Health Science Officer

Summary

The Director of Pain, Opioid Use Research Portfolio position is in the Office of Research and Development . The Pain and Opioid Use program has expanded as a major initiative with an annual investment of over $50M. It has strong support from the Pain Management Opioid Safety, and Prescription Drug Monitoring Program (PMOP) Specialty Care Program Office, Patient Centered Care and Cultural Transformation, and Office of Mental Health and Suicide Prevention and is expected to grow in importance.

Learn more about this agency

Help

Overview

• Accepting applications

• Open & closing dates

06/20/2024 to 07/01/2024

This job will close when we have received 30 applications which may be sooner than the closing date. Learn more

• Salary

$123,041 - $191,900 per year

• Pay scale & grade

GS 15

• Help

Locations

1 vacancy in the following locations:

• Washington, DC

• Location Negotiable After Selection

• Remote job

No

• Telework eligible

Yes-Available (applicant is required on site 50% of work schedule per pay period).

• Travel Required

25% or less - You may be expected to travel for this position.

• Relocation expenses reimbursed

No

• Appointment type

Permanent

• Work schedule

Full-time

• Service

Competitive

• Promotion potential

None

• Job family (Series)

0601 General Health Science

• Supervisory status

No

• Security clearance

Other

• Drug test

No

• Position sensitivity and risk

Non-sensitive (NS)/Low Risk

• Trust determination process

Suitability/Fitness

• Announcement number

CBZY-12448073-24-JA

• Control number

796324000

Help

This job is open to

• Internal to an agency

Current federal employees of this agency.

Clarification from the agency

Open to current VHA Employees Only.

Videos

Help

Duties

• The Health Science Officer (HSO) for Pain and Opioid Use (POU) functions within ORD and is responsible to the Deputy CRADO Investigators, Scientific Review, and Management (ISRM). The incumbent's areas of responsibility include Strategic Plan, Roadmap, Portfolio Management, Portfolio oversight and metrics including developing, analysis, and implementing programs, control, and completion of projects ensuring consistency with strategy, and program evaluation within set objectives and plans.

• The HSO for POU will be responsible for communicating with Program Office and National leaders recommending policies and procedures related to clinical care using scientific findings to establish evidence for clinical application. The incumbent must be able to establish and maintain strategic collaborations with other ORD AMPs, Broad Portfolios, other Federal Agencies, and clinical partners to meet the mission of POU, minimize overlap with other AMPs and Broad Portfolios, and promote Veteran participation in clinical trials.

• A major responsibility will be to expand and implement results from clinical trials nationally to ensure availability of treatments to all Veterans who need care for pain and opioid use disorders. The HSO will also ensure rapid scientific peer review of special emphasis topic areas.

• Serves as a subject matter expert and senior level Program Director in all aspects of VA's Pain and Opioid Use research program. The incumbent must demonstrate knowledge of a broad range of skills including the guidance and management of POU research from preclinical/translational, clinical trials to implementation science. In addition, the incumbent must have an established working relationship with VHA clinical partners in the areas of pain management, specialty care, and opioid use.

• Incumbent is responsible for overseeing all aspects of the program including committing resources, developing and overseeing budgets, gaining compliance with policies and procedures, and resolving complex issues, and extensively interacting across VA/VHA program offices.

• Generates reports by analyzing primary data collected from research results including clinical trials supported by ORD. Interprets data generated from research studies as required in this position requires both subject matter and statistical expertise. Briefs senior leadership and other Agency collaborators on actionable results from studies. Works with senior investigators and statisticians to analyze study data for presentations, reports, and publications in scientific and medical journals. Continuously monitors the national enterprise to ensure execution of clinical trials across multiple sites. Generates reports to congress and the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy. Provides data and pertinent updates to support Discovery, Education and Affiliate Networks (DEAN) activities.

• Oversees analysis of secondary data sources, such as large administrative databases or disparate data sources that may contribute to the goals of POU program and activities across VA.

• Represents the POU AMP on ISRM Leadership Council.

• Represents ORD on interagency pain management and opioid use initiatives

• Provides strategic planning, monitoring, and evaluation. Incumbent primarily designs, oversees, monitors, and evaluates the POU program. This includes overall clinical trial portfolio management and dissemination of scientific findings to the entire community. Incumbent also advises and provides technical guidance to ORD staff.

• Performs other position-related duties as required.

Work Schedule: Required to work Monday through Friday, 8:00 AM-4:30 PM (Compressed/Flexible Schedule: Available)

Telework: Available (applicant is required on site 50% of work schedule per pay period).

Virtual: The employee may work at a VA facility or other VA-leased space other than the facility that is hiring the employee and is authorized for telework up to 50%.

Position Description/PD#: Health Science Officer/PD219760

Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized

Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not Authorized

Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized

PCS Appraised Value Offer (AVO): Not Authorized

Financial Disclosure Report: Not required

Help

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, 07/01/2024.

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-15 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-14. 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 education as described below:

All applicants MUST meet the following Individual Occupational Requirements:

Basic Requirement: You must posses a Bachelor's or graduate/higher level degree: major study in an academic field related to the medical field, health sciences or allied sciences appropriate to the work of the position. This degree must be from an educational program from an accrediting body recognized by the U.S. Department of Education(external link) at the time the degree was obtained. Note: You must submit a transcript with your application. Applicants who do not submit a transcript will be automatically disqualified from consideration.

Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-14 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization.

Examples of Specialized experience incudes:

1.Serves as a subject matter expert and senior level Program Director in all aspects of VA's Pain and Opioid Use (POU) research program, and demonstrate knowledge of Pain and Opioid Use research from preclinical/translational, to clinical trials to implementation science.

2.Provides strategic planning; designs, oversees, monitors, and evaluates the program.

3.Represents the Pain and Opioid Use portfolio on the internal Leadership Council.

4.Interprets data and generates reports for Congress and the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy by analyzing primary data collected from research including clinical trials supported by Office of Research and Development.

5.Establishes and maintains strategic collaborations with other other Federal agencies, and clinical partners.

To be considered Best Qualified, the following experience must be verifiable in your resume/application.

Quality Ranking Factor: Managed research program, and/or conducted scientific review, an/or performed research in the pain and/or opioid use disorder field.

You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position:

• Analytical Reasoning

• Communications

• Grants Management

• Research

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: This includes physical characteristics and abilities e.g., specific agility and dexterity requirements and the physical exertion involved in the work (e.g., climbing, lifting, pushing, balancing, stooping, kneeling, crouching, crawling, or reaching). To some extent the frequency or intensity of physical exertion must also be considered, e.g., a job requiring prolonged standing involves more physical exertion than a job requiring intermittent standing.

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 the GS-15 grade level. However, for the Individual Occupational Requirements a transcript must be submitted with your application.

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.

Special Employment Consideration: VA encourages persons with disabilities to apply, including those eligible for hiring under 5 CFR 213.3102(u), Schedule A, Appointment of persons with disabilities [i.e., intellectual disabilities, severe physical disabilities, or psychiatric disabilities], and/or Disabled veterans with a compensable service-connected disability of 30% or more. Contact the Agency Contact for information on how to apply under this appointment authority via the Selective Placement Coordinator.

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.

This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies.

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.

Read more

• Benefits

Help

A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new window

Learn more about federal benefits.

Review our benefits

Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.

How You Will Be Evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE WILL NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE.

Narrative responses are not required at this time. If you are referred for consideration, you may be asked to submit additional job related information, which may include, but not limited to; responses to the knowledge, skills and abilities; completion of a work sample, and/or contact for an interview. Your resume and/or supporting documentation will be verified. Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect your rating or consideration for employment.

The Department of Veterans Affairs performs pre-employment reference checks as an assessment method used in the hiring process to verify information provided by a candidate (e.g., on resume or during interview or hiring process); gain additional knowledge regarding a candidate's abilities; and assist a hiring manager with making a final selection for a position.

For more information on the "Who may apply" eligibility requirements, please refer to the OHRM Status Candidates and Other Candidate Definitions document.

Placement Policy: The posting of this announcement does not obligate management to fill a vacancy or vacancies by promotion. The position may be filled by reassignment, change to lower grade, transfer, appointment, or reinstatement. Management may use any one or any combination of these methods to fill the position.

It is the policy of the VA to not deny employment to those that have faced financial hardships or periods of unemployment.

Veterans and Transitioning Service Members: Please visit the VA for Vets site for career-search tools for Veterans seeking employment at VA, career development services for our existing Veterans, and coaching and reintegration support for military service members.