This job originated on www.usajobs.gov. For the full announcement and to apply, visit www.usajobs.gov/job/483873000. Only resumes submitted according to the instructions on the job announcement listed at www.usajobs.gov will be considered.
OUR MISSION: To fulfill President Lincoln's promise - "To care for him who shall have borne the battle and for his widow, and his orphan" - by serving and honoring the men and women who are America's Veterans. How would you like to become a part of a team providing compassionate care to Veterans?
VA Eastern Colorado HealthCare System (ECHCS) is complexity level 1a and provides a full range of state-of- the-art patient care services, and will soon be providing care in a new state-of-the-art hospital in Aurora, CO. ECHCS provides tertiary care and services to over 89,000 patients and is a major referral center for veterans living in Wyoming, Montana, Kansas, and New Mexico. ECHCS serves as an educational and research center, it is highly affiliated with medical and educational institutions. Health Care Services are provided at 15 different geographically dispersed locations incorporating nine Community Based Outpatient Clinics, two Primary Care Telehealth Outpatient Clinics, one local and one remote Community Living Center, Homeless Veteran's Domiciliary, a Community Referral and Resource Center, a Polytrauma and Blind Rehabilitation Center and VA presence on two DOD bases; Fort Carson and U.S. Air Force Academy covering a geographical area of over 10,000 square miles. ECHCS employs over 3,000 personnel in 150 occupations. For more information on the Department of Veterans Affairs, go to http://www.vacareers.va.gov/.
****THE CLOSING DATE OF THIS ANNOUNCEMENT HAS BEEN EXTENDED THROUGH 11/24/2017***
11/13/2017 to 11/24/2017
$78,183 - $101,641 per year
GS 12
1 vacancy in the following location:
Occasional travel - You may be expected to travel for this position.
No
Permanent
Full-Time
No
CBFF-10071760-18-AXS-HT38BU
483873000
The general responsibility of the Non-Supervisory Orthotist is to provide the most complex clinical and laboratory prosthetic and orthotic services to disabled patients. Included in this series is such work as:(1) Serving as an advisor to physicians, therapists and other medical professionals regarding indications and contraindications of prosthetic and orthotic componentry, prescription criteria; (2) Approves the coding of custom braces, fabrication or repair of prosthetic devices; (3) Maintaining continuous liaison with manufacturers and dealers of prosthetic supplies, inspecting their facilities and services and participating in the award of prosthetic appliance contracts; (4) Participating in investigative/research project studies by selecting patients as pilot wearers of newly developed prosthetic items, evaluating the usefulness of such items and compiling of data; and (5) Giving technical and administrative advice and assistance on orthotic problems to other facilities.
This work requires a specialized knowledge of the medical and psychological problems directly related to the use of prosthetic devices; and a specialized knowledge and understanding of the fabrication and satisfactory fitting of orthotic devices. An Orthotist at this level must have analytical ability, social awareness, tact and diplomacy, and good communication skills. The Orthotist at this level must be able to anticipate the need for action. He/she must also possess the ability to deal effectively with individuals and groups and to adjust to difficult or stressful situations. ABC Practitioner Certification is required at this level. An Orthotist at this level may serve as the (NCOPE) Residency Director for the site, or otherwise may be required to directly contribute to the education of Prosthetic-Orthotic Residents. Duties include but are not limited to:
Identifies biomechanical conditions.
Conducts gait analysis, range of motion, coordination and balance, motor skills, and clinical assessment studies in accordance with occupational principles for unusual conditions, multiple complex interrelated conditions, etc..
Interviews patients to determine expectations, lifestyle, home/work environment, ability to use the device.
Takes necessary measurements, casts or scans to develop positive molds of the affected area of the body, which are used to create the orthosis and/or prothesis.
Recognizes physical abnormalities, deviations, and complicating conditions with potentially life threatening implications.
Assesses patient for indications/contra-indications of appropriate treatment protocols and discusses the assessment with the physician/requesting provider for purposes of developing the overall treatment plan. Has considerable influence in the development of the plan.
Considers new and emerging technologies in designing unique or innovative devices to accommodate or treat a wide range of complex medical conditions, which include unusual problems or complications.
Considering the information developed through the assessment as well as time management workload considerations, designs custom devices using standard components to optimize patient performance for difficult and complex conditions; may include CAD/CAM systems.
Selects materials and components to be used in fabrication of the device and determines appropriate equipment to be used in fabrication of the device.
Fabricates components, or selects and modifies components, and assembles these into the finished device. Uses CAD/CAM system as appropriate in this process and performs preliminary alignment.
Fits the device on the patient, assures preliminary alignment, and performs subsequent dynamic alignment.
Assesses and/or modifies fit and function of the device as fabricated and makes appropriate modifications to insure optimum patient outcome.
Evaluates patient's ability to don/doff the device, provides training to the patient and/or caregiver in its use and maintenance. This may also include training the clinical staff.
Explains procedures and processes to the patient to reduce anxiety and gain support and cooperation in all stages of the process.
Manages the daily operations of a small to medium Lab.
Plans clinical schedule for Orthotics and assures appropriate staff coverage.
Conducts site surveys of commercial vendors to insure vendor regulatory compliance.
Responsible for accreditation compliance.
Develops short & long range plans/goals for the lab in accordance with local, VISN, Headquarters direction.
Develops budget plan for lab.
Manages inventory of stock items, fabrication materials, and components.
Work Schedule: Monday-Friday, 8am-4:30pm
Financial Disclosure Report: Not Required
Physical Requirements: See VA Directive and Handbook 5019.
Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process.
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: http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ous/international/usnei/us/edlite-visitus-forrecog.html.
This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies.
It is the policy of the VA to not deny employment to those that have faced financial hardships or periods of unemployment.
This position is in the Excepted Service and does not confer competitive status.
United States Citizenship Required; non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy.
VA encourages persons with disabilities to apply. The health related positions in VA are covered by Title 38, and are not covered by the Schedule A excepted appointment authority.
Veterans and Transitioning Service Members: Please visit the VA for Vets site for career-search tools for Veterans seeking employment at VA, career development services for our existing Veterans, and coaching and reintegration support for military service members.
If you are unable to apply online or need to fax a document you do not have in electronic form, view the following link for information regarding an Alternate Application.
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 MAY NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. Your application, résumé, C.V., and/or supporting documentation will be verified. Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect consideration for employment.
NOTE: The Professional Standards Board (a peer-review group) will review the selected candidate's education and experience and recommend the grade and salary at which the candidate will be placed. For internal selectees eligible for promotion, the board will determine grade and HR will determine step in accordance with policy.
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; religions; 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.
To apply for this position, you must provide a complete Application Package which includes:
Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education in order for it to be credited towards qualifications. Therefore, provide only the attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.
Failure to provide all of the required information as stated in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating or may affect the overall rating.
All applicants are encouraged to apply online. To apply for this position, you must complete the full questionnaire and submit the documentation specified in the Required Documents section below. The complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (ET) on 11/24/2017 to receive consideration.
Once your online application is submitted you will receive a confirmation notification by email. After we receive application packages (including all required documents) and the vacancy announcement closes, we will review applications to ensure qualification and eligibility requirements are met. After the review is complete, a referral certificate(s) is issued and applicants will be notified of their status by email. Referred applicants will be notified as such and may be contacted directly by the hiring office for an interview. All referred applicants receive a final notification once a selection decision has been made.
You may check the status of your application at any time by logging into your USA Jobs account and clicking on Applications. Information regarding your application status can be found in the USAJobs Help Center.
The Federal hiring process is set up to be fair and transparent. Please read the following guidance.
This job originated on www.usajobs.gov. For the full announcement and to apply, visit www.usajobs.gov/job/483873000. Only resumes submitted according to the instructions on the job announcement listed at www.usajobs.gov will be considered.
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