Health Systems Specialist - Graduate Healthcare Administrative Training Program (GHATP)

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by Closing of the Announcement. Provide a Statement of Purpose: Explain how you believe the VHA Health Systems Management Trainee Program will assist you in further defining your primary personal and/or professional life goals. Why is now the best time for you to pursue this training? Your explanation should include, but not necessarily be limited to, a description of both your intermediate and longer-term career goals, as well as a current vision of your desired position upon program completion. Please limit your response to no more than 4000 characters (about one page). ~AND~ Time-In-Grade Requirement: Applicants who are current Federal employees serving on a Career or Career Conditional Appointment and have held a GS grade any time in the past 52 weeks must also meet time-in-grade requirements. The grade may have been in any occupation, but must have been held in the Federal service. For this vacancy announcement, applicants must have completed at least 52 weeks at the (GS-7) grade level to be eligible for the (GS-9) grade level. Applicants must have completed at least 52 weeks at the (GS-9) grade level to be eligible for the (GS-11) grade level. An SF-50 that shows your time-in-grade eligibility must be submitted with your application materials. BASIC QUALIFICATIONS FOR 0671 SERIES: 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. 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. 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. MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS: GS-09: Experience: You must have at least one (1) full year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade level in the Federal service that includes performing the following duties: Qualifying specialized experience is defined as 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- Education: Master's or equivalent graduate degree or 2 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree in hospital administration, public health administration, or related fields such as business or public administration with course work in health care administration. -OR- Combination: Equivalent combinations of successfully completed graduate-level education (beyond 18 semester hours) as described above. GS-11: Specialized Experience: You must have at least one (1) full year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade level in the Federal service that includes performing the following duties: Qualifying specialized experience is defined as 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- Education: Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree or 3 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to a degree in hospital administration, public health administration, or related fields such as business or public administration with course work in health care administration). -OR- Combination: Equivalent combinations of successfully completed graduate-level education (beyond 18 semester hours) as described above. You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position: Administration and Management Attention to Detail Communication Customer Service Database Management Systems Decision Making Flexibility Integrity/Honesty Interpersonal Skills Learning Reading Comprehension Reasoning Self-Management Stress Tolerance Teamwork Technical Competence 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. 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/. This position serves as a GHATP Trainee functioning as a Health System Specialist in the Office of the Associate Director of the Medical Facility and is responsible for managing projects and assisting in the coordination of daily office activities. The position is responsible for all program matters under the direction of the Associate Director that are delegated to them.