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Program Specialist

Department of Veterans Affairs
Veterans Health Administration
Veterans Health Administration, Oklahoma City VA Health Care System- Pathology and Laboratory

Summary

The Program Specialist serves the Pathology and Laboratory Medicine Services (PLMS) as the coordinator, advisor, analyst, and planner for the delivery of health care services. The PS has delegated responsibility to plan, schedule and carry out the administrative oversight of the PLMS contracts, education/training, quality improvement and Quality assurance reasonability's for efficient, high quality patient care.

Overview

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Accepting applications
Open & closing dates
03/11/2026 to 03/20/2026
Salary
$61,722 to - $80,243 per year
Pay scale & grade
GS 9
Location
1 vacancy in the following location:
Oklahoma City, OK
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
None
Supervisory status
No
Security clearance
Not Required
Drug test
No
Position sensitivity and risk
Non-sensitive (NS)/Low Risk
Trust determination process
Financial disclosure
No
Bargaining unit status
No
Announcement number
CBSU-12906875-26-MN
Control number
860743500

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Duties

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Major Duties Include:

  • Attends and represents at service in customer service meeting and all assigned facility committee meetings assigned by supervisor or service leadership.
  • Refers patients, staff, and other associates to appropriate POC's for information regarding clinical and/or administrative needs.
  • Serves and a service champion representative and subject matter expert on contracting and purchasing.
  • Meet the needs of customers while supporting VA missions. Consistently communicates and treats customers (veterans, their representatives, visitors, and all VA staff) in a courteous, tactful, and respectful manner.
  • Advises top management of elements considered unacceptable from the standpoint of quality and utilization of resources.
  • Provides daily support by gathering documents, reports, statistics, and data to create reports for supervisors.
  • Maintains and improves systems of delivering health care by developing better programs and policies, improving utilization of resources and designing
  • Plans and coordinates changes in workload to meet deadlines and maintain a smooth work flow.
  • Monitors appropriate follow-up of corrective measures identified to ensure implementation and resolution of problems.
  • Completes all duties assigned by the supervisor or service level leadership pertaining to contracting and service management.
  • Analyzes the need for and facilitates the purchase of equipment and expendable supplies, overseeing the use of funds allocated to the control points.
  • Responsible for procurement and tracking of path and lab service equipment and supplies.
  • Serves as a contracting officer representative for path and lab to help support the lab leadership stay up to date on contracts.
  • Performs periodic reviews of current expenditures are conducted in accordance with VHA and medical center guidelines to provide up to date information to executive leadership, lab leadership, and the Administrative Officer.
  • Provides information on policy and procedures to minimize negative impact to patients, the service, and facility.
  • Extensive coordination between multiple sections within Path and Lab or multiple services who are supported by Path and lab to increase communication and reduce conflicts.
  • Provides information to patients and staff timely and reports any identified issues to the proper supervision official.
  • Identifies and communicates issues timely to reduce the likelihood of conflicts.
  • Coordinates and analyzes internal review activities of PLMS to ensure that both clinical and administrative functions.
  • Attends applicable committees or assigned task forces as directed by the Medical Center Director, Associate Director, Chief of Staff or Supervisor.
  • Conducts special analytical studies to resolve critical programmatic, organizational, or functional problems that require special skills in the application of scientific methodologies.
  • Coordinates with section representatives to monitor, corrected and identify all EOC related items and areas.
  • Continuously monitors the effectiveness and quality of support services in PLMS and coordinates the service or repair as needed.

Work Schedule: 7:30 a.m. - 4:00 p.m., M-F
Telework: Ad-hoc may be available in accordance with agency policy
Position Description/PD#: Program Specialist/PD14389O
Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized
Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not Approved
Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

  • 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 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, 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, 03/20/2026.

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-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. 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.

You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below:

  • 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 quality assurance and administrative processes of data collection for quality Reviews; Knowledge of data analysis and completion of reports by determining what is required utilizing regulations, local memoranda, and consultation with administrative staff; Practical knowledge and skills in applying analytical and evaluative methods and techniques to issues or studies concerning the efficiency and effectiveness of the Service area; Knowledge of purchasing, inventorying, and equipment selection; Knowledge of all EEO activities; ability to analyze and interpretation of data to develop action plans to improve quality, access, and efficiency as necessary; Knowledge of skills used in developing, initiating, and implementing an effective ongoing program to monitor, evaluate and improve quality, performance and appropriateness of healthcare delivered to both inpatient and outpatient Veteran populations; Knowledge of the annual budget plans and periodic reviews of current expenditures; Knowledge of a wide range of analytical and planning mechanisms to assess the efficiency of many complex programs (administrative, professional, and clinical); Knowledge of acquisition management, service line rules and regulations, physician and professional research funding processes, contracting processes, cost accounting and containment processes and fiscal rules and regulations; Knowledge of veterans eligibility processes, clinic bylaws and health care ethics, quality assurance standards for acute and outpatient care, Joint Commission regulations, and CAP standards for the service's specialized laboratories; Knowledge of gathering and analyzing data (i.e., statistical science data), making interpretations, and presenting this data in many formats including graphs and slides to audiences of diverse backgrounds; Knowledge and ability to carry out numerous communications with various medical personnel, medical programs, laboratory, and other diagnostic testing and ordering of medical supplies dictates that PS can understand the language and processes of health care delivery; Computer knowledge in the areas of MS-WORD, MS-EXCEL, MS-POWERPOINT, and other computer systems/applications to gather information and present analysis of information in the appropriate format for presentation and communication. OR,
  • Education: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have a 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. You must have an combination of specialized experience and education beyond the first year of graduate school totaling 100%. i.e. An applicant has 6 months of specialized experience equivalent to GS-7 and 1 year of graduate level education. The applicant meets 50 percent of the required experience but none of the required education, since he or she does not have any graduate study beyond that which is required for GS-7. Therefore, the applicant meets only 50 percent of the total requirement and is not qualified for the position. (The applicant's first year of graduate study is not qualifying for GS-9.)
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

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

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.

Reasonable Accommodation (RA) Requests: If you believe you have a disability (i.e., physical or mental), covered by the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended that would interfere with completing the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, you will be granted the opportunity to request a RA in your online application. Requests for RA for the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments and appropriate supporting documentation for RA must be received prior to starting the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments. Decisions on requests for RA are made on a case-by-case basis. If you meet the minimum qualifications of the position, after notification of the adjudication of your request, you will receive an email invitation to complete the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, based on your adjudication decision. You must complete all assessments within 48 hours of receiving the URL to access the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments if you received the link after the close of the announcement. To determine if you need a RA, please review the Procedures for Requesting a Reasonable Accommodation for Online Assessments.

Receiving Service Credit for Earning Annual (Vacation) Leave: Federal Employees earn annual leave at a rate (4, 6 or 8 hours per pay period) which is based on the number of years they have served as a Federal employee. VA may offer newly-appointed Federal employee's credit for their job-related non-federal experience or active duty uniformed military service. This credited service can be used in determining the rate at which they earn annual leave. Such credit must be requested and approved prior to the appointment date and is not guaranteed.

This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies.

TheCareer Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) provide eligible displaced 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/.

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.

Your qualifications will be evaluated based on your application materials (e.g., resume, supporting documents), your responses on the application questionnaire, and your responses to all assessments required for this position. You will be assessed on the following Competencies for this position:

  • Attention to Detail
  • Customer Service
  • Decision Making
  • Flexibility
  • Integrity/Honesty
  • Interpersonal Skills
  • Learning
  • Reading Comprehension
  • Reasoning
  • Self-Management
  • Stress Tolerance
  • Teamwork


Your experience must be fully documented on your resume and must include job title, duties, month and year start/end dates AND hours worked per week. 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. IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE WILL NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. Overstating your qualifications and/or experience in your application materials or application questionnaire may result in your removal from consideration. Cheating on the online assessment may also result in your removal from consideration.

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.

During the application process you may have an option to opt-in to make your resume available to hiring managers in the agency who have similar positions. Opting in does not impact your application for this announcement, nor does it guarantee further consideration for additional positions.

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