Health Science Specialist - Veterans Affairs, Veterans Health Administration

Summary This position is organizationally located in the Research Service of the Long Beach VA Healthcare System (VALBHS). VALBHS supports a large research enterprise within the Department of Veterans Affairs and hosts significant activities in four VA research programs. Responsibilities *THIS IS NOT A VIRTUAL POSITION, YOU MUST LIVE WITHIN OR BE WILLING TO RELOCATE WITHIN A COMMUTABLE DISTANCE OF THE DUTY LOCATION* The VALBHS supports a large research enterprise within the Department of Veterans Affairs and hosts significant activities in all four VA research programs, including Research Career Scientist, Career Development, Cooperative Studies, and regular Merit Review offerings as well as integration with research supported by the VA-associated research foundation, Southern California Institute for Research and Education (SCIRE). Duties include, but may not be limited to the following: Works closely with the Administrative Officer R&D for planning and execution of all space management. Works with all the investigators and their research staff, assisting them in the analysis and resolution of operating and management problems to maintain a safe and operationally sound research environment. Development of Policies and Procedures: Monitors and develops all safety programs of the Research Service. Implements all standards mandated by the various regulatory agencies within the Research Service. Develops policies and procedures for organizing the laboratory space including initiation of new laboratories, decommission of laboratories after departure of investigators, and organizations of common research facilities including common equipment, core facilities and animal care facilities. Develops policies and procedures for management of core facilities and common equipment including training research staff on the use of the equipment, organizing schedule of use, establish billing and collection procedures if needed, arrange for maintenances of equipment, and supervise research staff in using the core facilities. Ensures high performance of research operations. Maintains efficient communications with various offices and departments within VALBHS such as with engineering, occupational health, police, contracting office, education department and executive leadership. Emergency Response: Develops procedures to deal with minor spills and releases of hazardous substances in the Research Service and works with medical center personnel in response to major spills in research areas. Acts as the Emergency Preparedness and Recovery Coordinator for the Research Service. Tests periodically the readiness of staff by conducting emergency or unscheduled drills. Compliance Designation and Duties: Serves as the Research Chemical Hygiene Officer, the Research Biosafety and Biosecurity Officer, the Alternate Responsible Official for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Select Agents Program (if applicable), and the Service Safety Coordinator for the VALBHS Safety Program. Performs or coordinates inspections of all research laboratories according to established timelines specified in SOPs. Reviews all research protocol submissions for the use of chemical, biological and physical hazards. Research Program Inspection: Manages all aspects of preparing for and responding to all internal and external safety and space inspections involving the Research Service. Serves as the service representative to inspectors accompanying them on all site visit activities. Research Space Planning and Management: Oversees effective and equitable allocation of assignable research space to facilitate the independent research programs of PIs at VALBHS. Oversees maintenance of the Research Space Database. Coordinates with Engineering Service, Facility Space Committee, Clinical Services as needed in matters of research space allocation, reconstruction/repairs, and impacts of research operations on other services. Serves as the Research Service lead representative for all design and construction projects involving research space. Coordinates with the Administrative Officer for Research to secure resources needed (e.g., moving/maintenance contracts, repairs, etc.). Serves as the designated Contracting Officer Representative (COR) for contracts involving space and/or safety. Oversees security of the research facilities as a liaison between Police and Engineering. Reviews access logs and mitigates vulnerabilities. Work Schedule: Monday through Friday, 8:00am - 4:30pm. Recruitment & Relocation Incentives: Not authorized. Requirements Conditions of Employment You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job All applicants tentatively selected for VA employment in a testing designated position are subject to urinalysis to screen for illegal drug use prior to appointment. Applicants who refuse to be tested will be denied employment with VA. 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 This position includes a Selective Placement Factor (skill, knowledge, ability or other worker characteristic basic to - and essential for - satisfactory performance of the job). Selective Placement Factors are a prerequisite to appointment and represent minimum requirements for a position. Applicants who do not meet it are ineligible for further consideration. The Selective Placement Factor for this position is: program management experience in a healthcare research program. This experience must be detailed in your resume to receive credit. BASIC EDUCATION REQUIREMENT: A bachelor's or graduate/higher level degree: major study in an academic field related to the medical field, health sciences or allied sciences appropriate to the work of the position. Transcript Required. MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS GS-13: One year of specialized experience equipped with the knowledge, skills, and abilities to successfully perform the duties of this position. To be creditable, this specialized experience must have been equivalent to the GS-12 level in Federal Service. Specialized experience includes: knowledge of analytical and evaluative methods; a thorough understanding of how regulatory programs are administered; selecting and applying appropriate program evaluation and measurement techniques; determining the extent of compliance with rules and regulations issued by the agency, or in measuring and evaluating program accomplishments; ensuring the safe performance of research on/with biological substances, hazardous chemicals, laboratory gases, and use of radioisotopes or radiation producing machines in the laboratory setting; designing experiments and organizing/constructing laboratories; writing and implementing laboratory policies and procedures; using various computer programs; and accessing and maintaining research program compliance databases. Your experience must be detailed in your resume to receive credit. You will be rated on the following Competencies as part of the assessment questionnaire for this position: Compliance Organizational Awareness Planning and Evaluating Safety Engineering IMPORTANT: A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week. All experience listed on your resume must include the month and year start/end dates. 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. 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; religious; 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. Physical Requirements: The work is primarily sedentary, although some physical effort may be required. No special physical demands although it may involve some walking, standing, bending, or carrying of light items such as binders, books, instructional materials, and thick files. Concentration and sustained performance under prolonged stress is required due to time factors involved and the nature of work. The Health Science Specialist has a strong understanding of the requirements for entering research space including research laboratories, clinical research, and animal research unit. No special physical demands are required to perform the work. 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 IMPORTANT: A transcript must be submitted with your application to support the basic educational requirement. 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: Recognition of Foreign Qualifications | International Affairs Office (ed.gov). Additional Information 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. 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.