Occupational Therapist Clinical Education Specialist

Description:

Incumbent functions as the NMVAHCS Occupational therapy Clinical Education Coordinator. The Incumbent possesses advanced knowledge of contemporary Occupational Therapy across multiple areas of practice, and demonstrates the ability to apply this advanced knowledge to provide clinical guidance to staff therapists within the department. The Incumbent also performs work consistent with a staff therapist.

Requirements:

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. The authority to set requirements is provided by 38 U.S.C. § 3 7402(b)(14).

• Citizenship. Citizen of the United States.
• Education/Experience. The individual must meet at least one of the requirements below:
  • 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
  • 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
  • Master's Degree or higher in occupational therapy.

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.

• 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.

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

• 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 minimum of 2,000 hours of clinical practice directly in the advanced practice area. This time must be within the past five years;
  • Certification in an area recognized by the AOTA;
  • Completion of a fellowship/residency or advanced degree program in the advanced practice area; or,
  • An additional advanced degree in a related field.
• Demonstrated KSAs. In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSAs:
  1. Knowledge of contemporary occupational therapy across multiple areas of practice.
  2. Ability to provide clinical guidance in the advanced practice area to other OT practitioners.
  3. Knowledge of advanced specialized evaluation, interventions and services to independently develop treatment strategies for area of specialization.
  4. Skill in developing protocols and procedures for intervention programs based on current occupational therapy theory, recent research, and practice.
  5. Ability to provide consultation to other health care practitioners and outside groups about occupational therapy scope of practice for area of specialization.
  6. Ability to implement, revise/update evidence based occupational therapy services and programming in area of specialization.

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

Physical Requirements . Pre-placement and periodic physical examinations are required for hybrid occupations to ensure workers are placed in positions where they can perform the essential functions of their job considering their physical, mental and emotional capacities, without endangering their health or the health of their co-workers. See VA Directive and Handbook 5019.