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/ 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.

• Certification: Applicants must be certified in recreation therapy as a CTRS by the NCTRC. If hired under paragraph 4b(1)(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/ .

Physical Requirements: See VA Handbook 5019.