Summary The Health Administrative Specialist on Duty (HOD) is a facility-wide position, located in the Office of the Chief, Health Administration Service (HAS), or Business Office (BO), or Medical Administration Service (MAS), or similarly named and organized service; the position has both the authority and responsibility to represent both the Medical Center Director and the Chief, HAS on all administrative matters occurring when assigned to other than a normal tour of duty. Responsibilities The HOD is delegated full authority and responsibility to exercise the Medical Center Director's prerogative in medical administrative matters and issues that may arise; represents management in (non-policy making) administrative matters; represents management in matters pertaining to the lawful retention of veterans in the VAMC; maintains continuity of functions and provides full medical administrative support during other than normal tours of duty to clinical and administrative medical center staff; is responsible for achieving management objectives and supporting the decision of management in carrying out duties; and provides technical guidance necessary to meet procedural, legal, and administrative requirements relating to the care and treatment of patients to achieve optimum use of available resources. Main duties consist of the following; Delegated full authority of the Chief, HAS for administrative activities occurring during irregular tours. Interprets VA rules and regulations relating to determining legal entitlement to benefits relating to hospital admission; nursing home, dental, domiciliary, Community Care (outside VA), and outpatient care; dental treatment; prosthetic appliances; patient transfer; and beneficiary travel. Authorized as certifying officer for documents pertaining to the administration of laws concerning VA. Coordinates the resolution of medical legal problems concerning the medical center. Ensures that appropriate legal, regulatory, and policy requirements are met. Processes administrative issues surrounding beneficiary death, seriously ill cases, elopements, suicides, assaults, deaths on arrival (DOAs), homicides, code blue, cost recovery matters, and facility or community disasters, etc. Determines the appropriateness of notifying the medical examiner of unusual deaths. When unusual circumstances occur determines actions to cancel clinics and appointments. Seeks clinical input and initiates process to contact affected parties and reschedule where appropriate. Provides administrative authority, guidance, and decision making to Medical Officer of the Day (MOD), Nursing Officer of the Day (NOD), and other similarly named Nurse and Medical positions in charge after hours, and all other clinical staff concerning administrative matters necessary for operation of the medical center during other than normal tours. Provides orientation and situational technical advice to physicians regarding VA policies and procedures. Assists medical center staff with medically related problems, including involuntary commitments, orders of protective custody, and management of unruly or severely disturbed patients. Performs for administrative matters as the MOD does for clinical matters, working as a team to carry out top management responsibilities during other than regular working hours. Promotes harmonious working relationship among patients, public, and staff. Directly intervenes with problems regarding patient activity, directing and advising clinical staff of appropriate administrative action. Observes, evaluates, and coordinates administrative activities with IRMS, Engineering, OI&T, Laboratory, Medicine, Radiology, Nursing, Hospice, and Environmental Management services and personnel among others. This includes administrative rounding to designated areas during second and third shift. Performs other duties as assigned. Work Schedule: Rotating Shifts, with some weekends and holidays Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Position Description/PD#: Medical Management Specialist/PD99385S Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Not required 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 You may be required to serve a probationary period Subject to background/security investigation Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP) Participation in the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccination program is a requirement for all Veterans Health Administration Health Care Personnel (HCP) - See "Additional Information" below for details. Qualifications To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 01/31/2024. 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. You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below: For a GS-07 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-05. For a GS-09 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-07. 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. In addition to the time in grade requirements listed above, the below education/experience qualification requirements must be met at the grade(s) in which you are applying. You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below: GS-07 Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. For the GS-07 you must have 52 weeks at the GS-05 and for the GS-09, you must have 52 weeks at the GS-07. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: Perform medical-legal administration functions of a comprehensive medical center. Interpret laws, regulations, policies, and guidelines governing health care delivery systems (i.e. eligibility for medical benefits, processing of applications, beneficiary travel, patient transfers, inter-facility consults. Established effective working relationships that contributed to the attainment of the organization's goals. Communicate both orally and in writing with health care professionals, other medical center personnel and outside constituents. Apply Federal laws and other regulations to priorities of care, patient processing, entitlements, clinical/admission procedures and other appropriate patient processing activities. Investigate and obtain preliminary data involving injuries of patients or employees or employee/patient complaints and take immediate action to oversee the proper handling of all non-medical emergencies. Coordinate administrative matters that arise within a medical center/hospital on matters relating to personnel on duty during irregular hours for proper actions, emergency repairs, call-in personnel for emergency repairs or patient care emergency reasons. OR, Education: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must possess one full year of graduate level education or Superior Academic Achievement (S.A.A.). NOTE: The education must have been obtained at an accredited college or university and must demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work of this position. Transcripts must be submitted with your application materials. Education cannot be credited without documentation. OR,Combination: Applicants may also combine education and experience to qualify at this level. You must have a combination of education beyond a bachelors degree and specialized experience as described above, to meet the total experience requirements. NOTE: Transcripts must be submitted with your application materials. Education cannot be credited without documentation. GS-09 Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-07 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. For the GS-09, you must have 52 weeks at the GS-07. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: Perform medical-legal administration functions of a comprehensive medical center; Knowledge of all aspects of the Medical Administration Service programs and how they interrelate to all other Medical Center services and programs; Interpret laws, regulations, policies, and guidelines governing health care delivery systems (i.e. eligibility for medical benefits, processing of applications, beneficiary travel, patient transfers, inter-facility consults; Established effective working relationships that contributed to the attainment of the organization's goals; Communicate both orally and in writing with health care professionals, other medical center personnel and outside constituents; Apply Federal laws and other regulations to priorities of care, patient processing, entitlements, clinical/admission procedures and other appropriate patient processing activities; Investigate and obtain preliminary data involving injuries of patients or employees or employee/patient complaints and take immediate action to oversee the proper handling of all non-medical emergencies; Coordinate administrative matters that arise within a medical center/hospital on matters relating to personnel on duty during irregular hours for proper actions, emergency repairs, call-in personnel for emergency repairs or patient care emergency reasons; Identify and analyze complex problems or situations with a range of variables; Explain and organize complex issue in writing, complete projects; studies; narrative and statistical reports; and review in a through accurate and timely manner. OR, Education: Applicants may substitute education for the experience required for the GS-09 level. Master's or equivalent graduate degree, or 2 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree, or LL.B, or J.D., if related. Education must have been obtained in an accredited college or university and must demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work of this position. NOTE: Transcripts must be submitted with your application materials. Education cannot be credited without documentation (TRANSCRIPTS REQUIRED) OR Combination: Applicants may also combine education and experience to qualify at this level. You must have an combination of specialized experience and education beyond one year of graduate education. (TRANSCRIPTS REQUIRED). IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE WILL NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position: Communication Organizational Awareness Plan and organize work Problem Solving Technical Credibility 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. 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 CONTINUATION of Qualifications Physical Requirements: The work requires much walking through the medical center with occasionally the requirement to lift objects such as suitcases, clothing, or medical charts. 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 The Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP) and Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) provide eligible displaced Federal/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 ICTAP and 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/. This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies. Pursuant to VHA Directive 1193.01, VHA health care personnel (HCP) are required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 subject to such accommodations as required by law (i.e., medical, religious or pregnancy). VHA HCPs do not include remote workers who only infrequently enter VHA locations. If selected, you will be required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and submit documentation of proof of vaccination before your start date. The agency will provide additional information regarding what information or documentation will be needed and how you can request a legally required accommodation from this requirement using the reasonable accommodation process. 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.