This position is located in the Office of the Chief of Staff at VA South Texas Health Care System - Audie L. Murphy Memorial Veterans' Hospital in San Antonio, TX. The Health Physicist (Radiation Safety) is responsible for the management of all aspects of the Radiation and Laser Safety Programs located within the freestanding Northwest Health Care Center (NWHCC), Aurora Radiation Oncology Clinic, all Outpatient Clinics (OPC), and Kerrville, Texas Campus.

Duties

***THIS IS NOT A VIRTUAL POSITION, YOU MUST LIVE WITHIN OR BE WILLING TO RELOCATE WITHIN A COMMUTABLE DISTANCE OF THE DUTY LOCATION*** Major duties and responsibilities include:

Requirements

Qualifications

IN ORDER TO QUALIFY FOR THIS POSIITION AT THE GS-9 LEVEL YOU MUST MEET ONE OF THE FOLLOWING BASIC REQUIREMENTS: BASIC EDUCATION REQUIREMENT: You must have successfully completed a full 4-year course of study at an accredited college or university leading to a bachelor's degree or higher in natural science or engineering that included at least 30 semester hours in health physics, engineering, radiological science, chemistry, physics, biology, mathematics, and/or calculus. (COPY OF TRANSCRIPTS ARE REQUIRED AT TIME OF APPLICATION) ~OR~ COMBINATION OF BASIC EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE: You must have a combination of education and experience -- courses as shown in question #1 above, plus appropriate experience or other education; or certification as a health physicist by the American Board of Health Physics, plus appropriate experience and other education that provided an understanding of sciences applicable to health physics comparable to that described in question #1 above. (THIS EXPERIENCE MUST BE SUPPORTED BY YOUR RESUME TO BE CREDITABLE AND COPY OF TRANSCRIPTS ARE REQUIRED AT TIME OF APPLICATION) ~AND~ IN ADDITION TO MEETING ONE OF THE BASIC REQUIREMENTS LISTED ABOVE, YOU MUST ALSO MEET THE FOLLOWING: SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE: You must have at least one (1) full year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade level (GS-7) in Federal Service that has given you the particular knowledge, skills and abilities necessary to perform the duties of a Health Physicist (Radiation Safety) GS-9. Qualifying specialized experience includes utilizing instrumentation used in radiation safety monitoring; familiarization with the various sources of radiation utilized in a healthcare facility; conducts radiation safety audits of research labs and clinics; coordinates radioactive waste storage and disposal; responds to radiation incidents involving patients, employees, or visitors and takes appropriate corrective action(s) as a subject matter expert. (THIS EXPERIENCE MUST BE SUPPORTED BY YOUR RESUME TO BE CREDITABLE.) ~OR~ SUBSTITUTION OF EDUCATION FOR EXPERIENCE: You must have completed 2 years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to a master's degree or equivalent graduate degree which provided you with the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work of this position. Eighteen semester hours is usually considered equal to an academic year of graduate study. (COPY OF TRANSCRIPTS ARE REQUIRED AT TIME OF APPLICATION) ~OR~ COMBINATION OF EXPERIENCE AND EDUCATION: You must have a combination of specialized experience and higher-level graduate education, as described above, that demonstrates your ability to perform the duties of a Health Physicist. (THIS EXPERIENCE MUST BE SUPPORTED BY YOUR RESUME TO BE CREDITABLE AND COPY OF TRANSCRIPTS ARE REQUIRED AT TIME OF APPLICATION) ~AND~ SELECTIVE PLACEMENT FACTOR: 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 requirement for a position. Applicants who do not meet it are ineligible for further consideration. As defined in 10 CFR 35.2 the Associate Radiation Safety Officer (ARSO) must possess at minimum the same qualification required of the facility Radiation Safety Officer (RSO) to be listed on the Nuclear Regulatory Commission license (10 CFR Part 35.50, 35.59). You must possess one of the following options to be qualified for this position. Please select one that describes the best of your qualification. (SUPPORTING DOCMENT REQUIRED: If you do not submit a copy of certificate, license, or completion of training, your application may not be reviewed.) A. Certification by a Specialty Board (§35.50(a)): (1) The individual must be certified by a specialty board recognized by the Commission or an Agreement State; and (2) The certification process involves specific educational and experience criteria, including holding degrees in specific disciplines, years of professional experience in health physics, and passing an examination. B. Structured Educational Program (§35.50(b)): (1) Complete 200 hours of classroom and laboratory training in areas such as radiation physics, protection, biology, dosimetry, etc.; (2) One year of full-time radiation safety experience under specific supervision; and (3) Obtain a written attestation from a preceptor RSO or Associate RSO regarding the completion of the above requirements and the individual's ability to fulfill the RSO-related duties. C. Medical Physicist, Authorized User, etc. (§35.50(c)): (1) Medical physicists certified by a recognized specialty board; and (2) Authorized users, authorized medical physicists, or authorized nuclear pharmacists with experience in radiation safety. D. Training in Radiation Safety, Regulatory Issues, and Emergency Procedures (§35.50(d)): (1) Training in radiation safety, regulatory issues, and emergency procedures for the types of use the licensee seeks approval for. This training can be supervised by qualified individuals such as RSOs, Associate RSOs, authorized medical physicists, etc. You will be rated on the following Competencies as part of the assessment questionnaire for this position: Attention to DetailHealth PhysicsHealth Risk Analysis 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 requires some physical exertion such as long periods of walking and standing while performing audits and surveys and consulting with staff. Time is also spent in formal and informal meetings with many different groups. Additionally, much of the work is administrative in nature and requires sitting in an office and utilizing computers. Decontamination team participation is very physically demanding since one wear a sealed suit with respiratory device. The incumbent must be medically cleared to participate on the decontamination team. Will require driving a government furnished vehicle to various locations throughout the STVHCS to review the radiation and laser safety program at those sites. 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 Audie L Murphy Memorial Veterans Hospital 7400 Merton Minter Boulevard San Antonio, TX 78229 US
• Name: VHA National Recruitment Center
• Phone: (844)456-5208
• Email: [email protected]