The Safety & Occupational Health Specialist serves Safety & Environment Compliance, Office of the Medical Center Associate Director, Robert J. Dole Veterans Health Administration Medical Center, (VAMC), Department of Veterans Affairs, Wichita, KS.

Duties

***THIS IS NOT A VIRTUAL POSITION, YOU MUST LIVE WITHIN OR BE WILLING TO RELOCATE WITHIN A COMMUTABLE DISTANCE OF THE DUTY LOCATION*** Duties include, but may not be limited to the following: Prepares safety guides and internal instruction for low safety and normal safety risks encountered in an assigned area of responsibility. Identifies the need for higher level risk guides or instructions. Advises senior level management officials within the assigned area on the status of safety and occupational health programs and recommends changes in the design of work programs to meet new safety and occupational health standards. Performs special environmental monitoring tasks using a variety of instruments to determine potentially unsafe exposures. Coordinates long-term studies of unsafe work conditions with appropriate supervisors. Instructs employees on a variety of safety and occupational health subjects including chemical, biological, or physical safety, various laboratory safety needs, or ventilation requirements. Schedules surveys of medical facility laboratories, shops, and offices to identify and evaluate risk potential involving a wide variety of work environments and occupations. Determines the extent to which mechanical and physical conditions comply with required or accepted standards, their adherence to established safety polices and procedures, and he effectiveness of the assigned program. Certifies laboratories or other work environments where local guidelines or standards require assurance that specifies, and predetermined safeguards or practices are present prior to work beginning. Directs investigation of accidents, analyzing precipitating factors and accidents cause data to develop specific methods for prevention. Consults with specialists from related occupations concerning work process modifications and recommends corrective or remedial safety measures. Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 8:00am - 4:30pm Recruitment & Relocation Incentives: Not authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Not Required

Requirements

Qualifications

ENGLISH LANGUAGE PROFICIENCY: In accordance with 38 U.S.C. 7402(d), No person shall serve in direct patient care positions unless they are proficient in basic written and spoken English. AND Education: having a Undergraduate and Graduate Education: in a major study -- safety or occupational health fields (safety, occupational health, industrial hygiene),or degree in other related fields that included or was supplemented by at least twenty-four (24) semester hours of study from among the following (or closely related) disciplines; (safety, occupational health, industrial hygiene, occupational medicine, toxicology, public health, mathematics, physics, chemistry, biological sciences, engineering, and industrial psychology). OR SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE GS-11: having one (1) year of specialized experience that equipped you with the knowledge, skills, and abilities to successfully perform the duties of this position, and that is typically in or related to the work of this position. To be creditable, this experience must have been equivalent to the next level in the Federal service. Specialized experience includes having experience in or related to safety and occupational health that provided the specific knowledge, skills, and abilities to successfully perform the duties of the position. Examples of qualifying specialized experience include: Managing safety or occupational health program elements. Developing and recommending safety and occupational health policy to higher levels of management. Applying safety and occupational health laws, regulations, principles, theories, practices, and procedures to advise on or resolve technical matters dealing with occupational safety and health requirements. Developing safety and occupational health standards, regulations, practices, and procedures to eliminate or control potential hazards. Developing or implementing programs to reduce the frequency, severity, and cost of accidents and occupational illnesses. Analyzing or evaluating new and existing jobs, processes, products, or other systems to determine the existence, severity, probability, and outcome of hazards. Designing or modifying workplaces, processes, products, or other systems to control or eliminate hazards. Inspecting or surveying workplaces, processes, products, or other systems for compliance with established safety and occupational health policies or standards and to identify potential new hazards. Training of workers, supervisors, managers, or other safety and occupational health personnel in safety or occupational health subjects. Work in occupational fields such as industrial hygienist, safety engineer, fire prevention engineer, health physicist, and occupational health nurse. OR SUBSTITUTION OF EDUCATION FOR EXPERIENCE GS-11: having three (3) full years of progressively higher-level graduate education or Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree or LL.M, if related which demonstrates the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work of this position. The Major study must be-- safety or occupational health fields (safety, occupational health, industrial hygiene), or degree in other related fields that included or was supplemented by at least twenty-four (24) semester hours of study from among the following (or closely related) disciplines: safety, occupational health, industrial hygiene, occupational medicine, toxicology, public health, mathematics, physics, chemistry, biological sciences, engineering, and industrial psychology. NOTE: Only graduate education beyond the second year may be used to qualify. (TRANSCRIPT REQUIRED) OR COMBINATION OF EXPERIENCE AND EDUCATION GS-11: having the equivalent combinations of education and specialized experience (as described above) to meet the requirements at the GS-11. (TRANSCRIPT REQUIRED) OR Certificates: having a Certification as a Certified Safety Professional (CSP), Certified Industrial Hygienist (CIH), or Certified Health Physicist (CHP), or similar certification. (Applicants may also qualify for higher grade levels based on their education and/or experience). You will be rated on the following Competencies as part of the assessment questionnaire for this position: ArchitectureCommunicationPublic Safety and SecurityRisk Management 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. 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 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: http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ous/international/usnei/us/edlite-visitus-forrecog.html.

Contacts

• Address Robert J Dole VA Medical and Regional Office Center 5500 East Kellogg Drive Wichita, KS 67218 US
• Name: VHA National Recruitment Center
• Phone: (844)456-5208
• Email: [email protected]