Purpose of the Position: Library Services at the VA North Texas Health Care System (VANTHCS) are an integral part of the health system (Medical Centers and Clinics) and covers clinical and administrative staff as well as Veterans. The Library Staff provides services to more than 6000 employees and approximately 2500 health profession trainees each year, including interns, residents, and fellows of 9 associated health disciplines in addition to medical school trainees at varying levels.

Duties

Duties include but are not limited to: Carries out complex searches providing accurate and reliable information that informs clinical and management decisions, provides context for research efforts and encourages the self-directed learning of VANTHCS staff. Applies expertise to searching multiple health-related databases including, but not limited to MEDLINE, CINAHL, Psyclnfo, Cochrane Collaboration, UpToDate, as well as databases in affiliated fields such as business and the social sciences. Incumbent applies knowledge of the terminology and practices of health care disciplines, including all fields of medicine and surgery, dentistry, nursing, mental health, health administration, pharmacy and allied health fields, to accurately interpret questions and complete reliable and comprehensive searches. Performs critical evaluation of citations to identify those that are pertinent to a client's question. Evaluates resources and references, both primary and secondary, for authoritativeness, timeliness, and relevance to specific information requests. Ensures the accuracy and relevance of information provided. Applies knowledge of interlibrary loan resources and procedures for hospital libraries to facilitate interlibrary cooperation and the smooth exchange of information in order to provide VANTHCS staff access to a wide range of resources beyond those owned by VANTHCS. Coordinates the activities of a broad and varied document delivery/interlibrary loan system. Applies expert knowledge of DOCLINE, OCLC, health sciences databases, and bibliographic control of medical journals to locate and retrieve journal articles, monographs, and audiovisual materials required by VANTHCS staff. Reciprocates service by providing materials from VANTHCS collections requested by staff in other medical libraries. Incumbent evaluates the Library's collection to identify gaps in content, select authoritative resources to fill those gaps, and to proactively identify and remove outdated materials from the collection. Coordinates with the Supervisory Librarian to ensure comprehensiveness to meet the specialized needs of staff in all locations of the Health Care System. Applies extensive Identifies problems with organization, space, or access to resources and recommends solutions. Works with other Library staff to carry out projects related to collection organization and management. Applies expert knowledge of medical vendors and the federal acquisitions process to the procurement of materials for the Library's collection. Maintains records in accordance with required retention standards and for audit purposes. Applies knowledge of federal acquisition definitions and policies to the consideration of requests for administrative purchases in accordance with the Library's policies and procedures. Maintains records required for administrative purchases. Assists and instructs library clients in the use of VANTHCS Library's collection, services, and resources. Conducts both informal (1 on 1) and formal (face to face or web-based classes) education, teaching clients how to use electronic products, including how to effectively search databases and navigate multiple resources. Orients VANTHCS staff to the Library. Presents information about library resources and services to groups and committees in order to market for awareness and to encourage use of Library services. Assists with maintenance of the Library's Integrated Library System. Develops expert knowledge of one or more system components (ie, OPAC, cataloging, circulation, etc.) and initiates actions to ensure data integrity, smooth functioning and optimum use. Maintains current knowledge of medical libraries and consults with other VANTHCS Librarians and with the Supervisory Librarian regarding design of procedures and ideas to improve processes, services, and collections. Work Schedule: Monday - Friday8:00am - 4:30pm 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#: Librarian (Biology & Medical Science)/PD00801A and PD00801A Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not Approved Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized

Requirements

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 11/15/2024. 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-11 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-09. 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-09 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Specialized experience must have demonstrated the ability to perform, supervise, or direct one or more of the functional areas of work covered by this series; to understand the concepts, theories, new developments, and co-relationship of information in related fields; and to maintain up-to-date information on the state of the art. OR, Education: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have 3 full years of progressively higher level graduate education in library science or doctoral degree (Ph.D. or equivalent) related to the position. OR, Combination: Applicants may also combine education and experience to qualify at this level. You must have an combination of specialized experience and education beyond graduate level. Evaluation of Specialized Experience (for positions at GS-9 and above): Experience must have demonstrated the ability to perform, supervise, or direct one or more of the functional areas of work covered by this series; to understand the concepts, theories, new developments, and co-relationship of information in related fields; and to maintain up-to-date information on the state of the art. For positions where foreign language proficiency is needed, applicants must be able to read and/or translate material in the appropriate specialized subject-matter field. For Librarian (Biology & Medical Science): Applicants must also possess specialized knowledge of a subject-matter field and/or proficiency in one or more foreign languages directly related to the position(s) being filled. When such knowledge is required for the position, an applicant's education or experience must have included or been supplemented by the requirements specified in one of the paragraphs below: A. A full 4-year course of study in an accredited college or university that meets all academic requirements for a bachelor's degree that included at least 24 semester hours in the specialized field for which the applicant is being considered, e.g., physical science, biological science, social science; or that included any combination of subjects with at least 15 semester hours in a major subject (such as physics or chemistry)that is especially applicable to the position for which the applicant is being considered; OR B. Completion of at least 24 semester hours of legal study in an accredited law school for positions primarily concerned with providing library services in law or legislative reference; OR C. Four years of pertinent experience of such nature and level to provide a knowledge of the basic principles, theories, practices, techniques, terminology and expressions of the appropriate discipline or subject-matter field; an understanding of the standard methods, procedures, and techniques of research and analysis in the subject-matter field; ability to acquire additional information about the field and related fields; and some knowledge of literature resources in the field. Such experience should be equivalent to that which would have been acquired through successful completion of a full 4-year curriculum in an accredited college or university with major study inappropriate subjects, or combination of subjects, as specified in (a) above; or legal training as specified in(b) above; OR D. Any time equivalent combination of experience as described in (c) with education as described in (a) or(b) above; OR E. Demonstrated ability as shown by education or experience to read or translate information from one or more foreign languages into English. You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position: 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 involves regular and recurring physical exertion such as periods of standing, bending, stooping, and reaching into shelving areas; may require lifting; for example, heavy bound volumes, and sitting at a computer for extended periods of time. 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

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: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/.

NOTE: If your school has changed names, or is no longer in existence, you must provide this information in your application.

NOTE: If your school was accredited at the time of graduation but is no longer listed on the website, you must provide documentation of accreditation with your application packet.

Contacts

• Address Dallas VA Medical Center 4500 South Lancaster Road Dallas, TX 75216 US
• Name: VISN 17 SSU USAS Group
• Email: [email protected]