and carries out highly specialized and diversified treatments for patients with physical and/or mental conditions. Evaluates patient's response to therapeutic activity and reports pertinent information. Works with professionals to select, adapt and/or adjust recreation therapy modalities in accordance with treatment goals. Provides guidelines and leadership to the various activities and their participants. Modifies, adapts, expands, or changes plans and procedures for specific activities from the standpoint of participant's response. Plans, coordinates, and supervises cleared patients on community-based outings/activities. Manages the fitness center memberships, ensuring proper medical clearances and orientation to the facility. Maintains treatment equipment (recreation and fitness). Educates Volunteers and Interns/Practicum students to the overall program; and Performs other related duties as assigned. Work Schedule: Rotating shifts and various tours available. Weekends are required. Recruitment & Relocation Incentives: Not authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Not Required

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~ Driver's License Requirement: The work of this position requires driving recreation vehicles such as a sedan or van in and out of a variety of settings in the community, therefore, a valid state issued driver's license is required. ~AND~ To qualify for this position at the GS-6 level, you must meet one of the following: Specialized Experience: You must have at least one (1) full year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade in federal service (GS-5). This experience is close to the work of this position and has given you the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities required to successfully perform the duties of this Therapy Assistant position. Specialized experience includes work as an assistant to one of the specialized therapies such as occupational, physical, manual arts, corrective, or educational therapy; or experience gained as an assistant or aid in patient care, social work, or psychology where the duties involved actual participation in physical medicine and activities of a hospital or clinic. Specialized experience includes: planning and carrying out direct patient care, such as therapeutic activities; using recreational materials/equipment to provide therapeutic exercises; working knowledge of basic health care issues; skill in assessing the needs of patients; developing patient treatment goals/objectives; and documenting patient response and progress. NOTE: Experience must be fully documented in your resume and must include job title, duties, month & year starting and ending dates AND hours worked per week. ~OR~ Education: You must have successfully completed one-half year (9 semester hours) of graduate education with course work that is directly related to the position of a Therapy Assistant. NOTE: If you select this option, you must submit a copy of your transcript with your application. Education cannot be credited without documentation. ~OR~ Combination: A combination of directly related graduate level education and specialized experience. NOTE: If you select this option, you must submit a copy of your transcript with your application. Education cannot be credited without documentation. You will be rated on the following Competencies as part of the assessment questionnaire for this position: Creative ThinkingCustomer ServiceOral CommunicationPlanning and EvaluatingWriting 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 requires physical health, normal use of arms and legs, and good visual and auditory acuity. Prolonged standing, bending, kneeling, reaching, gripping and walking are regular. Moderate to heavy lifting (between 5-50 pounds) when assisting patients; pushing and participation in recreation therapy activities. The work is very active in nature with some sedentary work involved when performing administrative tasks. Most treatment is provided at recreation therapy areas located throughout the medical center and includes community reintegration training experiences outside of the VA premises. 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: Recognition of Foreign Qualifications | International Affairs Office (ed.gov).

Contacts

• Address VA New Jersey Health Care System 385 Tremont Avenue East Orange, NJ 07018 US
• Name: VHA National Recruitment Center
• Phone: (844)456-5208
• Email: [email protected]