Supervisory Recreation Therapist

Description:

The Supervisory Recreation Therapist is assigned to Nursing/Geriatrics and Extended Care Services at the San Francisco VA Community Living Center (including veterans' hospice, long stay dementia cares, long stay continuing care, behavioral/mental health needs, respite, short stay rehab, short stay skilled). The Therapist will partake in clinical workload as this position is 50% administrative and 50% clinical.

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 :

• United States Citizenship: Non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy.
• Education The following education requirements apply to the recreation therapist, creative arts therapist (art), creative arts therapist (dance/movement), creative arts therapist (drama), and creative arts therapist (music):

(1) Recreation Therapist:
A bachelor's degree or higher, from an accredited college or university, with a major in therapeutic recreation or recreation/leisure, with an option and/or emphasis in therapeutic recreation. The degree must be approved by the National Council for Therapeutic Recreation Certification (NCTRC);
OR A bachelor's degree or higher in any field from an accredited college or university and must be a certified therapeutic recreation specialist (CTRS). The degree must be approved by the NCTRC. If hired under this education, the certification cannot be waived.

(2) Creative Arts Therapist (Art):
A master's degree or higher, from an accredited college or university, with a major in art therapy approved by the American Art Therapy Association on or before June 30, 2016. If the degree is received after June 30, 2016, a master's degree or higher from an accredited college or university, with a major in art therapy, must be accredited by the Council on Accreditation of Art Therapy Education: a committee of the Commission on Accreditation on Allied Health Education Program.
OR
A master's degree in a related field, plus graduate coursework and supervised field experience in art therapy. Acceptable related fields include: Counseling, Marriage and Family Therapy, Social Work, Psychology, Addictions Counseling, Psychiatric Nursing, and Psychiatry, AND must possess a full, current, and unrestricted registration as a Registered Art Therapist (ATR) approved by the Art Therapy Credentials Board. If hired under this education, the registration cannot be waived.

(3) Creative Arts Therapist (Dance/Movement):
A master's degree or higher, from an accredited college or university, with a major or an emphasis in dance therapy or dance/movement therapy. The degree must be approved by the American Dance Therapy Association (ADTA).
OR
A master's degree or higher, from an accredited college or university, and must be a board-certified dance/movement therapist (BC-DMT) approved by the Dance Movement Therapy Certification Board (DMTCB). If hired under this education, the certification cannot be waived.

NOTE. Dance/movement therapy coursework that began on or after March 15,2013, must have been approved by the ADTA subcommittee for the approval of alternate route courses.

(4) Creative Arts Therapist (Drama):
A master's degree or higher, from an accredited college or university, with a drama degree program approved by the North American Drama Therapy Association (NADTA).
OR
A master's degree or higher, from an accredited college or university, and must be a registered drama therapist (RDT). The RDT is granted by the NADTA and indicates that one has met the educational requirements and achieved competency in the practice of drama therapy. If hired under this education, the registration cannot be waived.

(5) Creative Arts Therapist (Music):
A bachelor's degree or higher, from an accredited college or university, in music therapy, or in music with an emphasis in music therapy. The degree must be approved by the National Association for Schools of Music and/or the American Music Therapy Association.
OR
A bachelor's degree or higher, from an accredited college or university, and must be a board-certified music therapist (MT-BC) approved by the Certification Board for Music Therapists (CBMT). If hired under this education, the certification cannot be waived.

• Certification.
  • (a)Recreation Therapist. Applicants must be certified in recreation therapy as a CTRS by the NCTRC. If hired under paragraph 4b(1)(b), certification cannot be waived.
  • (b)Creative Arts Therapy (Dance/Movement). Applicants must be board-certified in dance/movement therapy by the DMTCB. If hired under paragraph 4b(3)(b), certification cannot be waived.
  • (c)Creative Arts Therapy (Music). Applicants must be a MT-BC approved by the CBMT. If hired under paragraph 4b(5)(b), certification cannot be waived.
• Exception. Non-registered and/or non-certified applicants, who otherwise meet the eligibility requirements for registration and/or certification, may be given a temporary appointment as a graduate recreation or creative arts therapist, under the authority of 38 U.S.C. § 7405(c)(2)(B), for a period not to exceed two years. Applicants who fail to obtain registration and/or certification during this temporary full-time appointment may be terminated.
• Physical Requirements: See VA Directive and Handbook 5019.
• English Language Proficiency: Must be proficient in spoken and written English, as required by 38 U.S.C. § 7403(f).

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 : In addition to basic requirements for employment, the following criteria must be met when determining eligibility.

Grade 12 (Above the Full-performance level): a. Experience. At least one year of creditable experience at the next lower grade level.

b. Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSAs: 1. Ability to provide treatment in complex cases and work with great independence. 2. Ability to balance multiple responsibilities, set priorities, delegate tasks, meet multiple deadlines, analyze organizational problems, and develop and implement effective solutions. 3. Ability to analyze organizational and operational problems to develop and implement solutions that result in efficient operations and use data effectively to manage workload, quality, performance, and productivity within the service. 4. Skill in interpersonal relationships in dealing with employees, team leaders, and managers. 5. Ability to use evidence-based practices, clinical practice guidelines in a professional area, and to guide the staff in applying these tools. 6. Knowledge of organizational theories and strategies to positively impact the overall goals and objectives within the service. 7. Knowledge related to administrative functions such as fiscal, material supply, equipment management, and clinical and program management.
c. Assignments. For all assignments above the full-performance level, the higher- level duties must consist of significant scope, complexity (difficulty), range of variety, and be performed by the incumbent at least 25% of the time. Supervisors at this level are typically found in complexity level 2 or level 3 medical centers, if needed.
Preferred Experience:

• Two years minimum experience as a recreational therapist; preferably with supervisory experience.

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