Supervisory Recreation Therapist (Service Chief)

This position is established to provide for the overall administrative and clinical supervision of the Recreational Therapy and Creative Arts Program and the performance of recreational therapy to patients as needed. The incumbent provides supervision of key clinical and training programs, including the overall technical oversight of the RT's whom he/she administratively supervises. The incumbent will exhibit knowledge of human resources administration including such functions as the ability to interview and select qualified applicants, monitor, and evaluate performance and maintain effective labor management relations within the scope of responsibility. The Supervisory Recreational Therapist is responsible for the development and implementation of policies and procedures to address focused clinical needs, and the overall services delivered and provided within the section. The incumbent is required to provide overall clinical supervision that assures the proper coordination and delivery of care within the section and the Salisbury VA Medical Center.

Function/Scope of Assigned Duties:
a. Clinical:
- Clinical and administrative hours are allocated consistent with National guidelines.
- Supervises and assigns work to RT's, Adaptive Sports Recreation Therapists, Creative Arts Therapists, Assistants, trainees, and volunteers in the delivery and/or support of treatment and education of patients and families.
- Triages consults to Recreation Therapy for appropriateness and completeness. Coordinates with other sections and other services in RT treatment, treatment scheduling, and delivery of care.
- Serves as a consultant to RT staff and other hospital personnel in evaluating and planning RT treatment.
- Resolves problems that interfere with delivery of RT services

b. Education:
- Identifies continuing education needs based on the performance of RT staff.
- Assists with education of student trainees from multiple schools. Develops and plans educational programs to include patients, family, and professional personnel.
- Educates other facility personnel in the scope of RT services and programs involving a variety of healthcare specialties.
- Provides leadership and coordination of national and local VA training for VHA staff.
- Provides consultation to VA medical centers throughout the system in rehabilitation (Recreational Therapy) as appropriate.

c. Administrative:
The incumbent is authorized to exercise independent action to manage the Recreation Therapy Section and programs with responsibility to foster the needs of management in furnishing community support for facilitating the accomplishment of the medical center mission. The incumbent has full responsibility for clinical practice, program management, education, human resource management and supervision, personnel labor mapping, productivity and analytics, and staff resource utilization, fiscal, budget, and logistics management, quality, safety, and performance improvement, and organizational stewardship for recreation therapy programs.

• Responsible for clinical management, program management, human resources management, supply, and equipment management of the Recreation Therapy Section.
• Provide administrative and/or clinical supervision of recreation therapy/creative arts therapy staff in their professional role and overall responsibility for clinical practice for the provision of complex recreation therapy/creative arts therapy services requiring advanced practice skills ensuring the provision of recreation therapy services in a variety of inpatient and outpatient program areas.
• Defines Section mission and vision for all recreation therapy staff, establishing recreation therapy objectives to meet those needs which are consistent with medical center goals.
• Assures implementation of quality improvement measures, technical program development, management and evaluation that include assessing mission, goals, programs and problems of the medical facility in terms of psychosocial and functional needs of the patients are met.
• Exercises authority in making independent, sound professional advice, decisions, and recommendations of recreation therapy/creative arts therapy services across the continuum of care for all areas across the medical center.
• Provide leadership with objective independent assessments and recommendations for policy, operational and administrative issues, and initiatives requiring decision and action; advise leadership of specific clinical or administrative issues within Recreation Therapy at the SVAHCS.

Performs other assigned duties.

Work Schedule: Monday- Friday 8:00a.m-4:30p.m
Telework: Not Available
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Functional Statement #: 000000
Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized
Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized

Conditions of employment

• You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job.
• All applicants tentatively selected for VA employment in a testing designated position are subject to urinalysis to screen for illegal drug use prior to appointment. Applicants who refuse to be tested will be denied employment with VA.
• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959.
• Must be proficient in written and spoken English.
• Subject to background/security investigation.
• Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements (https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/form-i-9-acceptable-documents). Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued dentification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.
• Must pass pre-employment physical examination.
• Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP).
• Complete all application requirements detailed in the "Required Documents" section of this announcement.

As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1 or 2-year trial period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may consider:

• your performance and conduct;
• the needs and interests of the agency;
• whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and
• whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service.

Upon completion of your trial period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.

Qualifications

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) 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,
  • (b) 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
  • (1) Required 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.
• Failure to Obtain Registration/Certification. In all cases, recreation and creative arts therapists must actively pursue meeting registration and/or certification requirements, starting from the date of appointment. At the time of appointment, the supervisor will provide the unregistered and/or uncertified recreation or creative arts therapist with the written requirement to obtain registration/certification, the date by which the registration and/or certification must be acquired, and the consequences for not becoming registered and/or certified by the deadline. Failure to become registered and/or certified within two years from the date of appointment will result in removal from the GS-0638 recreation and creative arts therapist occupation, and may result in termination of employment.
• Loss of Credential. A recreation or creative arts therapist who fails to maintain the required registration and/or certification must be removed from the occupation, which may also result in termination of employment.
• 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).
Grandfathering Provision. All persons employed in VHA as a recreation or creative arts therapist, on the effective date of this qualification standard, are considered to have met all qualification requirements for the title, series, and grade held, including positive education, and registration and/or certification that are part of the basic requirements of the occupation. For employees who do not meet all the basic requirements in this standard, but who met the qualifications applicable to the position at the time they were appointed, the following provisions apply:

(1) Such employees may be reassigned, promoted up to, and including, the full performance (journeyman) level, or changed to lower grade within the occupation, but may not be promoted beyond the journeyman level, or placed in supervisory or managerial positions.
(2) Employees who were appointed on a temporary basis, prior to the effective date of the qualification standard, may not have their temporary appointment extended or be reappointed, on a temporary or permanent basis, until they fully meet the basic requirements of the standard.
(3) Employees initially grandfathered into this occupation, who subsequently obtain additional education and/or licensure/registration/certification, that meet all the basic requirements of this qualification standard must maintain the required credentials as a condition of employment in the occupation.
(4) Recreation and creative arts therapists who are converted to title 38 hybrid status under this provision and subsequently leave the occupation lose protected status and must meet the full VA qualification standard requirements, in effect at the time of reentry, as a recreation or creative arts therapist.

Grade Determinations: Supervisory Recreation Therapist (Service Chief), GS-14
(a) Experience. At least one year of creditable experience equivalent 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:
i. Skill in supervising, motivating, and managing a diverse clinical staff applicable to a service level department in a large, complex, or multi-division facility, including inherent strategic planning and fiscal management.
ii. Skill in providing authoritative advice and coordination of recreation therapy and/or creative arts therapy services across the continuum of care that may encompass multiple medical centers, including consolidated facilities or departments.
iii. Skill in collaborating with strategic planning committees at local, VISN, or national levels for new ventures addressing patient care delivery systems, facilities management, system reorganization, etc.
iv. Ability to translate extensive recreation/creative art therapy, rehabilitation, mental health, long term-care, and other specialty care knowledge areas into cogent and useful policy in complex facilities.
v. Knowledge in reconciling contradictory requirements based upon regulations and standards of various regulatory and medical or other professional credentialing groups, such as The Joint Commission.
vi. Knowledge of pertinent analytical and evaluative methods sufficient to analyze complex issues to provide workable solutions and alternative solutions to executive leadership that support timely and sound decision making.

Preferred Experience:
The ideal candidate for the Supervisory Recreation Therapist (RT) position is a certified RT at the GS 13 level or higher, with at least 52 weeks of experience. The candidate demonstrates consistent excellence in patient care and the ability to deliver high quality, veteran centered RT services in a complex clinical environment.

The preferred candidate consistently demonstrates integrity, reliability, accountability, transparency, and ethical behavior in all professional interactions and is willing to serve in a leadership capacity.

The candidate shows strong critical thinking, sound judgment, and effective problem solving skills, with experience addressing clinical, operational, and personnel related challenges. The role requires the ability to balance direct patient care with supervisory and administrative responsibilities while ensuring efficient service operations.

Effective communication and interpersonal skills are required, as the position involves frequent interaction with veterans, staff, and interdisciplinary stakeholders. The candidate demonstrates the ability to lead collaboratively, support team development, and maintain a respectful and inclusive work environment.

Proficiency in computer applications is required, including experience with office software, databases, and VA related platforms to support administrative tasks, performance tracking, and operational needs.

Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit .

The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-14. The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is GS-14.

Physical Requirements: See VA Directive and Handbook 5019.