HEALTH SCIENCE SPECIALIST

Summary This position is organizationally located in the Research Service, Long Beach VA Healthcare System (VALBHS). The program at VALBHS comprises more than 160 research projects conducted by approximately 35 Principal Investigators (PI).

The incumbent of this position will be referred to as the R&D Safety and Operations Officer (RSOO) directing the Research Safety / Space / Operation Division with supervisory responsibilities for the staff assigned to this section.

Responsibilities This is a bargaining unit position. Areas of Consideration for all Other Positions : CTAP, *ICTAP and RPL eligible only.

Preference eligible veterans displaced from restricted positions due to outsourcing may be eligible for ICTAP as outlined in Title 5 CFR, Part 330, Subpart D VA offers a comprehensive total rewards package : VA Total Rewards Work Schedule : Monday - Friday, 8 : 00 a.

m. - 4 : 30 p.m. Compressed / Flexible Schedule : Not Available Telework : Not Available Duty Location Status : Will work from a VA owned or leased space.

Position Description Title / PD# : Health Science Specialist / PD198660 Relocation / Recruitment Incentives : Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS) : Not Authorized Financial Disclosure Report : Not Required Physical Demands : The work is primarily sedentary, although some physical effort may be required.

No special physical demands although it may involve some walking, standing, bending, or carrying of light items such as binders, books, instructional materials, and thick files.

Supervisory Probationary Statement : Applicants selected for this position may be required to serve a one-year supervisory probationary period.

Failure to successfully complete the supervisory probationary period will result in the employee being reassigned to a position in the agency of no lower grade and pay than the one the employee left to accept the supervisory or managerial position.

Major Duties : Monitor and develop all safety programs of the Research Service implement all standards mandated by the various regulatory agencies within the Page 1 of 9 Position Description Health Science Specialist, GS-0601-13 Research Service Develop, review, and revise the Research Service chemical hygiene plan, disaster plan, exposure control plan and the Handbook of Laboratory Safety, and other research safety related plans.

Develops policies and procedures for organizing the laboratory space including initiation of new laboratories, decommission of laboratories after departure of investigators, and organizations of common research facilities including common equipment, core facilities and animal care facilities.

Develops policies and procedures for management of core facilities and common equipment including training research staff on the use of the equipment, organizing schedule of use, establish billing and collection procedures.

Ensure high performance of research operations, the RSOO maintains efficient communications with various offices and departments within VALBHS.

Develop procedures to deal with minor spills and releases of hazardous substances in the Research Service and works with medical center personnel in response to major spills in research areas.

Periodically tests the readiness of staff by conducting emergency or unscheduled drills. Perform or coordinate inspections of all research laboratories according to established timelines specified in SOPs.

Serves as the service representative to inspectors, accompanying them on all site visit activities. Oversee the effective and equitable allocation of assignable research space to facilitate the independent research programs of PIs at VALBHS Requirements Conditions of Employment You must be a U.

S. Citizen to apply for this job All applicants tentatively selected for VA employment in a testing designated position are subject to urinalysis to screen for illegal drug use prior to appointment.

Applicants who refuse to be tested will be denied employment with VA. Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12 / 31 / 1959 You may be required to serve a probationary period Subject to background / security investigation Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP) Participation in the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccination program is a requirement for all Veterans Health Administration Health Care Personnel (HCP) - See Additional Information below for details.

Qualifications To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 06 / 21 / 2024.

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-13 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-12. 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.

SELECTIVE PLACEMENT FACTOR (SPF) : A selective placement factor represents knowledge, skills, or abilities that are essential for successful job performance and cannot reasonable be acquired on the job during the orientation period.

Applicants who do not possess the identified SPF will not be considered. The SPF for this position is : You must have at least one year of program management experience in a healthcare research program.

You may qualify based on your experience as described below : Specialized Experience : You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-12 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization.

• Specialized experience is defined as : management of a clinical research study / project in a healthcare setting; experience monitoring research study adherence to protocols and quality control parameters;
• revising and submitting research study documentation for review; qualitative and quantitative data collection relative to a scientific research study;

monitoring and tracking research project timelines and performance metrics. Possess experience in all matters pertaining to biosafety, fire and natural disaster safety, radiation safety, environmental safety, and security of the research space and buildings.

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.

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 / . Education There is no educational substitution at this grade level.

A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education. Note : Only education or degrees recognized by the U.

S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment.

You can verify your education here : http : / / ope.ed.gov / accreditation / . If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education.

For further information, visit : https : / / sites.ed.gov / international / recognition-of-foreign-qualifications / . Additional Information Receiving Service Credit or Earning Annual (Vacation) Leave : Federal Employees earn annual leave at a rate (4, 6 or 8 hours per pay period) which is based on the number of years they have served as a Federal employee.

Selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual, based on prior work experience or military service experience.

This credited service can be used in determining the rate at which they earn annual leave. Such credit must be requested and approved prior to the appointment date and is not guaranteed.

The Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP) and Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) provide eligible displaced Federal / VA competitive service employees with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies.

To be qualified you must submit appropriate documentation (a copy of the agency notice, your most recent performance rating, and your most recent SF-50 noting current position, grade level, and duty location) and be found well-qualified for this vacancy.

To be well-qualified : applicants must possess experience that exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors, and who are proficient in most of the required competencies of the job.

Information about ICTAP and CTAP eligibility is on OPM's Career Transition Resources website at http : / / www.opm.gov / policy-data-oversight / workforce-restructuring / employee-guide-to-career-transition / .

During the application process you may have an option to opt-in to make your resume available to hiring managers in the agency who have similar positions.

Opting in does not impact your application for this announcement, nor does it guarantee further consideration for additional positions.

Pursuant to VHA Directive 1193.01, VHA health care personnel (HCP) are required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 subject to such accommodations as required by law (i.

e., medical, religious or pregnancy). VHA HCPs do not include remote workers who only infrequently enter VHA locations. If selected, you will be required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and submit documentation of proof of vaccination before your start date.

The agency will provide additional information regarding what information or documentation will be needed and how you can request a legally required accommodation from this requirement using the reasonable accommodation process.

If you are unable to apply online or need an alternate method to submit documents, please reach out to the Agency Contact listed in this Job Opportunity Announcement.