Physical Therapy Assistant

Description:

This position is located in the Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation Service (PM&RS), Physical Therapy Section within Jesse Brown Chicago VA Healthcare System which is a Complexity Level Ib facility. The Advanced Practice Physical Therapy Assistant ("APPTA') is responsible for the assessment, treatment, and coordination of care and services provided by PM&RS in the orthopedics and safe patient handling. The incumbent is expected to carry out general duty assignments.

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:

U.S. Citizenship: Must be a citizen of the United States. Non-citizens may be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy.

English Language Proficiency: Must be proficient in spoken and written English

EDUCATION: Individuals must meet at least one of the requirements below:
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
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
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.

Grade Determinations:

GS-9 GRADE REQUIREMENTS: One year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade. In addition, the candidate must demonstrate one of the following:
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 Advanced Practice Proficiency (APP) in the specialty area recognized by the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA). OR An additional academic degree related to the health care mission.
GS-9 Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:
The candidate must demonstrate the following technical 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.
References: VA Handbook 5005/139, Part II, Appendix G23 Physical Therapy Assistant Qualification Standard, GS-0636.

Physical Requirements: The employee works and functions in the medical center in a safe manner, including infection control and the correct operation of equipment.