Credentialing Program Assistant

Summary

The C&P Specialist, assigned to the Medical Staff Office, which is under the Chief of Staff at a VA Medical Center (VAMC), is aligned to and supervised by the C&P Manager. The Medical Staff Office is responsible for the C&P process of VAMC clinical services providers including full-time, part-time, temporary, intermittent, contract, without compensation (WOC), fee basis and telehealth Licensed Independent Providers (LIPs), as defined in the VAMC Medical Staff Bylaws.

Duties

Major duties include, but not limited to: Assist the C&P Manager/Analyst in developing short- and long-term goals to support the mission of the credentials and privileging program. Help identify the resources needed to carry out program functions and meet operational requirements. Serve as a subject matter expert in credentials and clinical privileging for staff and leadership. Keep leadership and administrative staff informed of program changes, policy updates, and new regulatory requirements. Review correspondence, VetPro reports, and communications to identify urgent matters, confidential information, and problem areas requiring follow-up. Research regulations, standards, and reference materials to determine appropriate corrective action for discrepancies or compliance issues. Ensure accurate provider data was entered and maintained in VetPro, including licensure, DEA registration, NPDB Continuous Query, FSMB, education, training, certifications, and privileging actions. Manage provider applications and renewals for licensed independent practitioners, including review of complete documentation and primary source verification. Verify credentials through approved primary sources such as licensing boards, certifying organizations, universities, the AMA, NPDB, DoD, and healthcare facilities. Review application packages and credentialing files for omissions, inconsistencies, and technical compliance with VHA policy, regulatory requirements, and TJC standards. Coordinate with clinical service departments, maintained credentialing records, and tracked time-sensitive actions, audits, renewals, FPPE/OPPE, and other privileging requirements. Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 7:30am to 4:00pm (Subject to change based on the needs of the agency.) 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#: Credentialing Program Assistant/PD04820A Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not Approved Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized PLEASE NOTE: This position is currently subject to consistency review that may result in a change in grade once concluded. If the Position Description is found to be at a lower grade, pay retention may not be authorized. Requirements

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 Physical Requirements: The work is mostly sedentary. Occasionally, light physical effort may be required, such as that involved with walking, stair climbing, and carrying of light office items. The work is performed in an office setting which require normal safety precautions typical for offices and meeting rooms. The work area is adequately lighted, heated, and ventilated. The work required does not inherently include any physical requirements essential for successful job performance that could not otherwise be performed with accommodation or workplace adjustment. A pre-placement physical examination is not required. 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, 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, 10/05/2026. 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-07 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-06. 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. You may qualify based on your experience as described below: Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-06 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: Experience in healthcare credentialing and privileging, including reviewing provider qualifications, verifying licensure and certifications, and applying credentialing standards and privileging requirements. Analytical, administrative, clinical management or supervisory experience in the health care field. Collaborated with facility managers and analysis and/or coordination of administrative, clinical, or other service activities. Provided knowledge of health care delivery systems, including their missions, organizational structures, programs, and operational requirements, to support effective analysis, coordination, and implementation of clinical and administrative functions. Applied knowledge of regulatory and credentialing standards, as well as facility requirements in administrative areas such as budget, personnel, and procurement, to ensure compliance and support efficient program operations. 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. 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/. How You Will Be Evaluated

Area of consideration - Eligible applications will be reviewed and referred in the following order: 1st Area of Consideration - current permanent Central Arkansas Veteran Healthcare System employees including satellites; and 2nd Area of Consideration - current permanent Veterans Healthcare Administration employees. Your qualifications will be evaluated based on your application materials (e.g., resume, supporting documents), your responses on the application questionnaire, and your responses to all assessments required for this position. You will be assessed on the following Competencies for this position: Analytical Reasoning Attention to Detail Database Management Systems Customer Service Internal Controls/Integrity Written Communication Your experience must be fully documented on your resume and must include job title, duties, month and year start/end dates AND hours worked per week. 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. IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE WILL NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. Overstating your qualifications and/or experience in your application materials or application questionnaire may result in your removal from consideration. Cheating on the online assessment may also result in your removal from consideration. 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. 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. Resume Requirement: Your resume must include the following information: Job title, description of duties, beginning and ending date (month/year) of employment; and average hours worked per week. Other 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. This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies. Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) provide eligible displaced VA competitive service employees with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies. To be qualified you must submit appropriate documentation (a copy of the agency notice, your most recent performance rating, and your most recent SF-50 noting current position, grade level, and duty location) and be found well-qualified for this vacancy. To be well-qualified: applicants must possess experience that exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors, and who are proficient in most of the required competencies of the job. Information about CTAP eligibility is on OPM's Career Transition Resources website at http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/workforce-restructuring/employee-guide-to-career-transition/.