The incumbent serves as a Lead Patient Advocate within Carl Vinson VA Medical Center/VHA Healthcare System (including Community Based Outpatient Clinics (CBOCs), Health Care Centers (HCC), Outpatient Clinics (OPC), etc.). On behalf of the VA Medical Facility Director, this position leads a variety of highly visible and complex patient concerns, issues, and contacts for the Facility to document and provide resolution.

Duties

Major duties include, but are not limited to: Ensures work assignments are prioritized, assigned and accomplished, in accordance with program requirements. Leads the team and provides the day-to-day work direction, review, and distribution, balance, and adjustment of workload. Explains team assignments, projects, problems to be solved, actionable events, milestones, and/or program issues under review, and deadlines and applicable time frames to complete the work. Reviews subordinates' workload and oversees final work product for accuracy and completeness. Monitors and reports on the progress of the team's work and provides updates. Coaches and develops the team using appropriate tools and techniques to address a variety of issues and situations. Assesses the team's strengths and weaknesses and determines where improvements can be made. Provides the team formal and informal training information related to patient advocacy service, customer service, techniques, and resources needed to educate themselves about specific issues. Ensures appropriate guidance is made available, including written instructions, reference materials, and relevant background data. Resolves simple informal issues of team members and refers others to the supervisor. Explores all avenues, crossing all lines of authority and responsibility within a medical facility, in order to properly identify the nature and scope of the problem and to initiate appropriate action to expedite a resolution. Resolves difficult and complex complaints independently, expedites services and implements necessary corrective measures within established facility policies. Serves as the liaison between the facility, patients, staff, and the community to ensure Patient Rights and Responsibilities and advocacy services are available. Works directly with health care teams and management to facilitate a resolution to problems beyond the capability of front-line staff. Leads process improvement efforts and initiatives. Collaborates with facility staff in the creation, development, and implementation of initiatives and actions that improve the patient experience. Explains a variety of government laws, directives, and policies to individuals of varying levels of educational and cultural backgrounds. Responds both verbally and in writing to congressionals, service organizations, community groups, or other inquiries related to patient inquiries. Communicates trends to facility leadership to help drive system improvements. Collects, analyzes, and evaluates patient complaint data. Reviews appropriate documentation and records, and discusses with personnel or witnesses regarding any practice that appears to violate the patient's rights or which cause unnecessary discomfort or embarrassment. Identifies the elements of clinical or administrative practices which contribute to or create an atmosphere for patient dissatisfaction and recommends appropriating official changes to reduce or eliminate substantiated complaints. Participates in resolving system-level issues by presenting the patient's perspective of the problem and the desired resolution. Conducts internal audits of documentation to ensure documentation and process execution meets established requirements, and work with appropriate personnel to correct identified issues. Ensures the current Joint Commission Standards and other regulatory requirements pertaining to patient advocacy are met. Produces cumulative reports to track patient inquiries and trend the patterns to identify area of improvement needed. Manages a patient centered complaint resolution process to include complaint resolution, data capture and analysis of issues/complaints to make system improvements. Documents and leads others in documenting and resolving complaints for continuous improvements. Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 8:00am - 4:30pm Compressed/Flexible: Telework: Not eligible Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Position Description/PD#: Lead Patient Representative/PD99734S Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized PCS Appraised Value Offer (AVO): Not Authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Not required

Requirements

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 02/12/2024. 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 GS-11. 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-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: Extensive knowledge of major patient advocacy-related issues, program goals and objectives, work processes, and administrative operations of the medical facility to evaluate and recommend solutions to measure, evaluate, and improve the effectiveness and efficiency of key medical center operations that have (or may have) a significant impact of the patient experience. You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position: CommunicationConflict ManagementCritical ThinkingManages and Organizes InformationManages Human ResourcesTeaching Others 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 includes walking, standing, bending, carrying of light items, and occasionally assisting with a wheelchair. In some instances, relationships with patients and caregivers can become intense and the incumbent is constantly exposed to high levels of stress and anxiety. This position demands emotional stability, as the incumbent is deeply involved with many challenging, seriously ill, and/or dying patients and their caregivers. 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.

Contacts

• Address Carl Vinson VA Medical Center 1826 Veterans Boulevard Dublin, GA 31021 US
• Name: Abdul Turay
• Phone: 919-286-0411 X178628
• Email: [email protected]