Health System Specialist

Veterans Health Administration • Menlo Park, CA

3d

About The Position

This position serves as a national-level project manager in the Program Evaluation and Resource Center (PERC), based at the VA Palo Alto Health Care System. PERC supports the Office of Mental Health and the Office of Suicide Prevention and evaluates and monitors VA programs nationwide. The specialist leads the rollout of new VHA mental health, substance use disorder, and suicide prevention programs, initiatives, and Congressional mandates. The role applies project management, process improvement, and change management frameworks to implementation; coordinates national stakeholders; evaluates program data; and provides technical assistance and project results to VA leaders and field staff.

The work schedule is Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. PST. The work is mainly sedentary, with occasional slight physical effort walking between sections of the health care system for meetings or fact-finding.

Requirements

• One year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade, GS-12, in the normal line of progression.
• Specialized experience includes comprehensive knowledge of the VHA healthcare model, its mission and goals, and how care is delivered.
• Specialized experience includes mastery of complex analytical problem-solving in health care systems and operations.
• Specialized experience includes expert knowledge of risk management principles, including identifying high-risk areas and mitigating risks to OMH or OSP objectives.
• Specialized experience includes expert knowledge of agile methods and software such as Jira, Azure DevOps, and Confluence.
• Applicants must also meet the Individual Occupational Requirements through qualifying education or experience: a major in hospital administration, public health administration, or a related field such as business or public administration with coursework in health care administration; or qualifying progressively responsible analytical, administrative, clinical management, or supervisory experience in the health care field.
• Qualifying experience must involve a close working relationship with facility managers and analysis or coordination of administrative, clinical, or other service activities, and provide knowledge of health care delivery systems, regulatory and credentialing standards, and government-wide, agency, and facility administrative systems and requirements.
• Applicants must be U.S. citizens.
• Selective Service registration is required for males born after December 31, 1959.
• Selected applicants must complete an online assessment and onboarding process and are subject to a background/security investigation.
• Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is required for Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel.
• A one-year probationary period is required.

Responsibilities

• Provide project management leadership, strategic direction, and oversight for national mental health, substance use disorder, and suicide prevention programs, initiatives, and Congressional mandates.
• Apply standardized implementation approaches using project management, process improvement, and change management frameworks.
• Develop and maintain detailed project schedules, milestones, and cost tracking across the project life cycle.
• Establish systems and databases to monitor project status, track progress, and confirm compliance with administrative policies and requirements.
• Gather and combine data from mental health programs across VHA, evaluate findings, and brief Office of Mental Health and Office of Suicide Prevention leaders.
• Collaborate with OMH and OSP leaders, VA program offices, subject matter experts, data scientists, and oversight bodies such as GAO to meet project goals.
• Lead high-level meetings, conferences, and planning sessions, and promptly report project status, risks, and compliance issues to national leadership.
• Assist VHA health care systems with implementation planning and recommend corrective action when goals are missed or delays occur.
• Lead field technical assistance, including responding to help desk questions about data products, conducting data deep dives, and reviewing patient charts to explain anomalous data.
• Disseminate project results by developing training materials, running monthly national calls, presenting at meetings, and writing white papers and summary reports.

Benefits

• Federal employees and their families have access to a comprehensive benefits package; specific benefits and eligibility depend on the type of position and should be confirmed with the hiring agency.
• VA may offer newly appointed federal employees credit for job-related non-federal experience or active-duty uniformed military service when determining annual leave accrual; approval is required and not guaranteed.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior
• Education Level: No Education Listed