Health System Specialist

Summary

The Northport VA Medical Center has 2 vacancies for a Health System Specialist within the Chief of Staff Service. The incumbent serves as management official in performing a wide variety of tasks to improve the efficiency and economy of operations and provides support to health care management officials by analyzing, evaluating, advising on and/or coordinating health care delivery systems and operations.

Duties

• Major duties include but are not limited to: Serves as primary liaison to multiple staff offices and serves as the conduit for information flow and management of assignments between such offices. Responsible for coordinating with the Service Chief or Program Official daily operations. Gathers information and supports service chief(s) in all Human Resources areas, specifically Labor Relations issues. Conducts analytical studies on particular operation processes, issue topics, or related special projects. Studies include analysis of capacity reports for productivity, labor mapping, and clinic utilization to determine appropriate staffing levels and assess options to improve clinic access for patient care. Develops position papers and decision documents representing the position of the organization on a variety of complex and sensitive issues such as the quality or timeliness of veteran care issues within the system or at times, issues of Congressional or media interest that have significant national impact e.g. quality and safety concerns or involve several functional areas. Prepares annual budget requests based on workload and utilization of funds recorded in Fund Control Point reports. Assists Service Chief by gathering data, reconciling budget reports, reviewing for accuracy, and ensuring records are properly maintained by Fund Control Point clerk. Aids and/or timely initiates actions related to Labor Relations, Performance Evaluation, Competencies, Award Recognition, Training, Management of FTEE and timely submissions of Request for Personnel Action (SF-52), Payment/ Compensation, Staffing, including requests to Resources Committee, Classification, Utilization of part-time physicians, Credentialing and Privileging. Prepares equipment requests and presents for the committee. Knowledge of utilization of existing equipment. Handles all aspects of the hiring process from preparing presentations for Finance Council, submission of resource (i.e., financial, personnel) packets, scheduling presentations with Fiscal, submitting required paperwork to begin recruitment, and working with HR to review job announcements, coordinate interview panel, set up interviews, and obtain references and selection memo for chosen candidates. Monitors, provides guidance, and maintains accuracy of clinic profiles in the service. Utilizes data for making recommendations regarding staffing, budget, policy decision-making, etc. Retrieves information for a variety of management reports and measures, validates and analyzes data and provides recommendations for improvement. Utilizes data for making recommendations regarding staffing, resources, policy decision-making, etc. Performs data validation studies of Physician Productivity Data to ensure physician RVU's are accurate, clinic utilization is optimized, and clinic access and wait times are within prescribed performance metrics. Collaborates with Data Capture staff to ensure accuracy of data capture (including encounter forms) and provides feedback regarding accuracy and completion of records to clinicians. Analyze, correct, and interpret CPT, E&M, DRG codes and PRPs as they relate to DSS productivity statistics (RVUs). Uses various software programs to provide clear, concise information to providers, service chiefs, and top management. Assures compliance with all applicable policies, and development and maintenance of internal management processes related to these online tools. Works closely with Service Chiefs to ensure that service is compliant with all activities by providing technical guidance and assistance and recommending areas of improvement and/or program changes, assisting service chiefs and staff to implement initiatives. Develops, analyzes, evaluates, advises on, or improves the effectiveness of work methods and procedures, organizations, manpower utilization, distribution of work assignments, delegations of authority, management controls, information and documentation systems, and similar functions of management. Develops Pl projects in collaboration with Service Chief or Program Official in response to identified service specific needs and patient satisfaction studies. valuates current goals and objectives against benchmarks and/or timelines. Work Schedule: Full-time, Monday - Friday, 8:00am - 4:30pm Compressed/Flexible: Not available. 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/PD01492A and PD368660

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 09/11/2026. You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below: Health System Specialist, 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. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: Knowledge of management and organization, including administrative practices and procedures common to organizations, such as those pertaining to areas of responsibility, channels of communication, delegation of authority, routing of correspondence, filing systems, and storage of files and records. OR, Education: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have: 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. OR, Combination: Applicants may also combine education and experience to qualify at this level. Health System Specialist, GS-11: Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-09 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: Ability to pull together information from different sources, make sense of data that may be incomplete or inconsistent, and understand how the information gathered affects the workflow of the respective service or program area and strategize on how to use that information to increase the functions and patient satisfaction in their area. Extensive knowledge of data collection and analysis techniques for example, knowing how to devise a tracking tool, conduct interviews, analyze trends in clinic profiles and workload data, or calculate processing times to understand where delays are occurring. Knowledge of policies and operating procedures. OR, Education: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have: Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree OR 3 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree OR LL.M., if related. OR, Combination: Applicants may also combine education and experience to qualify at this level. 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/.

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 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 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 period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.

Education

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/.

How to apply

Please read the entire announcement and all the instructions before you begin an application. To apply for this position, you must complete the initial online application, to include the initial online questionnaire and submission of the required documentation specified in the How to Apply and Required Documents section. The complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (ET) on the closing date of the announcement to receive consideration. To preview the application questionnaire, click https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/13051029. The application process is as follows: To begin, click Apply Online to create a USA JOBS account or log in to your existing account. Follow the prompts to select your USA JOBS resume and/or other supporting documents. Answer the questions presented in the application and attach all necessary supporting documentation. Click the Submit Application button prior to 11:59 PM (ET) on the announcement closing date, 09/11/2026. If you are required to complete any USA Hire Assessments, you will be notified after submitting your application. The notification will be provided in your application submission screen and via email. The notification will include your unique assessment access link to the USA Hire system and the completion deadline. Additionally, in USAJOBS you can click "Track this application" to return to your assessment completion notice. Access USA Hire using your unique assessment link. Access is granted through your USAJOBS login credentials. Review all instructions prior to beginning your assessments. You will have the opportunity to request a testing accommodation before beginning the assessments should you have a disability covered under the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended. Set aside at least 3 hours to take the USA Hire Assessments; however, most applicants complete the assessments in less time. If you need to stop the assessments and continue later, you can re-use your unique assessment link. NOTE: Your responses to the USA Hire Assessments will be reused for one year (in most cases) from the date you complete an assessment. If future applications you submit require completion of the same assessments, your responses will be automatically reused. Visit the USA Hire Applicant Resource Center for practice assessments and assessment preparation resources at https://support-usahire.opm.gov/hc/en-us. To update your application, including supporting documentation: During the announcement open period, return to your USAJOBS account, find your application record, and click Edit my application. This option will no longer be available once the announcement has closed. To view the announcement status or your application status: https://help.usajobs.gov/how-to. Your application status page is where you can view your application status, USA Hire assessment completion status, and review your notifications sent by the hiring agency regarding your application. Beginning September 27, 2025, Federal agencies will only accept resumes up to two pages in length to comply with the Merit Hiring Plan. Resumes longer than two pages will result in ineligibility for further consideration for the position. USAJOBS will not allow you to upload or build resumes longer than two pages, and you will need to update the resumes in your profile before applying for a job. Resumes should include information relevant to the knowledge, skills, abilities, and competencies of the position to which you are applying. VA is unable to make assumptions about qualifications if not clearly listed. Resumes must be legible so they can be reviewed for eligibility, minimum qualifications and other position requirements listed in the job announcement. Your resume must be 5MB or less. We recommend saving and uploading your resume as a PDF to maintain formatting and number of pages. We also accept GIF, JPG, JPEG, PNG, RTF, TXT, PDF, ODT or Word (DOC or DOCX). We do not accept PDF portfolio files. We recommend using a sans-serif font size like Lato, if available. Other widely available options are Calibri, Helvetica, Arial, Verdana, Open San Source Sans Pro, Roboto or Noro Sans. Make your page margins 0.5 inches. Consider using 14-point size font for titles and 10-point for the main text in your resume. The resume builder can help you create a resume using these recommendations and uses the information in your USAJOBS profile to help you get started. Helpful Hints for Creating a Two-Page Resume: Prioritize most relevant and recent experience Use concise, results focused language Align language from the job announcement Focus on demonstrating skills and competencies Remove outdated or unrelated experience Use the USAJOBS resume builder Additional guidance on this new requirement and resume building tools can be found at https://help.usajobs.gov/faq/application/documents/resume/page-limit.