The Lebanon, PA VAMC is currently recruiting for a Registered Nurse - Accreditation Specialist in Quality Management.

Duties

The Quality Management Department reports to the Medical Center Director and is responsible for providing an impartial and forthright review of the entire Medical Center's preparation and performance for accreditation reviews and overall quality of patient care to the Medical Center's executive leadership. The Accreditation Specialist promotes the medical center mission, vision, and values, complies with the Equal Employment Opportunity programs, partnerships, customer service standards and Veterans Affairs policies and procedures and works with internal and external customers to the Quality Management Department to support these goals and successes. Collaborates with leadership and colleagues to complete all other duties as assigned. The Accreditation Program requirements include, but are not limited to, developing and coordinating internal review systems to assure that both clinical and administrative programs follow agency and accrediting standards and regulatory requirements, utilizes databases to improve performance and outcome measures, identifying trends and opportunities for improvement in performance and collaborating with the clinicians throughout the Medical Center to understand the processes that support the metrics and how to develop improvement plans for sustainment of those metrics. The AS is responsible for translating regulatory and accrediting body standards, policies, and strategies into action within the complex interrelationships that exist in a health care environment as it applies to program oversight areas. The Quality Management Accreditation Nurse contributes to the overall success of the Quality Management Department by providing expert oversight and direction on all accreditation program activities, which includes preparation and post-review improvement activities through collaborating and providing feedback on any clinical or administrative practice or process within the Medical Center surrounding program requirements and alignment with the numerous accreditation organizations who provide oversight for the organization. The Quality Management Accreditation Nurse is expected to be self-directed and self-managing in performance of their daily activities. The Quality Management Accreditation Nurse serves as a liaison, representing the facility accreditation program, to the Veterans Integrated System Network (VISN). The Accreditation Specialist serves as the primary point of contact for VISN requests and participates in VISN activities. The Accreditation Specialist is required to communicate and maintain positive relationships with other departments and agencies, both within and outside of the Lebanon VAMC. VA offers a comprehensive total rewards package: VA Nurse Total Rewards Pay: Competitive salary, regular salary increases, potential for performance awards Paid Time Off: 50 days of paid time off per year (26 days of annual leave, 13 days of sick leave, 11 paid Federal holidays per year) Retirement: Traditional federal pension (5 years vesting) and federal 401K with up to 5% in contributions by VA Insurance: Federal health/vision/dental/term life/long-term care (many federal insurance programs can be carried into retirement) Licensure: 1 full and unrestricted license from any US State or territory Work Schedule: Monday - Friday 8:00 am - 4:30 pm Telework: Intermittent with supervisor approval Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Financial Disclosure Report: Not required

Requirements

Qualifications

Applicants pending the completion of educational or certification/licensure requirements may be referred and tentatively selected but may not be hired until all requirements are met. Basic Requirements: United States Citizenship: Non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy. 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. Graduate of a school of professional nursing approved by one of the following accrediting bodies at the time the program was completed by the applicant: The Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing (ACEN) or The Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE). The approving official may authorize a waiver of the requirement for ACEN or CCNE accreditation of any degree in nursing provided the college or university has regional accreditation from an accrediting body recognized by the Department of Education at the time of the candidate's graduation and the composite qualifications of the applicant warrant such consideration. In cases of graduates of foreign schools of professional nursing, possession of current, full, active and unrestricted registration will meet the requirement of graduation from an approved school of professional nursing. OR The completion of coursework equivalent to a nursing degree in a MSN Bridge Program that qualifies for professional nursing registration constitutes the completion of an approved course of study of professional nursing. Students should submit the certificate of professional nursing to sit for the NCLEX to the VA along with a copy of the MSN transcript. (Reference VA Handbook 5005, Appendix G6) OR In cases of graduates of foreign schools of professional nursing, possession of a current, full, active and unrestricted registration will meet the requirement for graduation from an approved school of professional nursing. Current, full, active, and unrestricted registration as a graduate professional nurse in a State, Territory or Commonwealth (i.e., Puerto Rico) of the United States, or the District of Columbia. Preferred Experience: Minimum of 5 years Accreditation Quality Management experience. Grade Determinations: The following criteria must be met in determining the grade assignment of candidates, and if appropriate, the level within a grade: Nurse I Level I - An Associate Degree (ADN) or Diploma in Nursing, with no additional nursing practice/experience required. Nurse I Level II - An ADN or Diploma in Nursing and approximately 1 year of nursing practice/experience; OR an ADN or Diploma in Nursing and a bachelor's degree in a related field with no additional nursing practice/experience; OR a Bachelor's of Science in Nursing (BSN) with no additional nursing practice/experience. Nurse I Level III - An ADN or Diploma in Nursing and approximately 2-3 years of nursing practice/experience; OR an ADN or Diploma in Nursing and a Bachelor's degree in a related field and approximately 1-2 years of nursing practice/experience; OR a BSN with approximately 1-2 years of nursing practice/experience; OR a Master's degree in nursing (MSN) or related field with a BSN and no additional nursing practice/experience. Nurse II - A BSN with approximately 2-3 years of nursing practice/experience; OR ADN or Diploma in Nursing and a Bachelor's degree in a related field and approximately 2-3 years of nursing practice/experience; OR a Master's degree in nursing or related field with a BSN and approximately 1-2 years of nursing practice/experience; OR a Doctoral degree in nursing or meets basic requirements for appointment and has doctoral degree in a related field with no additional nursing practice/experience required. Nurse III - Master's degree in nursing or related field with BSN and approximately 2-3 years of nursing practice/experience; OR a Doctoral degree and approximately 2-3 years of nursing practice/experience. Note regarding MSN degrees: If your MSN was obtained via a Bridge Program that qualifies for professional nursing registration, a BSN is not required. Reference: VA Regulations, specifically VA Handbook 5005, Part II, Appendix G-6 Nurse Qualification Standard. This can be found in the local Human Resources Office. Physical Requirements: The Accreditation Nurse is required to meet the physical standards as outlined in VA Directive and VA Handbook 5019. This position requires visual acuity, keen hearing, clear distinctive speech, and manual dexterity. This position may require potentially long periods of continued walking, standing, stooping, sitting, bending, pulling, and pushing. Transferring patients and objects may be required. The incumbent may be exposed to infected patients and contaminated materials and may be required to don protective clothing in isolation situations or operative/invasive procedures. The incumbent may occasionally be exposed to patients who are combative secondary to delirium, dementia, or psychiatric disorders. The incumbent must be a mature, flexible, sensible individual capable of working effectively in stressful situations, able to shift priorities based on needs. The incumbent must complete annual Employee Health requirements, such as annual TB screening or testing, as a condition of employment.

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 Lebanon VA Medical Center 1700 South Lincoln Avenue Lebanon, PA 17042 US
• Name: Tessy Wigfield
• Phone: 570-550-2889
• Email: [email protected]