Lead Health System Specialist
This position is assigned to the Credentialing and Privileging section, which is under the Chief of Staff service at the Chicago, IL VA Medical Center and is responsible for providing lead administrative, consulting, technical direction and support to the C&P Specialists, C&P Manager and to program operations. The C&P Lead Specialist is aligned to and supervised by the C&P Manager. Responsibilities include :
Major Duties :
- Serves as the lead C&P specialist providing oversight and input regarding compliance with VHA policies, directives, memos, notices, The Joint Commission (TJC) standards, recommendations by the Office of Inspector General (OIG) and Government Accountability Office (GAO) and other internal or external auditors and reviewers as appropriate.
- Collects relevant data and making informed decisions to ensure qualified health care professionals are providing appropriate care in appropriate settings.
- Assists the Manager with outlining the VAMC C&P Program goals and objectives, identifies risks, ensures training and education, and completes second level reviews as appropriate.
- Serves as a consultant to the C&P Office Specialists, VAMC Leadership and the VISN C&P Officer when the C&P Manager is absent.
- Serves as liaison and partner with Human Resources service programs for issues to include onboarding, provider exit reviews and assessments, privileging actions, and guidance related to clinical performance concerns.
Team Leader Duties :
Serves as lead specialist over a group of C&P Specialists. Assigns, monitors, and reviews the work performed by subordinate team members.Ensures that the organization's mission and vision are communicated to the team and integrated into the team's goals, work plans, and work products.Identifies, distributes, and balances workload and tasks among employees in accordance with established workflow, skill level and / or occupational specialization and adjusting to accomplish the workload in accordance with established priorities to ensure timely accomplishment of assigned team tasks.Provides advice on work methods, practices, and procedures, and assists the team and / or individual members in identifying the parameters of a viable solution.Quality Assurance :
Assists with developing, coordinating, and recommending changes for the improvement of workflow in the program or section area.Performs reporting and data monitoring in the following areas : initial and ongoing credentialers' training and education, Our Providers' database certifications, VetPro quarterly reports, telehealth provider tracking system, weekly C&P report cards, VetPro Security and Privacy compliance.Conducts and oversees internal controls and audits; provider time-limited credentials; provider C&P privileging folders.Consulting :
Serves as a consultant and provides guidance to VAMC leadership and C&P Office Specialists.Analyze program audit results; interpret facility quarterly report card data; review draft facility Medical Staff Bylaws updates and revisions; interpret and explain new regulatory requirements and VHA requirements, procedures and processes and contribute to implementation of C&P policies and SOPs.Work Schedule : Monday through Friday, 8 : 00 AM to 4 : 30 PM. Telework : Not Available Virtual : This is not a virtual position.
Position Description / PD# : Lead Health System Specialist / PD99418S
Relocation / Recruitment Incentives : Not Authorized
Critical Skills Incentive (CSI) : Not Approved
Permanent Change of Station (PCS) : Not Authorized
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.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.Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP).As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary period or 2-year trial period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest.Qualifications :
To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 11 / 07 / 2025. 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.
Basic - Individual Occupational Requirement : Education GS-5 and GS-6 grade levels : 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 - Positions above GS-5 : 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 areas such as budget, personnel, and procurement.
You may qualify based on your experience and / or education for the GS-11 grade level as described below :
Specialized Experience : You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-09 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; extensive experience and skill in applying pertinent laws, regulations, policies and precedents, accreditation standards and guidelines related to a C&P program; extensive knowledge of medical specialties, medical terminology; skill in applying analytical and evaluative methods and techniques to issues or studies concerning the effectiveness of a C&P operation; skill in using software applications such as word processing and data bases and internet database applications for data entry, maintenance and data retrieval and analysis; and ability to communicate in writing to prepare emails, letters, reports and committee minutes.OR, Education : Successfully completed a Ph.D., equivalent doctoral degree, three (3) full years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to such a degree, Or LL.M in the related field of the position to be filled (i.e., hospital administration, public health administration, or related fields such as business or public administration with course work in health care administration). The education portion must include courses that demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work of this position.OR, Combination : Combinations of successfully completed graduate level education (beyond a master's degree) and specialized experience as described above to meet total experience requirements. The education portion must include graduate courses that demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work of this position.Preferred Experience : Knowledge of Medical Staff functions and VHA regulations regarding staffing credentialing.
You will be rated on the following competencies for this position :
ComplianceCritical ThinkingLeadershipQuality AssuranceExperience 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; religious; 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.
