Health System Specialist

Summary There are three VISN 4 Health System Specialist vacancies: 1) Primary Health System Specialist 4.1; 2) Primary Health System Specialist 4.2; and 3) Primary Health System Specialist 4.3, serving as the principal administrative and communications liaison within the VISN Operations Center. Responsibilities Duties include but are not limited to: Serves as the Primary Health System Specialist, functioning as the primary liaison between the VISN, Health Service Area, VA Headquarters, and VAMC/HCS facilitating the flow of information and assignments between such offices. Prepares daily briefings and delivers information directly to VISN and HSA Senior Executive Leadership Teams as required. Evaluates facility, Health Service Area, and VISN operations against short and long-range objectives. Performs administrative work in one or more of the following areas: personnel, management/administration, budgeting and financial management, procurement and contracting, property management, and/or supply. Independently determines the methods and approaches used to manage these functions. Performs management support work. such as program or office planning, evaluation of administrative programs or issues, training program administration, correspondence control, liaison, special projects, or board or committee related work. Acts as the principal administrative lead in all communications and coordination with Strategic Planners, Veterans Experience Officers, Public Affairs Officers, and Compliance teams to achieve organizational objectives. Briefs and advises VISN, Health Service Area, and VAMC/HCS Executives on agenda issues in preparation for activities and meetings, and may represent the office at internal or external events. Coordinates work among Management Analysts and Staff Assistants, providing guidance, mentorship, and performance evaluation input to promote professional development and team effectiveness. Work Schedule: Employees are required to work the regular business hours and applicable core hours of the Health Service Area (HSA) to which they are assigned. Work schedules will be aligned with the time zone(s) served by the assigned HSA and may differ from the employee's local time zone. Telework: This position may be authorized for telework. Telework eligibility will be discussed during the interview process. Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Position Description/PD#: Health System Specialist/PD00002VS Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not Approved. Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized 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 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 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) As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary period 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 probationary period or trial period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest. Qualifications To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 11/03/2026. Time-In-Grade Requirement: Applicants who are current Federal employees and have held a GS grade any time in the past 52 weeks must also meet time-in-grade requirements by the closing date of this announcement. For a GS-13 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-12. The grade may have been in any occupation, but must have been held in the Federal service. An SF-50 that shows your time-in-grade eligibility must be submitted with your application materials. If the most recent SF-50 has an effective date within the past year, it may not clearly demonstrate you possess one-year time-in-grade, as required by the announcement. In this instance, you must provide an additional SF-50 that clearly demonstrates one-year time-in-grade. Note: Time-In-Grade requirements also apply to former Federal employees applying for reinstatement as well as current employees applying for Veterans Employment Opportunities Act of 1998 (VEOA) appointment. Individual Occupational Requirements (IOR): An IOR is a basic requirement that must be met in order to qualify for entry into this job series. To qualify for the GS 0671 occupational series, applicants MUST possess one of the following: Undergraduate and Graduate Education: Major study -- hospital administration, public health administration, or related fields such as business or public administration with course work in health care administration. OR, Specialized Experience: Progressively responsible analytical or administrative, or clinical management or supervisory experience in the health care field. This work may have been performed in an operating health care facility or a higher organizational echelon with advisory or directional authority over such facilities. Work must have involved a close working relationship with facility managers and analysis and/or coordination of administrative, clinical, or other service activities, and provided knowledge of the following: Missions, organizations, programs, and requirements of health care delivery systems; Regulations and standards of various regulatory and credentialing groups; and Government-wide, agency, and facility systems and requirements in various administrative areas such as budget, personnel, and procurement. OR, Special Provision for Inservice Placement: Successful completion of an agency-sponsored on-the-job training program may be substituted for qualifying experience, provided it included a formal individualized training plan. Such a training program must have been conducted in an operating health care system and included: Assignments providing a knowledge of basic health system administration philosophies, practices, and procedures, and basic government administrative policies and requirements; Practical assignments providing an opportunity to apply health system administration skills and principles (as the individual progresses, work assignments must be characteristic of the grade level to which he or she is assigned); and Oversight by an experienced health system administrator with periodic evaluation of the individual's progress and appropriate adjustment of the training program. In addition to meeting the Individual Occupational Requirement, you may qualify based on your experience as described below: Specialized Experience GS-13: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-12 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include: Researching and/or analyzing problems, issues, or program requirements. Comprehensive knowledge and experience in health care service administration, continuous quality improvement, data analysis, healthcare principles, budgeting, planning, administration, and labor/union relationships. Monitoring management decisions and initiatives to ensure consistency with strategic plans and goals. Performing administrative work in one or more of the following areas: personnel management/administration, budgeting and financial management, procurement and contracting, property management, and/or supply. Acting with delegated authority to develop new policy, establish program priorities, and recommend solutions to unprecedented problems. Experience in applying policy statements, technical criteria, manuals, and strategic plans, often developing new approaches to unusual situations and making independent decisions requiring resourcefulness and mature judgment. You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position: Attention to Detail Customer Service Decision Making Flexibility Influencing/Negotiating Integrity/Honesty Interpersonal Skills Learning Reasoning Self-Management Stress Tolerance Teamwork Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religions; spiritual; community; student; social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. Note: A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week. Part-time experience will be credited on the basis of time actually spent in appropriate activities. Applicants wishing to receive credit for such experience must indicate clearly the nature of their duties and responsibilities in each position and the number of hours a week spent in such employment. Physical Requirements: The work is sedentary. Some travel is required. No other special physical demands are required of the Primary Health System Specialist. For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/. Education There is no educational substitution at this grade level. A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on 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 This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies. 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.