at Veterans Affairs, Veterans Health Administration in Danville, Illinois, United States
Job Description
Summary The Environmental Care Specialist conducts studies involving budgeting, staffing, room inspection, and environment of care trends for Environmental Management Service (EMS). This position supports EMS in Safety, Hazardous Materials, Equipment Management, and specific Environment of Care round checklists. Also ensures training programs are in place for EMS employees. The Environmental Care Specialist develops and presents Root Cause Analysis (RCA) reports for any and all issues faced in EMS. Responsibilities Develop and presenting Root Cause Analysis (RCA) reports for any and all issues faced in EMS. Perform investigative analysis of the issues presented. Under the Assistant Chief of EMS, the Environmental Care Specialist establishes reporting requirements and assumes follow up responsibility for organizing budget report data monthly for EMS. Analyze cost and utilization trend data to identify problem areas, provides objective assessments, prioritizes identified problems, and recommends appropriate actions or alternatives regarding programmatic improvements. Develop reports for the Assistant Chief of EMS to keep official records, with detailed explanations of the program, results of monthly housekeeping inspections, results of infection control audits, issues related to pest control, and waste reporting within the facility. Monitoring a full training program for all positions in EMS; Housekeeping Aids, Laundry Workers, Motor Vehicle Operators, a Seamstress, and a Supply Clerk. Work with EMS supervisors to ensure mandatory training is being completely Work to improve the certified health care environmental services technician (CHEST), training program, with the goal to get all housekeeping aids certified in the department as well as new employees. Work closely with quality management, safety, and other services to conduct tracer rounds throughout the facility and CBOCS. Participate in the presentations for Budget Hearing and Management Updates, conducting extensive data collection and analysis. Represent the Chief and Assistant Chief, EMS on matters pertaining to data collection, analytical assistance, project coordination, and program support through direct interaction with all Service Chiefs and the Top Management Team, as requested. Work Schedule: Monday-Friday 9am to 5:30pm Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Position Description/PD#: Environmental Care Specialist/PD222150 Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not authorized Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not Approved Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Not required Requirements Conditions of Employment You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job 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, 07/29/2024. 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-09 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-07. 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 GS-9: I possess at least one (1) year of specialized experience in or related to the Environmental Care Specialist position that equipped you with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform the duties of this position successfully. To be creditable, this specialized experience must have been equivalent to at least the GS-7 grade level in Federal service. For this position, specialized experience consists of: Working with pertinent laws, policies and regulations including Joint Commission regulations, knowledge of facility wide services provided sufficient to recognize the impact EMS has on patient care abilities. Working with concepts, theories, techniques, principles, and practices of government and cost accounting, including auditing, budgeting and analysis of financial statements. Working with computer applications for service-related functions, learn new applications quickly, and be able to teach others with the benefit of limited documentation. Monitoring a training program including ensuring on the job training is being conducted, equipment training, and that training documents are being documented appropriate. OR, Education: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have successfully completed two (2) years of progressively higher-level graduate education or master’s or equivalent graduate degree or LL.B. or J.D., in a related field of the position to be filled. (Transcript Required). 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 graduate level education (above one year) and specialized experience as described above, which meet the total experience requirements for this grade level. (Transcript Required) You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position: Analysis and Problem Solving Analytical Reasoning Communication Financial Management Project Management 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: The work is primarily sedentary, but does require some walking, bending, stooping, standing, stretching, and carrying moderately heavy items such as but not limited to: manuals, documents, office supplies, and/or data file reports. Work also involves spending a significant amount of time performing keyboard data entry and prolonged periods of data review via computer monitor. Concentration and sustained performance under prolonged stress may be required due to time factors involved in completion of work assignments within specified deadlines. For more