This position is in the Rehabilitation Services of the VA Medical Center in Dayton, OH. The Recreation Therapist is responsible for the daily planning and implementation of appropriate treatment interventions on specific Veteran programs such as: Community Living Centers, Hospice, Community Based Outpatient Mental Health, Acute Psychiatry, Men and Women Trauma Recovery Programs, Spinal Cord Injury Program, Domiciliary Care for Homeless Veterans, Blind Rehabilitation Services, Polytrauma System of Care and Addiction Treatment Services. Duties include but are not limited to the following:

• Developing, organizing, and administering recreation/creative arts programs to provide therapeutic treatment to Veterans;
• Assembling pre-evaluation data, interpreting medical record information, reviewing therapy prescriptions, and conducting mental and physical evaluations of Veterans to develop and implement a treatment plan;
• Developing specific programs and routines to maintain or improve the Veteran's general state of physical or mental health;
• Developing therapeutic programs for various types of disabilities including multiple diagnoses;
• Striving to slow mental and physical deterioration, restore functional skills and abilities using adaptive techniques and technology, and maintain the highest degree of self-help and independence;
• Performing related duties as required.

Work Schedule: Monday through Friday, 8:00am - 4:30pm (some evenings, weekends and holidays may be required).

Recruitment & Relocation Incentives: Not authorized
Financial Disclosure Report: Not Required

Conditions of employment

• Must be a U.S. citizen
• Subject to a background/security investigation
• Designated and/or random drug testing may be required
• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959
• May be required to serve a probationary period.
• Valid drivers license is required.

PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS: This position may involve regular and recurring physical exertion when walking, standing, bending, moderately heavy lifting, moving or transferring patients and/or equipment, positioning Veterans, assisting with ambulation, and loading/unloading and safely securing Veterans in wheelchair accessible vehicles. The work requires specific physical characteristics and abilities such as above average agility and dexterity. It may also require additional physical skill and ability to perform lifesaving techniques such as CPR for the professional rescuer and advanced first aid. The work involves regular and recurring exposure to moderate risks and discomforts that require special safety precautions, i.e. situations where there is risk to exposure to infectious diseases, odors, and/or medical emergencies. The therapist is required to wear protective clothing such as gloves and masks to prevent disease and the spread of infection when indicated. Veterans encountered may demonstrate assaultive/aggressive behaviors due to their diagnosis and coping skills. The work is performed in clinics, units, offices, conference rooms, community settings, Veteran centers, and other VA facilities and may involve regular and recurring risks and discomforts.

Qualifications

To apply for this position, you must meet the following qualifications:

BASIC EDUCATIONAL REQUIREMENT

Applicants must meet one of the following educational requirements:

A.Bachelor's or graduate/higher level degree in therapeutic recreation, art therapy, drama therapy, dance therapy, or music therapy;

OR

B.Bachelor's or graduate/higher level degree in a related field involving therapeutic emphasis or concentration that included at least 36 semester hours in therapeutic courses as described below:

• 18 semester hours of therapeutic recreation courses; and
• 18 semester hours that include a combination of abnormal psychology, physiology, human anatomy and development, disabilities and general recreation.

Education must have been obtained from an accredited program recognized by the U.S. Department of Education at the time the degree was obtained.

Note: Employees currently assigned to positions in this occupational series as of July 2017, will be considered to have met the basic requirements for the position occupied. CURRENT SF-50 REQUIRED

AND

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 to meet the requirements of this position.

AND

You must have a valid state driver's license.

AND

REQUIRES: One year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-09 grade level in federal service that has provided you with the knowledge, skills and abilities to successfully perform the duties of a Recreation Therapist. Qualifying specialized experience includes: applying the concepts, procedures, and techniques of recreation therapy; performing recreation therapy programming, completion of assessments, interacting with core team members, developing treatment plans, creating and administering therapeutic activities, and safety procedures; creating therapeutic activities, coordinating treatment plans, and completing documentation.

Or 2.5 years of progressively higher graduate education leading to a doctoral degree with a major field of study directly related to recreation therapy. This education must have been obtained in an accredited college or university. NOTE: One year of full-time graduate education is considered to be the number of credit hours that the school attended has determined to represent 1 year of full-time study. If that number cannot be obtained from the school; 18 semester hours should be considered an academic year of graduate study. Part-time graduate education is creditable in accordance with its relationship to a year of full-time study at the school attended. Transcripts required.

Or an equivalent combination of specialized experience and graduate education as described for the GS-10 to meet the total requirements for this position. This education must have been obtained in an accredited college or university. Your experience must be detailed and transcripts are required.

A Quality Ranking Factor* has been requested by the facility to help determine which of the basically qualified applicants are likely to be better qualified for a position. The quality ranking factor for this position is:

Certification in recreation therapy through the National Council for Therapeutic Recreation.

*Quality Ranking Factors are skills, knowledge, abilities, or other worker characteristics which could be expected to result in superior performance on the job. Quality ranking factors will not be used for screening, but may be used as ranking criteria. Applicants with higher proficiency levels may rank above those with lower proficiency levels on a quality ranking factor.

You will be rated on the following Competencies as part of the assessment questionnaire for this position:

• Communications
• Flexibility
• Interpersonal Skills
• Planning and Evaluating
• Quality Ranking Factor

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.

For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at http://www.opm.gov/qualifications.

How you will be evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE WILL NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. If your resume does not support your questionnaire answers, we will not allow credit for your response(s).

Your responses to the assessment questionnaire will be reviewed along with the information provided in your resume and supporting documentation to determine if you are qualified for the position. If, after reviewing your resume and/or supporting documentation, a determination is made that you have inflated your qualifications and or experience, your rating may be lowered and/or you may lose consideration for this position. Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect your eligibility.

Candidates who apply under All U.S. Citizens announcements will be rated and ranked using Category Rating procedures. Qualified candidates will be assigned to a quality category. The categories are defined as follows:

• Best qualified - applicants possessing experience that substantially exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors, and who are highly proficient in all requirements of the job and can perform effectively in the position;
• Highly qualified - applicants possessing experience that exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors, and who are proficient in most of the requirements of the job;
• Well qualified - applicants possessing experience that meets the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors, and who are proficient in some, but not all, of the requirements of the job; and
• Qualified - applicants possessing experience and/or education that meets the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors.

Application of Veterans' Preference: Category rating and selection procedures place those with veteran's preference above non-preference eligibles within each category. Preference eligible applicants that meet the eligibility and qualification requirements and who have a compensable service-connected disability of at least 10 percent are listed in the highest quality category (except when the position being filled is scientific or professional at the GS-09 grade level or higher).