This position is located under the supervision of the Infection Control Coordinator within within the Chief of Staff Office. The incumbent is a lead member of the team that is involved and committed to the Center's Ceaseless continuos Infection Control/quality improvement effort as an approach to assess and improve the quality of health care services.

Duties

Lead member of infection prevention and control to assess and improve quality health care services at VA Caribbean Healthcare System. Compiling and analyzing IC data and reports (MRSA, CRE, Legionella, CAUTI, CLABSI, IVAC, PVAP) that will be submitted to Inpatient Evaluation Center (IPEC). Sustains the Infection Control Program in all facets by promoting training, understanding computer systems, and interpreting regulations of the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO). Collaborates as Infection Control Coordinator of the Infection Control Program Service in the absence of the Infection Control Coordinator. Functions as the key person with TheraDoc program to develop, manage and implement the program to improve timeliness and accuracy of services. Provide direct IC staff support in planning, designing, integrating, implementing, modifying and administering Infection Control/Antimicrobial Stewardship Program (IC/ASP) and TheraDoc software activities. Develops IC Antimicrobial Stewardship Program to insure quality provisions are planned and implemented to identify, prevent and correct unsatisfactory conditions and elements which influence the regulatory correctness and responsiveness of transactions and services. Modify Infection Control Program strategies and techniques to fit Service Operations, cultures and interests of the Medical Center's management and staff. Develops policy guidance, motivational materials and information to facilitate participation in important program initiatives. Collaborates in the implementation of new IC initiatives that require data and report analysis. Responsible for modifying TheraDoc software to facilitate the implementation process of these new initiatives. Collaborates as Infection Control Coordinator of the Infection Control Program Service in the absence of the Infection Control Coordinator. Modifies program according to necessities using strategies and complex techniques to facilitate the execution of important program initiatives and resolve problems relative to complex and difficult situations. Translates the policies, theories, and strategies into action within the complex interrelationships that exist related to the Infection Control/Antimicrobial Stewardship Program within the Institution. Develops baseline references and profiles, and identifies statistical deviations of variances which affect infection control activities and/or might merit additional study. Investigates and analyzes infection trends or conditions and initiates corrective action. Assist staff to develop and implement quality management IC plans. . Work Schedule: Monday to Friday (7:30am -4:00pm) Telework: Not Available Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Position Description/PD#: Health System Specialist/PD13219O Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Not required

Requirements

• You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job
• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959
• You may be required to serve a probationary period
• Subject to background/security investigation
• Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process
• Participation in the seasonal influenza and Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Vaccination programs are requirements for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP)

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 12/15/2023. 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-12 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS11. 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. General Adjustment SF-50's with the effective date of within the last year do not provide the information to reflect time-in-grade requirement has been met and therefore cannot be the only SF-50. If you are currently serving in a Hybrid Title 38 position, your SF-50's must reflect you have been in the position longer than one year. Individual Occupational Requirement (IOR): 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 one of the pre-determined Education or Experience Individual Occupational Requirements listed below as set by Office of Personnel Management (OPM). Undergraduate and Graduate Education in a Major study of hospital administration, public health administration, or related fields such as business or public administration with course work in health care administration. Experience of 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 and/or education as described below: In addition to meeting both the IOR and Time-In-grade, you may qualify based on your specialized experience as described below: Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-11 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: Compiling and analyzing IC data and reports. Develops policy guidance. Tanslates the policies, theories, and strategies into action. Serves as consultant on clinical issues. You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position: Analytical ReasoningCritical ThinkingPlanning and EvaluatingQuality Management 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: The work is primarily sedentary, but includes occasional bending, standing, lifting and carrying of manuals and files. A substantial amount of work time involves reading, writing and utilizing computers. 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.


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 San Juan VA Medical Center 10 Calle Casia San Juan, PR 00921 US
• Name: Vilnalys Irizarry-Brisueno
• Phone: (939) 227-1856
• Email: [email protected]