Physical Therapy Assistant

About the role

The Physical Therapy Assistant (PTA) is assigned to the Physical Therapy Department within Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Service (PM&RS) at the VA Southern Oregon Rehabilitation Center & Clinics (SORCC). The primary function of the PTA in this position is direct patient care to a medically complex and diverse population in the outpatient setting. 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. Individuals must meet at least one of the requirements below: (1) Associate degree from an accredited community college, junior college, college or university in a physical therapy assistant education program accredited by the Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education; OR (2) [Graduate of foreign physical therapy assistant degree programs that meet the educational requirement and have successfully passed the National Physical Therapy Exam (NPTE) for PTAs. OR (3) Graduate of military physical therapy assistant programs that meet the educational requirement and have successfully passed the NPTE for PTAs.] Licensure. Current, full, active and unrestricted license as a PTA in a State, Territory or Commonwealth (i.e. Puerto Rico) of the United States, or 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: In addition to the basic requirements outlined in paragraph 3, the following criteria must be met when determining the grade of candidates. Physical Therapy Assistant, GS-9 (1) Experience. One year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade. In addition, the candidate must demonstrate one of the following: (a) A minimum of 2000 hours of clinical practice directly in the specialty area, and completion of 60 contact hours of selected continuing education coursework. This time must be within the past five years; or (b) Advanced Practice Proficiency (APP) in the specialty area recognized by the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA); or (c) An additional academic degree related to the health care mission. (2) Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. In addition to the basic requirements, the candidate must demonstrate the following KSAs: (a) Ability to mentor other staff in advanced clinical guidelines and best practices. (b) Ability to serve as a subject matter expert (SME) for healthcare providers in specialty practice areas regarding physical therapy care. (c) Ability to present] advanced knowledge in the therapeutic interventions and clinical practice guidelines with the healthcare team. (d) Ability to interpret and apply clinical practice guidelines. Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/. The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-9. Physical Requirements: See VA Directive and Handbook 5019, Employee Occupational Health Service for requirements.

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