Audiologist

US Department of Veterans Affairs; Anderson (SC); On-site; USD 75,000 - 97,000; Full time

Job summary

The US Department of Veterans Affairs seeks an Audiologist for the Audiology & Speech Pathology Section to perform a full range of audiological evaluations, determine amplification needs, predict and measure amplification effectiveness, and identify needed aural rehabilitation and counseling for Veterans and their families.

This GS-12 level position requires a Doctor of Audiology or equivalent, full licensure, US citizenship, and ability to work within VA healthcare settings, with opportunities

Qualifications

• Doctor of Audiology (AUD) from ACAE/CAA or equivalent.
• Full, current, unrestricted audiology license in a US state or territory.
• US citizenship; non-citizens only when required by VA policy.
• Ability to provide professional audiology services independently and to consult with other health care professionals.

Responsibilities

• Conduct a full range of audiological evaluations to determine type and degree of hearing loss.
• Determine patients' amplification needs and measure amplification effectiveness.
• Determine need for and type of aural rehabilitation and counseling for Veterans and families.
• Serve as a consultant to other health care professionals and healthcare teams.

Skills

Audiology assessments

Hearing loss evaluation

Amplification fitting

Counseling patients & families

Clinical consultation

Education

Doctor of Audiology (AUD)

Current unrestricted audiology license (US)

Job description

Duties are carried out throughout all clinical and other patient care areas involved with the Audiology & Speech Pathology Section. Audiologist at this level conducts a full range of audiological evaluations to determine the type and degree of hearing loss, determines patients' need for amplification, predicts, and measures the effectiveness of amplification, and determines need for and type of aural rehabilitation and counseling of Veterans with hearing loss and their families.

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.
  • (1) Doctor of Audiology (AUD) from an audiology program recognized by the Accreditation Commission for Audiology Education (ACAE) or Council on Academic Accreditation (CAA) of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA). HR office staff and management officials may verify a program's accreditation from ACAE at acaeaccred.org and CAA at caa.asha.org. OR
  • (2) Other doctoral degree in hearing science or a directly related field from an institution accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.
• Licensure. Individuals must hold a full, current, and unrestricted license to practice audiology at the doctoral level in a United States state, territory, commonwealth, or the District of Columbia.
  • The Under Secretary of Health, or designee, may appoint a candidate without a license who will be assigned to a research, academic, or administrative position with no patient care responsibilities. In such instances, HR office staff can only appoint these candidates in exceptional circumstances where their credentials demonstrate high professional attainment or expertise in the specialty area.
  • All audiologists who perform compensation and pension examinations perform direct patient care duties and must possess a full, current, and unrestricted license to practice audiology and must meet the experience requirements under Section 2. D. See 38 C.F.R. § 4.85.

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 for employment, the following criteria must be met when determining the grade of candidates.

Requirements for Audiologist, GS-12.

• Experience. In addition to the requirements at the GS-12 level, completion of one year of professional experience comparable to the next lower grade level.
• Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (KSAs). In addition to the KSAs required at the full performance level, the following KSAs are required:
  • Skill in determining nature, type, and severity of hearing/communication/vestibular disorders.
  • Skill in counseling patients and family members regarding management of hearing/communication/vestibular disorders.
  • Ability to provide professional advice and consultation in areas related to professional audiology to other health care professionals.
  • Ability to independently apply professional contemporary audiologic treatments to the full range of patient populations.
• Assignment. This is the full performance level for staff audiologists. At this level, audiologists are licensed to practice independently in the provision of audiologic services, consulting with peers and supervisors as appropriate. Audiologists serve as consultants to other health care professionals and are recognized subject matter experts (SME) on matters related to hearing, tinnitus, and balance disorders. The supervisor may assign staff audiologists to any VHA program and setting, such as inpatient or outpatient medicine, primary care, surgery, hearing health, neurology, rehabilitation medicine, geriatrics, compensation, and pension. Audiologists diagnose audiologic disorders, conduct audiologic, or neuro-audiologic assessments; treat auditory disorders through various modalities; and provide adjunctive interventions for the treatment of medical disorders. Audiologists consult with medical center staff on various patient care issues. Staff audiologists may be involved in program evaluation, teaching, training, and research activities. Among the modalities provided are individual, family, and group audiologic rehabilitation.

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-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, Employee Occupational Health Service.