Supervisory Biomedical Engineer - Deputy HTM Chief

Veterans Health Administration • Buffalo, NY

2d • Onsite

About The Position

The Deputy Chief of Healthcare Technology Management (HTM) supports the Chief HTM service at VA Western New York Healthcare System and directly supervises staff Biomedical Engineers and Biomedical Equipment Support Specialists (Biomedical Information Systems). The role assists the Chief with management of the HTM service and the medical equipment life cycle across the Healthcare System. The position is the deputy leader for biomedical engineering operations, advising on biomedical engineering, healthcare technology management, medical device integration, and clinical systems operations. It oversees medical equipment and networked clinical systems, including medical imaging networks, clinical databases, installation and support of healthcare technologies, quality assurance, and continuity planning. It also co-manages personnel and contributes to technology strategy, capital planning, and budget submissions.

The schedule is a compressed two-week rotation: Week 1 is Monday through Thursday, 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., with Friday off; Week 2 is Monday through Thursday, 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Friday, 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Telework is not available, and the position is not virtual. Relocation and recruitment incentives and permanent change of station are not authorized.

The position requires U.S. citizenship, proficiency in written and spoken English, and compliance with VA pre-employment, background, drug-testing, and seasonal influenza vaccination requirements. The appointee must complete a 1- or 2-year trial period. The full performance level is GS-13.

Requirements

• U.S. citizenship, subject to the stated VA policy exception for non-citizens when qualified citizens cannot be recruited.
• Proficiency in spoken and written English.
• Meet the basic education or certification pathway: a bachelor's degree or higher in an ABET-accredited engineering curriculum, or Certified Clinical Engineer (CCE) certification and a bachelor's degree not otherwise listed in the engineering-degree pathway.
• For GS-13, one year of specialized experience equivalent to GS-12 in applicable biomedical engineering/clinical technology duties, including clinical stakeholder support, technology assessment and integration, medical-system network security and HIPAA, capital and infrastructure planning, procurement collaboration, and clinical technology life-cycle management.
• Demonstrate knowledge of managing local department resources, including finances, space, equipment, supplies, and staffing.
• Demonstrate ability to draft or recommend local healthcare technology management policies or directives.
• Demonstrate ability to balance responsibilities, set priorities, delegate, meet deadlines, analyze organizational problems, and implement solutions.
• Demonstrate ability to analyze operational problems and use data to manage workload, quality, performance, and productivity.
• Demonstrate interpersonal skills for leading and working with employees, team leaders, and managers, including conflict management, dispute resolution, mediation, or reasonable accommodations.
• Professional engineering experience must be obtained after the bachelor's degree and/or CCE certification, use biomedical engineering professional knowledge and skills, and be directly applicable; for clinical biomedical engineer positions, it must be in a healthcare setting.
• Meet applicable pre-employment requirements, including background/security investigation, drug screening for testing-designated positions, and seasonal influenza vaccination.
• Complete the required online onboarding and provide acceptable identification for employment verification.
• Serve a 1- or 2-year trial period and receive written certification for continued employment after its completion.
• Only qualifying education from institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education is accepted; foreign education requires a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency and transcript.

Nice To Haves

• Current VHA employees in this occupation may qualify under the applicable grandfathering provision if they meet its criteria.

Responsibilities

• Assist in leading, managing, and setting strategic direction for biomedical engineering operations across the Healthcare System as Deputy Chief of HTM.
• Advise the HTM Chief on biomedical engineering principles, healthcare technology management, medical device integration, and clinical systems operations.
• Oversee daily activities involving medical equipment and networked clinical systems to support functionality, regulatory compliance, and alignment with VHA directives and policies.
• Manage operation, performance, optimization, and maintenance of medical imaging networks, clinical databases, and related healthcare technologies; troubleshoot failures and implement corrective actions.
• Develop and maintain protocols for clinical data transmission, image management, archiving, storage capacity planning, and quality management to protect clinical information integrity and availability.
• Coordinate installation, maintenance, software support, upgrades, repairs, and quality assurance for healthcare technology systems.
• Collaborate with clinical, administrative, information technology, and vendor partners on integration, support, and operation of medical systems and technologies.
• Maintain professional knowledge of developments in biomedical engineering, healthcare technology, medical imaging, and information management systems.
• Assist with strategic technology initiatives, capital asset planning, equipment replacement programs, and budget submissions.
• Supervise and co-manage biomedical engineering personnel, including performance management, training, workforce development, staffing recommendations, employee relations, awards, and operational oversight.
• Review and recommend solutions for complex workforce management, training, travel, overtime, and resource allocation issues.
• Participate in local and regional healthcare technology initiatives, VISN workgroups, task forces, and multidisciplinary committees.
• Consult and coordinate with executive leadership, clinical service chiefs, IT professionals, contractors, vendors, and VISN representatives.
• Support telehealth technologies and help prioritize specialized requests from healthcare programs and clinical services.
• Develop, maintain, and test contingency and continuity plans for medical equipment and clinical systems to support uninterrupted patient care.

Benefits

• Federal employee benefits package for the employee and family; specific benefit eligibility depends on position type and other eligibility rules.
• Potential credit toward annual leave accrual based on prior federal work or military service, subject to request and approval before appointment and not guaranteed.

What This Job Offers

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