Healthcare Engineer- Senior Program Engineer

Veterans Health Administration • Orlando, FL

5d • Onsite

About The Position

The Senior Program Engineer ensures a safe, reliable, and precisely controlled operating environment for direct patient care by leading planning, design oversight, technical compliance, and program management across capital projects, life-safety systems, critical utilities, and energy programs. The Senior Program Engineer collaborates with the Chief of Engineering Service, executive leadership, clinical staff, and external partners regarding station-level engineering determinations and compliance with codes, standards, and regulations including those from the Joint Commission, NFPA, OSHA, EPA, and VA Technical Information Library (TIL).

Requirements

• Must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job.
• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959.
• Must be proficient in written and spoken English.
• Subject to background/security investigation.
• Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process.
• Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements.
• Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued identification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.
• Must pass pre-employment physical evaluation/examination.
• Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP).
• Complete all application requirements detailed in the "Required Documents" section of this announcement.
• As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1 or 2-year trial period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest.
• Bachelor's degree or higher in Engineering or Architecture.
• Curriculum must be from a school with at least one curriculum accredited by the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology, Engineering Accreditation Commission (excludes engineering technology) or National Council of Architectural Registration Boards curriculum.
• Examples of acceptable engineering and architectural degrees include, but are not limited to: Electrical Engineering, Industrial Engineer, Mechanical Engineering, Biomedical Engineering, Civil Engineering, Architecture and Architectural Engineering.
• OR Evidence of passing the Fundamentals of Engineering Examination with a bachelor's degree.
• OR Evidence of current professional registration or licensure as a Professional Engineer or Architect.
• One year of specialized experience equivalent to the next lower grade (GS-12).
• Knowledge of current and evolving concepts and principles of general engineering to resolve novel or obscure problems; extend and modify techniques; develop new approaches that guide other engineers who solve a variety of technical problems; and/or apply new, innovative or experimental advanced engineering theories, developments or practices.
• Skill in construction, capital planning and multiple healthcare system portfolio management inclusive of budget development and tracking.
• Skill to collaborate with persons having diverse viewpoints, goals or objectives to achieve a common understanding of the problem and a satisfactory solution by justifying, defending, negotiating or settling controversial and far-reaching matters through active participation in conferences, meetings or presentations.
• Ability to interpret broad guidelines and exercise considerable judgment and ingenuity in interpreting and adapting existing guides, developing new and improved hypotheses, concepts or approaches to previously tested or reported and/or in developing new policies that advance the organization.
• Ability to coordinate and interact with regional facilities, national and corresponding staff for the implementation and coordination of policies and program plans to apply prioritization methodologies that align facilities' capital asset requests and develop infrastructure options that result in the efficacious use of regional level capital strategic plans.
• Ability to adapt and apply trends in healthcare delivery systems that impact long-term capital assets (such as aging equipment and physical plants) for regionally integrated healthcare systems.
• Ability to consult and collaborate with all organizational levels in a national healthcare organization, outside organizations and businesses regarding both strategic and financial activities of a regional healthcare organization.
• Ability to implement and/or sustain a capital asset and construction program that meets healthcare facility related standards, codes, policies and regulations inclusive of state and local codes.

Nice To Haves

• The FMS Healthcare Engineering Team is responsible for all Capital Investment Projects and program funding working directly with VISN CAM office for funding, prioritization, and execution of projects. Currently, the Project Team has oversight of all campuses within the Orlando VAHCS to include owned, leased, expansion projects and Non-reoccurring Maintenance (NRM) needed at Lake Nona; three primary outpatient clinics in Orlando, Brevard, and Daytona Beach; five CBOCs located in Kissimmee, Clermont, Deltona, Tavares, and Palm Bay; and annex facilities in both Daytona Beach and Orlando.

Responsibilities

• Serves as the station technical authority for healthcare engineering, providing authoritative advice to leadership and clinical services on capital projects, codes, and standards.
• Leads technical oversight of construction and renovation projects at the medical center and CBOCs, ensuring compliance with accreditation and regulatory requirements.
• Functions as COR or technical expert for A/E and construction contracts, preparing scopes, IGEs, evaluations, and technical oversight while ensuring infection control and safety compliance.
• Supports facility resiliency and emergency preparedness by ensuring critical infrastructure systems are designed and maintained to withstand natural disasters and utility disruptions.
• Owns and manages critical station-level engineering programs such as medical gas, fire protection, water quality/Legionella, HVAC systems in surgical and isolation environments, and emergency power systems.
• Leads station-level asset management analytics, Facility Condition Index (FCI) assessments, backlog prioritization, and energy optimization initiatives.
• Utilizes advanced data analytics and performance metrics to evaluate system efficiency, identify deficiencies, and recommend improvements across engineering programs.
• Completes Annual National Handbook/Directive Compliance assessments.
• Recommends and initiates action plans to ensure full compliance to include developing policies and standards of practice, along with coordinating any training required.
• Collaborates with fiscal and leadership teams to develop and justify station capital investment priorities, integrating technical findings into executive decision-making.
• Serves as a subject matter expert in interpreting and applying national VA policies, codes, and directives; develops local policies and procedures to ensure compliance and operational excellence.

Benefits

• Competitive salary and regular salary increases.
• 37-50 days of annual paid time offer per year (13-26 days of annual leave, 13 days of sick leave, 11 paid Federal holidays per year)
• After 12 months of employment, up to 12 weeks of paid parental leave in connection with the birth, adoption, or foster care placement of a child.
• After 60 days of employment, full time employees with a total family income below $144,000 may be eligible for a childcare subsidy up to 25% of total eligible childcare costs for eligible children up to the monthly maximum of $416.66 .
• Traditional federal pension (5 years vesting) and federal 401K with up to 5% in contributions by VA
• Federal health/vision/dental/term life/long-term care (many federal insurance programs can be carried into retirement)

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior