Summary This position serves as the Acupuncturist in the Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Service (PM&RS) at the C.W. Bill Young VA Medical Center located in St. Petersburg, FL. The Bay Pines VA Healthcare Center is a general medical and surgical facility, classified as a Level 1A Complexity. It is a teaching hospital, providing a full range of patient care services, with state-of-the-art technology in acute surgical and medical education and limited research. Responsibilities Acupuncturists at this level review and triage acupuncture referrals for individualized acupuncture treatment. The incumbent serves as a member of an interdisciplinary team providing acupuncture treatment as well as further coordination of care for patients referred for acupuncture services. Duties of this position can include: analyzes medical histories and physical findings to formulate a differential diagnosis based on oriental and western medicine paradigms. design and oversight of acupuncture treatment plans as well as a full range of acupuncture services, monitoring the accuracy of needle placement during a treatment. communicates with patients about any abnormal or unexpected results or responses to treatment and advises patients regarding lifestyle changes including nutrition, exercise, sleeping habit stress management, mind body techniques and other matters related to acupuncture care. submit referrals and requests for devices, materials, and appliances available and commonly used by the acupuncture profession. documentation of information related to patient care including assessment, diagnosis, treatment, response to treatment, plan of care, and patient education as well as identification and documentation of appropriate coding for each patient encounter in the VA's electronic health care record on a timely basis following VHA policies. provides information regarding the patient consultation to other health care providers. manages clinical workload demands. utilize standard medical evaluation procedures and East Asian Medicine evaluation to formulate a differential diagnosis to develop an acupuncture treatment plan. incorporate the various training techniques taught within East Asian Medicine and acupuncture. educate patients on health lifestyle changes including nutrition, exercise, sleeping habits, stress management, mind body techniques and other matters related to acupuncture care. communicates with other health care providers as appropriate. maintain trainings and attend required meetings. shall maintain up to date VHA and professional trainings. review referrals, screen for appropriateness of care, and direct Veterans to other services when necessary. The acupuncturist is the subject matter expert on acupuncture and East Asian Medicine services and will provide guidance when requested regarding purchased care. at the GS-11 level, serves as a mentor to new staff or less experienced staff and students. Work Schedule: Monday to Friday 8am-430pm Telework: Not available Virtual: Not available Functional Statement Title: Acupuncturist, GS-0601-09/11 Recruitment/Relocation Incentives: Not authorized. Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not authorized. Financial Disclosure Report: Not required EDRP: Not authorized. Additional Benefits Child Care Subsidy: After 60 days of employment, full time employees with a total family income below $144,000 may be eligible for a childcare subsidy up to 25% of total eligible childcare costs for eligible children up to the monthly maximum of $416.66. Retirement: Traditional federal pension (5 years vesting) and federal 401K with up to 5% in contributions by VA Insurance: Federal health/vision/dental/term life/long-term care (many federal insurance programs can be carried into retirement) Pay: Competitive salary and regular salary increases Paid Time Off: 37-50 days of annual paid time offer per year (13-26 days of annual leave, 13 days of sick leave, 11 paid Federal holidays per year) Parental Leave: After 12 months of employment, up to 12 weeks of paid parental leave in connection with the birth, adoption, or foster care placement of a child. Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional Requirements Conditions of Employment You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job. Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959. Must be proficient in written and spoken English. You may be required to serve a trial period. 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). Qualifications Applicants must meet the requirements by the closing date of this announcement 09/16/2025 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. Candidates will not be appointed under authority of 38 U.S.C. chapters 73 or 74, to serve in a direct patient-care capacity in VHA who are not proficient in written and spoken English. Education: Applicants must meet ONE of the education requirements listed below: Master's degree in acupuncture or oriental medicine from a program accredited by the Accreditation Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (ACAOM).. OR Advanced level degree in acupuncture or oriental medicine from a program accredited by the Accreditation Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (ACAOM). MUST SUBMIT DOCUMENTS WITH APPLICATION (transcripts or diploma). Foreign Graduates. Graduates of foreign acupuncture programs also meet the requirements above if they have a full unrestricted and current license to practice acupuncture in a State, Territory or Commonwealth of the United States, or in the District of Columbia. Certification: Acupuncturists hired in the VHA must be board certified through the National Certification Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (NCCAOM). The board certification must be current and the acupuncturist must abide by the certifying body's requirements for continuing education. Loss of Certification. An acupuncturist who fails to maintain the required certificate must be removed from the occupation, which may result in termination of employment. At the discretion of the appointing official, an employee may be reassigned to another occupation if qualified and if a placement opportunity exists. Must submit active, valid certification to application. Licensure: Current, full, active, and unrestricted license to practice acupuncture in a State, Territory or Commonwealth (i.e. Puerto Rico) of the United States, or District of Columbia. Loss of licensure. An acupuncturist who fails to maintain the required license must be removed from the occupation, which may result in termination of employment. At the discretion of the appointing official, an employee may be reassigned to another occupation if qualified and if a placement opportunity exists. Must submit active, valid licensure to application. Grandfathering Provision. All persons employed in VHA in this occupational series or in another occupational series that are performing the duties as described in this qualification standard 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 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 to it, the following apply: 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 (GS-11) or placed in supervisory or managerial positions. Acupuncturists who are 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. Acupuncturists 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 an acupuncturist. Grade Determinations: In addition to the basic requirements for employment, the following criteria must be met when determining the grade of candidates: Acupuncturist, GS-9 (Entry Level) Experience. None beyond the basic requirements. Assignments. Individuals at this grade level are considered to be entry level and are closely supervised. The employee works under the direction of a journey level or higher acupuncturist or other health care providers licensed to perform acupuncture. The acupuncturist provides professional services in accordance with the established treatment plan. Deviations from regular procedures, unanticipated problems, and unfamiliar situations are referred to more experienced staff for decision or assistance. Acupuncturist, GS-11 (Full Performance Level) Experience or Education. Individual must meet at least ONE of the requirements below: Experience. In addition to the basic requirements, must have one year of creditable experience equivalent to the GS-9 level, which is directly related to this position OR Education. Doctoral degree or equivalent degree from an accredited college or university in an acupuncture or oriental medicine. MUST SUBMIT DOCUMENTS WITH APPLICATION (transcripts or diploma). Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (KSA). While we no longer require essay-style responses to our Knowledge's Skills, Abilities, and Other Characteristics (KSAOs), you must be able to demonstrate that you possess the (below) competencies which are necessary to perform the work of the position. Please ensure your resume/CV/application contains sufficient information to support the level of experience/education/training; otherwise, we will not be able to award you credit for the experience/education/training you claim. If selected, you may be required to submit narrative responses then. These are the KSA's for this position and grade level: Ability to screen referrals and direct veterans to other services as appropriate. Ability to formulate an appropriate differential diagnosis. Ability to formulate an acupuncture treatment plan independently or with other health care professionals. Ability to educate patients on health lifestyle changes including nutrition, exercise, sleeping habits, stress management, mind body techniques and other matters related to acupuncture care. This includes the ability to communicate with individuals of varying backgrounds. Skill in the selection and use of the appropriate acupuncture tools and supplies based on needs of the patient. Preferred Experience: Experience serving as a member of an interdisciplinary team providing acupuncture treatment as well as further coordination of care for patients referred for acupuncture services. Experience with analyzing medical histories and physical findings to formulate a differential diagnosis based on oriental and western medicine paradigms. Previous VA experience preferred. References: VA HANDBOOK 5005/100, PART II APPENDIX G53, DATED 2/7/2018. For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/. The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-11. Physical Requirements: The physical demands of the work require light lifting (under 20 pounds), light carrying (under 20 pounds), the use of fingers, reaching above shoulder, both hands required, walking (3 hrs.), prolong standing (6-8 hrs.), crawling (.25 hrs.), kneeling (.50 hrs.), repeated bending (2 hrs.), ability for rapid mental and muscular coordination simultaneously. 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: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/. 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: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/. Additional Information Receiving Service Credit or 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. 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.
