Licensed Professional Mental Health Counselor (Program Manager) - Vet Center Director
Veterans Health Administration
Posted: February 24, 2026 (0 days ago)
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Veterans Health Administration
Department of Veterans Affairs
Location
Salary
$166,283 - $197,200
per year
Type
Full-Time
More Healthcare & Medical jobs →Closes
Base salary range: $123,041 - $159,950
Typical requirements: 1 year specialized experience at GS-14. Senior leader or top expert.
Note: Actual salary includes locality pay (15-40%+ depending on location).
This temporary role involves assisting the director in managing a large veterans' health care system with locations in Seattle and Tacoma, focusing on overseeing operations, staff, and resources for up to 120 days.
It's ideal for experienced health care leaders who can handle administrative tasks, adapt to changes, and ensure smooth delivery of medical services.
Candidates with strong management skills in hospital settings and knowledge of government regulations would thrive here.
Incumbent serves as a full Associate to the Director, VA Puget Sound Health Care System.
VA Puget Sound Health Care System is a Joint Commission accredited health care system consisting of two divisions. One is located at Seattle and one based at American Lake near Tacoma.
The Puget Sound Healthcare System is part of VA Northwest Network VISN 20.
***This is a Temporary Detail/Promotion NTE 120 days*** To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 03/06/2026.
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-15 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-14. 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.
Individual Occupational Requirement: Candidates must meet one of the following as well as the specialized experience in the next section.
Undergraduate and Graduate Education: Major study- hospital administration, public health administration, or related fields such as business or public administration with course work in health care administration.
-OR- Experience: Progressively responsible analytical or administrative, or clinical management or supervisory experience in the health care field.
This work may have been performed in an operating health care facility or a higher organizational echelon with advisory or directional authority over such facilities.
Work must have involved a close working relationship with facility managers and analysis and/or coordination of administrative, clinical, or other service activities, and provided knowledge of the following: Missions, organizations, programs, and requirements of health care delivery systems; Regulations and standards of various regulatory and credentialing groups; and Government-wide, agency, and facility systems and requirements in various administrative areas such as budget, personnel, and procurement.
Applicants must also possess: Management ability to delegate authority, evaluate and oversee people and programs, recognize and adapt to changing priorities; and Knowledge of the interrelationships and interdependencies among various medical and administrative services and programs.
In addition to the above Individual Occupational Requirement, you must meet the specialized experience as described below: Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-14 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization.
Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: Progressively responsible analytical or administrative, or clinical management or supervisory experience in the health care field.
This work may have been performed in an operating health care facility or a higher organizational echelon with advisory or directional authority over such facilities.
Work must have involved a close working relationship with facility managers and analysis and/or coordination of administrative, clinical, or other service activities, and provided knowledge of the following: Missions, organizations, programs, and requirements of health care delivery systems; Regulations and standards of various regulatory and credentialing groups; and government-wide, agency, and facility systems and requirements in various administrative areas such as budget, personnel, and procurement.
Applicants must also possess: Management ability to delegate authority, evaluate and oversee people and programs, recognize and adapt to changing priorities; and Knowledge of the interrelationships and interdependencies among various medical and administrative services and programs.
At this level, applicants would identify and resolve problems which may inhibit accomplishing patient care mission and public policy objectives; exercise fiscal management responsibility by assisting in the preparation of the overall facility budget, in monitoring expenditures, and in recommending reallocation of funds based on shifting program needs; establish and maintain public relations with a variety of institutions and groups; apply performance standards to measure program performance and health care activities are meeting established goals and objectives; and develop, evaluate, and adjust organizational structures and management systems for the administrative and allied health services managed.
You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position: Administration and Management Organizational Awareness Planning and Evaluating Stakeholder Management Strategic Thinking Systems Thinking 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: Most of the work performance is at a desk, in an office setting.
The position does require touring of the medical center for direct supervision, survey and environment of care issues.
The incumbent occasionally carries books and papers to and from meetings and conferences.
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/.
Major Duties:
The Health System Administrator - Associate Director provides general program direction and delegates authority to the subordinate Service Line managers in an atmosphere which leads to the fulfilment of the medical center health care mission.
Responsible for taking an active leadership role in coordinating and developing customer and stakeholder support and resourcing to meet Medical Shares with the Executive Leadership Team a level of responsibility for the direction and management of the Medical Center and is directly responsible for all facilities operations.
Direct line authority and leadership responsibility for all administrative operation support services.
Participates on a day-to-day basis in top level Executive discussions, decisions, policy making and actions of all administrative functions and indirectly all clinical matters impacting patient care.
Participates in policy-making and management decisions affecting the organization.
May Serve as the Acting Deputy Medical Center Director with full responsibility and concomitant authority to carry out the duties and functions.
Develops collaborative partnerships with stakeholders and makes program execution decisions that affect or determine long range courses of action of critical importance.
Determines operational services and programs goals and objectives, develops short-and long-range plans for achieving them in conjunction with the overall plans of the Veterans Integrated Service Network (VISN) and consistent with the strategic planning process.
Administers a management reporting system which provides appropriate data for decision making for facility operations, impacting organizational improvements.
Leads the planning and development of current and proposed program objectives in conjunction with administrative and clinical managers; develops short and long range fiscal year plans that meet the objectives of current and proposed programs.
Evaluates the needs of various work sites and establishes processes to improve delivery of Medical Center services.
Participates as a full member of the medical center's senior management team and works in partnership with senior management.
Works on the development of a balanced financial plan designed to meet realistic needs of the facility and the network; makes important decisions substantially affecting economy of facility operations by limiting operating expenses without impairing patient care activities, through management assessment, cost effective position management techniques, reorganization improvement methods .
Completes and implements VA policies and regulations and governs administrative aspects of the Medical Center.
Delegates authority as appropriate and holds managers under his/her oversight responsible and accountable for the performance of the product lines, programs, and services under their supervision and management.
Shares with other ELT members the responsibility for establishing and maintaining stakeholder relationships with a wide variety of interested institutions and groups.
Provides guidance to functional managers to facilitate the effective resolution of technical problems, conflicts, and controversial issues, ensuring that issues are quickly resolved.
Organizes and controls facility operation evaluation activities.
Develops plans (with target completion dates) to ensure that action has been taken to correct deficiencies cited by accrediting bodies or external reviews related to facility operations.
Initiates corrective action on elements considered unacceptable from the standpoint of quality or facility service management, and ensures that patient or staff complaints related to the communication of administrative aspects of facility operations are promptly addressed.
Performs other duties as assigned. Work Schedule: 8:00am-4:30pm Monday- Friday Compressed/Flexible: Not available Telework: This position may be authorized for ad-hoc telework.
Telework eligibility will be discussed during the interview process. Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Position Description/PD#: Health Systems Administrator- Associate Director-Detail/ Temporary Promotion NTE 120 days/PD99902S Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not authorized Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not approved Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Required.
Employees are required to file a Financial Disclosure within 90 days of receipt of a contracting authorization or VA employment, then annually.
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