Occupational Therapist (Clinical Specialist - Certified Hand Therapist)

This Occupational Therapist (OT) position is under the Physical Medicine and Rehab service of the White River Junction VA Medical Center. The Incumbent Occupational Therapist is assigned responsibility for serving as a subject matter expert in hand therapy related to outpatient services in the White River Junction VA Outpatient Clinic. The therapist maintains a Certified Hand Therapist (CHT) credential recognized by the Hand Therapy Certification Commission (HTCC).

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) (a)). Education and/or

Experience:

The individual must meet one of the following requirements below for Education and/ or

Experience:

(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.

Certification:

Candidates must possess a current NBCOT certification as an Occupational Therapist.

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.

Grandfathering Provision:

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).

Grade Determinations :

Occupational Therapist (Clinical Specialist), GS-13. In addition to the basic requirements of this occupation applicants must meet grade determining requirements the as stated in number 1 and 2 below: (1)

Education, Experience, and Licensure:

Completion of one full 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. AND (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.

Preferred Experience:

Certified Hand Therapy Credential Reference:

For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/ .

Promotion Potential:

This vacancy is GS-13 which is above the full performance level of this occupation.

Physical Requirements:

See VA Directive and Handbook 5019.