Skip to main content
U.S. flag
Back to results
 

Health System Specialist (Deputy Chief of Staff Office)

Department of Veterans Affairs
Veterans Health Administration
Veterans Health Administration

Summary

The Health Systems Specialist in the Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff reports to the Deputy Chief of Staff, comprised of one of the highest-ranking senior clinical executives within the healthcare organization. The Health Systems Specialist utilizes specialized knowledge of the fundamentals of healthcare management and serves as a management representative of the ELT.

Overview

Help
Accepting applications
Open & closing dates
03/04/2026 to 03/11/2026
Salary
$124,085 to - $161,313 per year
Pay scale & grade
GS 13
Location
1 vacancy in the following location:
Loma Linda, CA
1 vacancy
Remote job
No
Telework eligible
No
Travel Required
Not required
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Appointment type
Permanent
Work schedule
Full-time
Service
Competitive
Promotion potential
13
Supervisory status
No
Security clearance
Other
Drug test
No
Position sensitivity and risk
Non-sensitive (NS)/Low Risk
Trust determination process
Financial disclosure
No
Bargaining unit status
No
Announcement number
CBSX-12901389-26-FC
Control number
859689900

This job is open to

Help

Clarification from the agency

This announcement is open to all VHA Employees. Qualified applicants will be considered and referred in the following order: 1) Current, permanent Loma Linda VHA Employees; 2) All other qualified VHA Employees.

Videos

Duties

Help

Duties include but are not limited to:

  • Functions as Health System Specialist in the Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff. Incumbent is assigned as direct staff to a member of the Clinical Executive Leadership Team and their Service Chiefs and Program Officers and serves as a back-up for other Health System Specialists in the office and may be detailed to fill critical administrative leadership positions within the facility and VISN to support continuity of healthcare delivery operations.
  • Develops a thorough, administrative and strategic operational initiatives of the organization that enables the specialist to identify problems, analyze data, and recommend resolutions based on specific knowledge of the organization's objectives and priorities, resources, and catchment area.
  • Plans, organizes, trends and reviews requests for resources within their assigned executive's chain of command and makes recommendations, based upon the relative needs while considering their ability to utilize the resources requested.
  • Assists in prioritizing resource allocations throughout the healthcare system in conjunction with other Director's Office Staff. Assist the Executive Leadership Team in assessing needs in a realistic fashion, documenting them effectively, and presenting them to a diverse audience of internal and external stakeholders.
  • Reviews policies and procedures that are in conformance with the overall philosophy of the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) related to all aspects of healthcare programs.
  • Addresses program issues with organizational elements within VHA and with professional groups and other government and private sector organizations.
  • Reviews medical center budget initiatives, subsequent justifications and defends for the clinical or administrative service/program to the Medical Center Director as needed.
  • Provides guidance and advice on program specific matters such as handling legislative issues, the development and implementation of policy or program initiatives, protocol issues, and other important correspondence or VISN/VACO related matters.
  • Coordinates and participates in strategic planning throughout the healthcare system, and with subordinate services and programs within their ELT members chain and scope of command, to produce decisions and actions that shape and guide the organization's purpose and activities, particularly with regard to the future - a fundamental component of organizational management and decision making.
  • Works closely with other facility/VISN elements on project development and submission. Incumbent makes recommendations regarding necessity of the project, and what elements are to be included in the scope of the project based on local, VISN, or national strategic initiatives and alignment.

Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 7:30 AM - 4:00 PM
Telework: This position is not eligible for Telework
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Position Description/PD#: Health System Specialist (Deputy Chief of Staff Office)/PD13291A

Requirements

Help

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
  • 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 dentification 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 or trial 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, 03/11/2026.

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-13 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-12. 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.

Individual Occupational Requirement: The 0671 series requires specific education or experience to be met in order to be appointed into a position of this series. You must meet the pre-determined Education or Experience Individual Occupational Requirement below as set by Office of Personnel Management (OPM),

  • 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. OR
  • 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.
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-12 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Qualifying specialized experience can include: Assists by utilizing knowledge of missions and functions of healthcare organizations and their relationships with educational institutions, governmental agencies, and other external bodies in order to address issues that may impact the VA Healthcare System and its external partners. Assisting with making recommendations for resource requests based upon need and utilization while prioritizing resource allocations accordingly. Helping by functioning as an advocate for assigned services and effectively represents their needs, problems, and programs. Assisting in maintaining and establishing effective communications with persons both within and outside the organization, from a variety of educational levels, socio-economic and cultural backgrounds, divergent opinions and priorities.
You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position:
  • Analytical Reasoning
  • Communications
  • Compliance
  • Customer Service
  • Organizational Awareness
  • Planning and Evaluating


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.

Physical Requirements: No special physical demands such as above average ability, dexterity, or strength are required to perform the work. Work is sedentary, and the employee may sit comfortably. There may be some walking, standing, bending, carrying of light items, driving of an automobile, etc. Fieldwork may involve traveling to other facility sites of care, interviews, meetings, and sources of information.

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.

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.

Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.

How you will be evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE WILL NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE.

Narrative responses are not required at this time. If you are referred for consideration, you may be asked to submit additional job related information, which may include, but not limited to; responses to the knowledge, skills and abilities; completion of a work sample, and/or contact for an interview. Your resume and/or supporting documentation will be verified. Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect your rating or consideration for employment.

The Department of Veterans Affairs performs pre-employment reference checks as an assessment method used in the hiring process to verify information provided by a candidate (e.g., on resume or during interview or hiring process); gain additional knowledge regarding a candidate's abilities; and assist a hiring manager with making a final selection for a position.

For more information on the "Who may apply" eligibility requirements, please refer to the OHRM Status Candidates and Other Candidate Definitions document.

Placement Policy: The posting of this announcement does not obligate management to fill a vacancy or vacancies by promotion. The position may be filled by reassignment, change to lower grade, transfer, appointment, or reinstatement. Management may use any one or any combination of these methods to fill the position.

It is the policy of the VA to not deny employment to those that have faced financial hardships or periods of unemployment.

Veterans and Transitioning Service Members: Please visit the VA for Vets site for career-search tools for Veterans seeking employment at VA, career development services for our existing Veterans, and coaching and reintegration support for military service members.

Your session is about to expire!

Your USAJOBS session will expire due to inactivity in 8 minutes. Any unsaved data will be lost if you allow the session to expire. Click the button below to continue your session.