Qualifications

Basic Requirements:

• To qualify for appointment to this position, all applicants must possess the following: Citizenship - Be a citizen of the United States (U.S.)
• Non-citizens may be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with 38 U.S.C. 7407(a)
• Education - (1) Bachelor's degree or higher in Engineering or Architecture
• To be acceptable, the curriculum must be from a school with at least one curriculum accredited by the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology, Engineering Accreditation Commission (excludes engineering technology) or National Council of Architectural Registration Boards curriculum
• Examples of acceptable engineering and architectural degrees include, but are not limited to: Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Biomedical Engineering, Civil Engineering, Architecture and Architectural Engineering
• Titles may vary from educational institutions and change over time
• OR (2) Evidence of passing the Fundamentals of Engineering Examination with a bachelor's degree
• Evidence can be in the form of an Engineering in Training certificate issued from any State, the District of Columbia, Guam or Puerto Rico, or test results from the National Council of Examiners for Engineering and Surveying (NCEES) identifying a passing score
• OR (3) Evidence of current professional registration or licensure as a Professional Engineer or Architect
• Evidence of current professional registration or licensure can be from any State, the District of Columbia, Guam or Puerto Rico
• Grandfathering Provision - All individuals employed in VHA in this occupational series or in another occupational series performing the duties as described in the qualification standard on the effective date of this qualification standard, are considered to have met all the qualification requirements for the grade held including positive education that is part of the basic requirements of the occupation
• For employees who do not meet all the basic requirements of this standard, but met the qualifications applicable to the position at the time they were appointed to the position, provisions apply
• Foreign Education
• To be creditable, engineering, architecture or related education completed outside the U.S. must be submitted to a private organization that specializes in the interpretation of foreign educational credentials and such education must have been deemed at least equivalent to a Bachelor's degree as outlined in paragraph 3.b
• of this appendix
• Physical Requirements - See VA Directive and Handbook 5019, Employee Occupational Health Service for requirements
• English Language Proficiency - Healthcare Engineer candidates must be proficient in spoken and written English in accordance with 38 U.S.C. 7403(f)
• Creditable Experience - To be creditable, the experience must have been accomplished after satisfying the basic education requirement as outlined in paragraph 3.b
• of this appendix, required the use of knowledge, skills and abilities (KSAs) directly applicable to the assignment and be associated within the scope of the healthcare engineering profession
• Quality of Experience - Qualifying experience must be at a level comparable to healthcare engineering experience at the next lower grade level of the position being filled
• For all assignments above the full performance level, the higher-level duties must consist of significant scope, administrative independence, complexity and range of variety as described in this standard at the specified grade level and be performed by the incumbent at least 25% of the time
• GRADE DETERMINATIONS - In addition to the basic requirements outlined in paragraph 3, the following criteria must be met when determining the grade of candidates
• Healthcare Engineer, GS-12
• Experience - One year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade
• Knowledge, Skills and Abilities (KSAs) - In addition to meeting the experience requirements for this grade level, the candidate must fully demonstrate the following KSAs: Knowledge of mechanical, electrical, structural, civil and other engineering/architectural principles, practices and their applications in the healthcare environment
• Knowledge of healthcare industry standards and related regulatory agency and organization (including, but not limited to The Joint Commission (TJC), Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), National Fire Protection Agency (NFPA), etc.) regulations, requirements, guides, policies, procedures, directives, standards and general medical program requirements as they relate to healthcare engineering
• Knowledge of construction standards, methods, practices and techniques, materials and equipment to determine compliance with engineering regulations and standards
• Skill in researching and analyzing information, conditions, human factors and projections to make sound engineering and business recommendations and decisions to proactively identify problems and develop innovative solutions within the context of applicable rules, regulations and procedures
• Ability to plan and execute complex, multi-faceted projects and inspections while prioritizing resources against approved scopes of work, contract documents and budgets
• Ability to organize and lead multi-disciplinary task forces with members from different departments and divisions, as well as design and construction firms
• Assignment - Employees at this level serve as Healthcare Engineers at the full performance level
• They work independently, under general supervision with wide latitude to exercise independent judgment
• Healthcare Engineers demonstrate intimate grasp of high order healthcare engineering and capital subject matter
• They serve as institutional resources for healthcare delivery processes and systems, working extensively with clinical stakeholders, acquisition staff, contractors and executive leadership by leading healthcare engineering programs, technology assessments, integration planning and implementation of both current and emerging technologies
• Healthcare Engineers support the delivery of healthcare to Veterans by contributing to the education of clinical staff, planners and leadership to ensure safe and efficient healthcare delivery
• Healthcare Engineers plan, execute and document highly complex, multi-faceted healthcare facility construction projects and inspections while prioritizing resources against approved scopes of work, contract documents and budgets
• They identify problems and develop innovative solutions within the context of applicable rules, regulations and procedures, as it relates to the healthcare environment
• Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/
• The full performance level of this vacancy is 12
• The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is in the range of GS12 .