This position is located in the Audiology & speech Pathology Section of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Service (PM&RS) at the Salem VA Medical Center. The duties are responsibilities are carried throughout the medical center including clinical and other patient care areas involved with the service. The speech pathologist at this level conducts diagnostic assessments and evaluation planning, organizing, and conducting the rehabilitation program, training, research, and consultation.

Duties

DUTIES: GS12: Performs Diagnostic Tests - The incumbent is responsible for independent diagnostic assessment and evaluation of inpatients and outpatients that are referred for Speech Pathology Services without limitation as to difficulty or complexity. The incumbent will be responsible to conduct interviews with the patients and appropriate family members and/or friends; selects, administers, and interprets the diagnostic test necessary to detect, evaluate and treat any type of speech, language, voice and/or swallowing disorders. Is responsible for the adequacy of assessment and for the reporting of the findings to other professional workers with whom he/she/or other member of the speech pathology section may cooperate in formulating diagnostic and remedial judgments. Incumbent will utilize all diagnostic and evaluative procedures common to speech pathology. In addition, he/she/shall stay abreast of all new developments in speech pathology by reading professional journals and by communicating with other professionals in his/her field. Assesses patient condition from close observation and consultation with other members of the patient treatment team. Develops Treatment Plans and Provides Therapy - Develops plans for a course of therapy to resolve or minimize speech-related and/or swallowing conditions/ Is responsible for the administration of tests of voice and speech including modal level and variation of vocal pitch and loudness; variability of the rate of vocal utterance; frequency and complexity of speech disfluency; consistency and adaptation of disfluency in sustained or repeated speaking and aural reading; phonetic analysis of speech designed to identify and evaluate patterns of misarticulation, such as distortions and omissions of sounds, as well as phonemic substitutions, including patterns of variation and speech sound articulation; and identification of phonetic and semantic factors related to this variation. Establishes and maintains an effective therapy relationship with the patient, family, and caregivers. Adjusts treatment plan to patient response and indicators of progress. Work Schedule: Monday-Friday 7:45am-4:30pm Telework: Not Available Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Functional Statement #: 000000 Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized

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 and Experience. A master's degree, or its equivalent, in speech-language pathology, communication disorders or a directly related field from an accredited college or university and one year of creditable experience OR A doctoral degree in speech-language pathology, communication disorders and sciences or a related field, from an accredited college or university. Licensure. Individuals must hold a full, current and unrestricted license in a U.S. state, territory, commonwealth or the District of Columbia. All persons employed in VHA in this occupational series or in another occupational series that are also performing the duties as described in the qualification standard on the effective date of this qualification standard are considered to have met all qualification requirements for the grade held, including positive education and licensure. For employees who do not meet all the basic requirements required in this standard but who met the qualifications applicable to the position at the time they were appointed to it, the following provisions apply: Grade Determinations: GS12: Experience. In addition to the basic requirements at the GS-11 level, completing one year of professional experience comparable to the next lower level and possessing a full, current and unrestricted license to practice speech-language pathology. Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills and Abilities (KSAs) In addition to the experience requirements, the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSAs: (a) Skill in applying principles and techniques of diagnosis and treatment associated with contemporary speech-language pathology following evidence-based practice for adult patients exhibiting the full range of speech to the full range of patient populations (b) Skill in administering and interpreting instrumental swallowing evaluations (c) Ability to assess the effectiveness of clinical outcomes and adapt clinical procedures and techniques to accommodate unique patient conditions Assignment. This is the full performance level. At this level, SLPs independently provide evidence-based assessment and treatment interventions to individuals with a wide range of speech, language, voice, cognitive-communication and swallowing disorders. Staff SLPs select, administer and interpret standardized and non-standardized assessment measures. They integrate assessment findings into a patient-centered treatment plan of care and evaluate the effectiveness of interventions by collecting and documenting treatment outcomes. SLPs may be assigned to work in a specific clinical area such as traumatic brain injury, head and neck cancer, movement disorders or spinal cord injury. They may provide clinical training experiences for trainees and students and participate in research activities Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/. The full performance level of this vacancy is 12. The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is in the range of 12 . Physical Requirements: See VA Directive and Handbook 5019, Employee Occupational Health Service.

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 Salem VA Medical Center 1970 Roanoke Boulevard Salem, VA 24153 US
• Name: Kera Madden
• Phone: 540-982-2463 X2770
• Email: [email protected]