GENESEE COUNTY HUMAN RESOURCES

COUNTY BUILDING I, BATAVIA, NEW YORK

ANNOUNCES

AN OPEN COMPETITIVE EXAMINATION FOR:

ACTIVITIES COORDINATOR, O.C., #66-663

SALARY: $13.02 - $16.23 per hour (2014), Genesee County.

VACANCY: The Genesee County Nursing Home has one (1) position currently held by a provisionally appointed employee, who may be appointed on a permanent basis if found reachable on a civil service list established as a result of this exam. This examination is also being held to establish an eligible list to fill future vacancies, which may occur during the life of the eligible list.

An eligible may receive only one permanent appointment from this list. Once appointed, there will be a Probationary Period of 8-52 weeks based on performance of duties. During this probationary period the Department Head has the ability to terminate employment, without cause.

CANDIDATES MUST HAVE BEEN LEGAL RESIDENTS OF GENESEE COUNTY FOR AT LEAST TWO (2) MONTHS IMMEDIATELY PRECEDING THE DATE OF THE WRITTEN EXAMINATION, AND MUST HAVE CONTINUED THEIR RESIDENCY THROUGH THE PERIOD LEADING TO THEIR INITIAL APPOINTMENT.

LAST FILING DATE----------MARCH 26, 2014

WRITTEN EXAMINATION----------MAY 3, 2014

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS: Candidates must meet one of the following requirements on or before the date of the written test:

Graduation from high school or possession of an appropriate equivalency diploma recognized by the NYS Department of Education AND:

      A.        Certification as a Therapeutic Recreation Specialist, [IF CLAIMED,
                  PLEASE ATTACH A COPY OF YOUR CERTIFICATION];
OR:

      B.        Eligibility for certification as a therapeutic recreation specialist or activities
                  professional by a recognized accrediting body, [IF CLAIMED, PLEASE  
                  ATTACH A COPY OF YOUR OFFICIAL TRANSCRIPT];
OR     

      C.        Two (2) years of age-appropriate experience within the last five years,
                  one (1) year of which was full-time, paid in a patient activities program in
                  a health care setting, [IF CLAIMED, PLEASE INDICATE ALL
                  RELEVANT EXPERIENCE ON YOUR APPLICATION];
OR

       D.       License as an Occupational Therapist, Registered (OTR), [IF CLAIMED,
                  PLEASE ATTACH A COPY OF YOUR LICENSE];
OR

       E.       Certification as an Occupational Therapy Assistant (COTA). [IF
                  CLAIMED, PLEASE ATTACH A COPY OF YOUR CERTIFICATION].

NOTE: You may file for this examination if you expect to complete the education requirement by June 30, 2014.  If successful on the examination, however, you will not be certified for appointment until you have submitted proof of completion of the education requirements to the Genesee County Human Resources Department.

NOTE: Photo ID will be required on the day of the examination.

CANDIDATES, PLEASE NOTE: It is vital that you submit, with your application, all information necessary to show your qualification for examination.  APPLICATIONS WHICH DO NOT SHOW TRAINING AND/OR EXPERIENCE TO MEET MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS WILL BE DISAPPROVED, AND WE WILL NOT REFER TO OTHER APPLICATIONS ON FILE FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION.

NOTE – FILING FEES: (The acceptance of your application is dependent upon your following these instructions accurately):

A fee of $20.00 is required for each separately-numbered examination for which you apply.  The required fee must accompany your application.  The fee may be submitted in the form of either CASH (if delivered in person), PERSONAL CHECK or MONEY ORDER, (if by mail).  Personal Checks and Money Orders must be payable to the GENESEE COUNTY TREASURER.  Please write the examination number(s) on your personal check or money order.  YOUR APPLICATION FEE WILL NOT BE REFUNDED if you do not meet the requirements for admission to the examination. Compare your qualifications carefully to the requirements stated on the announcement and file only for those examinations for which you are clearly qualified. A waiver of application fee will be allowed if you are receiving unemployment and primarily responsible for the support of a household.  In addition, a waiver of the requirements stated on the announcement and file only for those examinations for which you are clearly qualified. A waiver of application fee will be allowed if you are receiving unemployment and primarily responsible for the support of a household.  In addition, a waiver of application fee will be allowed if you are determined eligible for Medicaid, or receiving Supplemental Security Income payments, or Public Assistance (Temporary Assistance for Needy Family assistance or Safety Net Assistance), or are certified Job Training Partnership Act/Workforce Investment Act eligible through a State or local social service agency.  All claims for application fee waiver are subject to verification.  In order for us to verify your eligibility for an application fee waiver, you must complete a “Request for Fee Waiver” form and submit it with your application by the close of business on the Last Filing Date as indicated on the Examination Announcement. The “Request for Fee Waiver” form can be obtained at Genesee County Human Resources, 15 Main Street, Batavia, NY 14020 or from our website, www.co.genesee.ny.us.

TYPICAL WORK ACTIVITIES:
Develop needs assessments and care plans to meet the individual activities needs
     of residents of the Genesee County Nursing Home and Adult Home;
Attend weekly care plan meetings;
Plan, promote, initiate and coordinate a variety of activities designed to meet the
     needs of the residents;
Prepare and distribute the monthly calendar of activities;
Maintain records, files, and data for those served and services provided to be used
     for statistical and reporting purposes;
Promote public relations efforts for the department;
Maintain close working relationships with volunteers, schools, community groups,
     and local service groups;
Maintain effective communication and a good working relationship with residents,
     staff, family, and community members;
Coordinate the use of the facility by community groups, such as the
     Alzheimer’s Association;
Visit and observe first-hand, activities programs lead by Activities staff;
Plan and organize several activities during the year which are joint ventures of the
     Nursing Home residents, staff, family members, and community volunteers;
Attend and facilitate monthly resident meetings and keep minutes;
Attend Family Council meetings, when invited.

SUBJECT OF EXAMINATION: The written test is designed to test for knowledge, skills, and/or abilities in such areas as:

1.   Problems of Persons who are Aged, Disabled and/or Chronically Ill as they  
          Relate to Leisure Time Needs
2.   Planning, Organizing and Conducting Recreation Activities in Long and
          Short-term Care Facilities
3.   Preparing Written Material
4.   Public Contact Principles and Practices

CANDIDATES ARE PERMITTED TO USE QUIET, HAND-HELD, SOLAR OR BATTERY POWERED CALCULATORS.  DEVICES WITH TYPEWRITER KEYBOARDS SUCH AS COMPUTERS, SPELL-CHECKERS, PERSONAL DIGITAL ASSISTANTS, ADDRESS BOOKS, LANGUAGE TRANSLATORS, DICTIONARIES AND ANY SIMILAR DEVICES ARE PROHIBITED.

EXPANDED SUB-TEST DESCRIPTION:

Problems of Persons who are Aged, Disabled and/or Chronically Ill as they Relate to Leisure Time Needs-These questions test for a knowledge of the characteristic physical, emotional, and social problems of persons who are aged, disabled, and/or chronically ill. Questions may cover such topics as the nature of impairments, disabilities, and illnesses and their potential impact on an individual's ability to engage in recreation activities.

Planning, Organizing and Conducting Recreation Activities in Long and Short-term Care Facilities-These questions test for a knowledge of the concepts and common practices involved in planning and implementing leisure time/therapeutic recreation programs in long- and short-term care facilities. Questions may cover such topics as scheduling activities; motivating participation; determining needs, interests, and abilities of potential participants; and organizing group activities and outings.

Preparing Written Material-These questions test for the ability to present information clearly and accurately, and to organize paragraphs logically and comprehensibly. For some questions, you will be given information in two or three sentences followed by four restatements of the information. You must then choose the best version. For other questions, you will be given paragraphs with their sentences out of order. You must then choose, from four suggestions, the best order for the sentences.

Public Contact Principles and Practices-These questions test for the ability to interact with other people, to gather and present information, and to provide assistance, advice, and effective customer service in a courteous and professional manner. Questions will cover such topics as understanding and responding to people with diverse needs, perspectives, personalities, and levels of familiarity with agency operations, as well as acting in a way that both serves the public and reflects well on your agency.

The New York State Department of Civil Service has not prepared a test guide for this examination. However, candidates may find information in the publication "How to take a written test" helpful in preparing for this test. This publication is available on line at: www.cs.ny.gov/testing/localtestguides.cfm

CROSS-FILING: If you have applied for other local government or state examinations, call or write to each civil service agency to make arrangements no later than two weeks before the date of the examinations.  You must notify all local government civil service agencies with whom you have filed an application of the test site at which you wish to take your examinations.  The “Cross-filer Form” for Genesee County can be obtained at Genesee County Human Resources, 15 Main St., Batavia, NY 14020 or from our website, www.co.genesee.ny.us.