Speech-Language Pathologist

Summary

The Speech-Language Pathologist is located within the Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Service at the Prescott, Arizona, VA Northern Arizona Health Care System. In this position, you will be responsible for planning and conducting comprehensive diagnostic assessments and therapies for speech, language, voice, cognition, and swallowing disorders. You will work independently across all clinical areas to deliver critical, wide-ranging rehabilitative care to our veteran patient population.

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Duties

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• Conducts, plans, and coordinates all clinical and administrative aspects of a full range of services associated with contemporary speech-language pathology practice.
• Performs independent diagnostic assessment and evaluation of cases referred to Speech-Language Pathology without limitation as to difficulty or complexity. Conducts interviews with patients and appropriate family members or friends; selects, administers, and interprets diagnostic tests required to detect and evaluate speech, language, voice, fluency, cognitive, and swallowing disorders.
• Ensures adequacy of assessments and reports findings to other professionals involved in formulating diagnostic and clinical judgments. Assesses patient condition through close observation and consultation with members of the interdisciplinary health care team and utilizes all diagnostic and evaluative procedures consistent with contemporary speech-language pathology practice.
• Plans, conducts, coordinates, and monitors the effectiveness and clinical outcomes of patient-centered treatments and rehabilitative services to maximize and restore physical and social functioning.
• Administers a full range of tests of speech, language, voice, fluency, and cognition, including evaluation of vocal pitch and loudness, rate of vocal utterance, frequency and complexity of disfluency, adaptation in sustained or repeated speaking and aural reading, phonetic analysis of misarticulation patterns, and identification of phonetic and semantic factors related to speech sound variation.
• Develops effective and comprehensive plans of care for swallowing disorders in collaboration with other health care practitioners; establishes and maintains therapeutic relationships with patients, families, and caregivers; and adjusts treatment plans based on patient response and progress indicators.
• Serves as a consultant to facility personnel for the most difficult cases and functions as a recognized subject matter expert in speech, language, voice, fluency, cognitive, and swallowing disorders.
• Supervises, evaluates, mentors, and precepts student trainees in speech-language pathology and maintains liaison with affiliated colleges and universities. Provides instruction to medical residents and interns seeking information related to speech-language pathology.
• Completes all documentation as directed and in accordance with facility policy.
• Maintains current knowledge of developments in speech-language pathology by reading professional literature, participating in continuing education, attending conferences and in-services, and collaborating with colleagues.
• Participates in required communication activities, including regular staff meetings and interdisciplinary team meetings. Reviews medical center policies and procedures, attends required training, and completes annual mandatory training.
• Participates in research activities relevant to speech-language pathology as assigned. Assists in gathering clinical research data and incorporates carefully executed clinical procedures into research designs when applicable.
• Performs ancillary assignments, including specialized program development and management duties, on an occasional basis when workload and complexity are appropriate.
• Performs other tasks as assigned by the Supervisor, Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology, consistent with the mission of PM&R and the Medical Center.

Work Schedule : Full-Time, Monday - Friday, 8:00 AM - 4:30 PM

Telework : Not Available

Virtual: This is not a virtual position.

Functional Statement # : 000000

Relocation/Recruitment Incentives : Not Authorized

Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorizedc

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

• You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job.
• To be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process. In addition to the application and questionnaire, this position requires an online assessment. The online assessment measures critical general competencies required to perform the job.
• 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 ( Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued identification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.
• 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.
• English Language Proficiency: SLP candidates must be proficient in spoken and written English in accordance with 38 U.S.C. § 7403(f).
• Education and Experience:
  • A master's degree, or its equivalent, in speech-language pathology, communication disorders or a directly related field from an accredited college or university and one year of creditable experience.
  • A doctoral degree in speech-language pathology, communication disorders and sciences or a related field, from an accredited college or university.
• Licensure. Individuals must hold a full, current and unrestricted license in a U.S. state, territory, commonwealth or the 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 :

Speech-Language Pathologist, GS-11:

• Knowledge, Skills and Abilities (KSAs). In addition to the basic requirements, the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSAs:
  • Knowledge of principles and techniques in assessing and treating disorders of speech, language, cognitive-communication and swallowing.
  • Knowledge of instrumentation and technologies for assessing and treating communication and swallowing disorders.
  • Ability to adapt clinical procedures and techniques to accommodate unique patient conditions, needs and goals.

Speech-Language Pathologist, GS-12:

• Experience. In addition to the basic requirements at the GS-11 level, completing one year of professional experience comparable to the next lower level and possessing a full, current and unrestricted license to practice speech-language pathology.
• Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills and Abilities (KSAs). In addition to the experience requirements, the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSAs:
  • Skill in applying principles and techniques of diagnosis and treatment associated with contemporary speech-language pathology following evidence-based practice for adult patients exhibiting the full range of speech to the full range of patient populations.
  • Skill in administering and interpreting instrumental swallowing evaluations.
  • Ability to assess the effectiveness of clinical outcomes and adapt clinical procedures and techniques to accommodate unique patient conditions.

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

The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-12. The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is in the range of GS-11 to GS-12.

Physical Requirements: See VA Directive and Handbook 5019.

Education

Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit:

Additional information

Under the Fair Chance to Compete Act, the Department of Veterans Affairs prohibits requesting an applicant's criminal history prior to accepting a tentative job offer. For more information about the Act and the complaint process, visit Human Resources and Administration/Operations, Security, and Preparedness (HRA/OSP) at The Fair Chance Act.

Reasonable Accommodation (RA) Requests: If you believe you have a disability (i.e., physical or mental), covered by the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended that would interfere with completing the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, you will be granted the opportunity to request a RA in your online application. Requests for RA for the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments and appropriate supporting documentation for RA must be received prior to starting the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments. Decisions on requests for RA are made on a case-by-case basis. If you meet the minimum qualifications of the position, after notification of the adjudication of your request, you will receive an email invitation to complete the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, based on your adjudication decision. You must complete all assessments within 48 hours of receiving the URL to access the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments if you received the link after the close of the announcement. To determine if you need a RA, please review the Procedures for Requesting a Reasonable Accommodation for Online Assessments.

Receiving Service Credit for Earning Annual (Vacation) Leave: Federal Employees earn annual leave at a rate (4, 6 or 8 hours per pay period) which is based on the number of years they have served as a Federal employee. Selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual, based on prior work experience or military service experience. This credited service can be used in determining the rate at which they earn annual leave. Such credit must be requested and approved prior to the appointment date and is not guaranteed.

During the application process you may have an option to opt-in to make your resume available to hiring managers in the agency who have similar positions. Opting in does not impact your application for this announcement, nor does it guarantee further consideration for additional positions.

This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies.

This position is in the Excepted Service and does not confer competitive status.

VA encourages persons with disabilities to apply. The health-related positions in VA are covered by Title 38, and are not covered by the Schedule A excepted appointment authority.

If you are unable to apply online or need an alternate method to submit documents, please reach out to the Agency Contact listed in this Job Opportunity Announcement.

Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.

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A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.

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Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.