Program Specialist

Full Job Description

This position location is Loch Raven VAMC Baltimore in the Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Service (PM&RS) of the VA Maryland Health Care System (VAMHCS) which includes Maryland, the District of Columbia, and portions of Virginia, West Virginia, and Pennsylvania.

The Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Service (PM&RS) provides a variety of rehabilitation services.

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 03/11/2026.

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-9 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-7. 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-7 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization.

Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: Familiar with the internal organization of VA, VHA, and VAMHCS.

Thorough knowledge of administrative requirements of the health care delivery system and sufficient knowledge of clinical practice, procedures and standards of the Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Service to analyze administrative processes and recommend improvements.

Knowledge of problem identification/solving and using services to anticipate, define and solve the administrative aspects of patient care problems.

Thorough knowledge of VA regulations and policies and procedures at the VISN, VACO and medical center levels in order to make appropriate recommendations and provide analysis to the Director, PR&MS and all other medical staff so their decision and action will be consistent with VA policy.

Working knowledge of The Joint Commission standards; Medical Staff Office credentialing and privileging processes.

Working knowledge of the policies and procedures of the University of Maryland in order to expedite resident staff with the formation and sustainment of residency programs.

Knowledge of the Academic Affiliation program and requirements to manage and advise on academic affiliation functions and issues. Knowledge of Federal HR and recruitment processes and policies.

Knowledge of local union management contract to advise leadership on staffing needs and recruitment.

Familiarity with Federal position classification and position management to write and review position descriptions and advise on succession and retention plans.

Knowledge of employee development, competencies, performance, and appraisals to oversee PM&RS evaluation calendars, rating schemes.

Knowledge of various VA computer systems, databases, HR info systems, and websites to gather and query data, track requests, assist PM&RS leadership and staff, and troubleshoot issues.

Advanced knowledge of MS 365, Excel, Lists, PowerPoint, SharePoint and Teams management and design to set up and adjust platforms, design and implement workflows and automations, and categorize and organize files and information.

Ability to build Teams and channels that integrate Apps and advanced functions like Power Automate, ability to use power query in Excel to clean and organize data..

OR, Education: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience.

To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have a master's or equivalent graduate degree or 2 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree or LL.B.

or J.D., if related 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.

Combinations of successfully completed graduate level education (beyond the first 2 years) and specialized experience as described above to meet total experience requirements.

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/.

Preferred Experience: Preferred Administrative experience: Data analysis, purchasing, time-keeping. Major Duties:

Major duties include but not limited to: The Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Service (PM&RS) provides rehabilitation services in a variety of inpatient, residential, and outpatient settings and employs physicians, physical therapists, occupational therapists, audiologists, speech pathologists, recreational therapists, creative arts therapist, music therapists, adaptive sports therapists, rehabilitation technicians, clinical trainees/students, and administrative personnel.

The service receives more consultations for services than any other service in the VAMHCS and is largest rehabilitation clinical service in VISN 5 with approximately 90 FTEE and 8 different clinical specialties.

The incumbent is a member of the PMRS Administrative Team and reports to the Administrative Officer, responsible for the management of all PM&RS HR activities and the success of four PM&RS program segments: Employee Engagement, Knowledge Management, Equipment Inventory, and Administrative Process Improvement.

The incumbent performs administrative program management and analysis of human resources functions and processes involved in staffing, development, classification, position management, labor and employee relations, performance, benefits, onboarding, compensation, awards, incentives, and employee engagement.

Manages recruitment and staffing plans, reports, and actions. Oversees PM&RS HR Calendar and Operational Tempo, ensuring timely processing of personnel actions for fee-basis staff working in the PM&RS.

Manages the service-level incentive awards program, quality increases, superior performance awards for both Title 5 and Title 38 employees.

Coordinates and consults with Human Resources Specialists to ensure proper formatting, submission requirements, and compliance in HR requests.

Advises on and troubleshoots requests for personnel actions(including position description revisions, grievance procedures, techniques for counseling personnel, performance standards revisions, procedures for disciplinary actions, use of techniques to control the abuse of sick leave and the proper scheduling of annual leave).

Maintains the PMRS organizational chart. Ensures FTEE are fairly allocated to different sections within the PM&RS.

Writes, edits, and updates Functional Statements, Position Descriptions, crediting plans, and interview processes and questions.

Assists clinical staff and provides input on ethical issues, such as addressing staffing shortages and its impact on patient care; privacy issues; and the appropriate use of care in the community services.

The incumbent manages all administrative functions and processes associated with the PM&RS Academic Affiliation program. Collects, categorizes, and files information in the PM&RS SharePoint KM library.

Evaluates categories and knowledge organization structure to identify and implement more efficient or effective ways to present, store, and find information.

Maintains the PM&RS Equipment Inventory List (ElL) and accurate equipment inventory records that state the location and condition of the inventory items (CMR).

Tracks staff and clinical equipment inventory. Performs equipment inspections. Initiates work orders for broken equipment.

Coordinates with the Program Analyst to track equipment lifecycles, add new equipment to the inventory, and dispose of equipment.

Liaises with logistic management services/SPD personnel to ensure supply ordering activities follow their guidelines/established protocols.

Coordinates with the Director, PM&RS and Quality, Safety, Improvement (QSI) Coordinator to develop, establish, implement, evaluate, and maintain the PMRS Process Improvement (Pl) Plan.

Identifies PM&RS problems that involve new or revised policies or procedures and brings to the attention of the Senior PM&RS Management for appropriate action.

Continuously monitors and evaluates processes to identify problems and recommend Process Improvement studies to determine corrective actions.

Reports relevant PI activities and follows up on all improvements or corrective actions at the All-Staff, Executive Committee, and Process Improvement Committee meetings.

Work Schedule: M-F 7:30am-4:00pm Telework: Ad-hoc Virtual: This is not a virtual position.

Position Description/PD#: Program Specialist/PD234460 Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: No Critical Skills Incentive (CSI):No Permanent Change of Station (PCS): No