The Office of Research Oversight (ORO) serves as the primary VHA office in advising the USH on matters of compliance related to human subject protections, laboratory animal welfare, research safety, research laboratory security, research information security, research misconduct and other research improprieties. This position is in the Informatics and Data Analytics (IDA) Workgroup within the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) Office of Research Oversight (ORO).

Duties

Major duties include but are not limited to: Develops and leads the implementation of a multi-modal research compliance auditing education program for VA medical facility Research Compliance Officers (RCOs). Conducts and leads technical assistance site visits to evaluate Research Compliance Officer (RCO) fulfillment of responsibilities. Evaluates highly technical and complex research study protocols vis-à-vis Research Compliance Officer (RCO) auditing practices and results. Conducts evaluations and/or supports evaluations conducted by other ORO workgroups of Research Compliance Officer (RCO) audits for compliance with applicable requirements. Performs work in establishing the policies and procedures by which research compliance programs and research studies will be audited by VA facility Research Compliance Officers (RCOs). Establishes program goals and objectives and identifies results indicative of successful research compliance program accomplishments. Develops and implements processes to monitor VA medical facility submissions of Federalwide Assurances (FWAs) and registrations of Institutional Review Boards (IRBs) required to be designated on Federalwide Assurances (FWAs). Conducts periodic evaluations, and/or supports the periodic evaluations conducted by other ORO workgroups, of VHA research programs with respect to identifying deficiencies related to human research assurances and use of external Institutional Review Boards (IRBs). Work Schedule: Monday-Friday, 08:00-04:30pm Compressed/Flexible: Available Telework: VA supports the use of telework as a way to help attract and retain talented individuals in public service, increase worker productivity, and better prepare the agency to operate during emergencies. This position may be authorized for telework. Telework eligibility will be discussed during the interview process. Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Position Description/PD#: Supervisory Health Science Specialist/PD695470 Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not authorized. Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not approved. Permanent Change of Station (PCS): 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, 02/21/2024. 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-14 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-13. 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. Individual Occupational Requirement (IOR): An IOR is a basic requirement that must be met in order to qualify for entry into this job series, and it is something that can't be waived. The education must be accredited by an accrediting body recognized by the U.S. Department of Education at the time the degree was obtained. To qualify for the GS 0601 occupational series, applicants MUST possess one of the following: Bachelor's or graduate/higher level degree: major study in an academic field related to the medical field, health sciences or allied sciences appropriate to the work of the position. This degree must be from an educational program from an accrediting body recognized by the U.S. Department of Education(external link) at the time the degree was obtained. AND Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-13 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: Provides supervision of staff and provides management and subject matter leadership to professional staff. Collects and analyzes data from Office of Research Oversight (ORO) compliance reviews, remote compliance cases, and other sources to inform and develop data-driven research compliance oversight strategies. Evaluates new or modified legislation and policies to determine impact on VA research and keeps apprised of all applicable statutes, regulations, policies, guidance, and best practices in research. Develops reports and presentations summarizing analyses and evaluations and proposes well-supported data-driven recommendations. Quality Ranking Factors are skills, knowledge, abilities, or other worker characteristics which could be expected to result in superior performance on the job. Quality ranking factors will not be used for screening but may be used as ranking criteria. Applicants with higher proficiency levels may rank above those with lower proficiency levels on a quality ranking factor. A Quality Ranking Factor has been requested by the Program Office to help determine which of the basically qualified applicants are likely to be better qualified for a position. The quality ranking factors for this position are: An Advanced Degree (e.g., MS, PhD) in a biological, biomedical, mathematical or similar field Experience leading and supervising a team, including establishing performance standards and evaluating performance You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position: Compliance Analytical Reasoning Data Analysis Technical Competence Communication 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, although some slight physical effort may be required. Some travel may be required. 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: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/.

Contacts

• Address VSHO - Risk Management 2402 Wildwood Ave Suite 301 Sherwood, AR 72120 US
• Name: VHA National Recruitment Center
• Phone: (844)456-5208
• Email: [email protected]