Healthcare Engineer

Summary

The position serves as a Healthcare Engineer - Project Engineer at the Sioux Falls - SD Healthcare System. This position performs project planning - produces designs - manages designs - manages construction - and provides construction administration for Minor Construction Projects - Non-Recurring Maintenance (NRM) Projects - Station Level Projects - and Leases.

Qualifications

Basic Requirements:

• United States Citizenship: Non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy
• Education
• 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 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 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
• 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)
• May qualify based on being covered by the Grandfathering Provision as described in the VA Qualification Standard for this occupation (only applicable to current VHA employees who are in this occupation and meet the criteria)
• 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 (GS-11)
• 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
• Preferred Experience: Project Management experience preferred
• Reference: For more information on this qualification standard - please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/
• The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-12
• Physical Requirements: You will be asked to participate in a pre-employment examination or evaluation as part of the pre-employment process for this position
• Questions about physical demands or environmental factors may be addressed at the time of evaluation or examination.
  
  

Duties

• Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional Duties include but are not limited to the following: Performs Healthcare Planning/Design Management: The position determines the requirements for healthcare projects in relation to the needs of the Healthcare System - inclusive of the parent site - as well as off-site locations under the auspice of the Healthcare System - whether VA owned or leased
• Project needs are determined for the organization down to the department level based on a broad array of guidelines - standards - regulatory requirements and mission priorities
• The position provides a broad review of all disciplines of Engineering when applied to a healthcare environment to support construction document reviews and preparation
• A working knowledge of The Joint Commission (TJC) requirements - NFPA 101 the Life Safety Code and NFPA 99 Healthcare Facilities Code - in addition to VA design requirements is necessary to provide direction to Architectural/Engineering firms on complex healthcare designs to ensure compliance and regulatory requirements are met for the medical facility
• Applies a broad knowledge of methods - precedents - and standards to significantly diverse and intense work complexities
• Manages Healthcare Design and Construction Administration The position uses independent seasoned engineering judgment in evaluating and performing scheduling and layout of operations - inspection - and surveillance of materials - methods - and equipment used in construction
• The position is responsible for managing and dealing with constantly changing priorities and deadlines based on engineering workload
• The position is responsible for training the facility maintenance staff on new equipment or complex utility systems to ensure the staff have the comprehensions - qualifications and understanding of the systems to maintain and operate
• Performs Healthcare Construction Management and Post Project Activities The position provides direction and guidance to the contractor for construction within the facility
• Provides approvals on means and methods performance of work and how it is conducted within a medical environment to ensure impacts of the construction does not impact patient care operation or provides a risk to patients or staff
• The position provides training and guidance to the contractor to improve the contractor's ability to work within the medical facility requirements and confinements to better perform the scope of work
• Medical Infrastructure Planning The position assists on the medical center construction projects - space functional changes - and associated planning with respect to medical technologies and medical-related technologies
• The position provides project management for the planning - construction design reviews - construction and equipment installation including - but not limited to: cardiac catheterization laboratories - operating rooms - pharmacy compounding suites - sterile processing facilities - radiology suites - and computer systems
• Regulatory Agencies The position assists in monitoring and reporting on construction and utilities management program that allows the Veterans Health Administration to meet the requirements set by accrediting organizations such as TJC
• The position remains current with standards interpretation - implementation objectives - and regular reporting requirements
• Network Security The position shares responsibility in ensuring that information security issues are managed effectively for engineering databases and building automation systems
• Other duties as assigned Work Schedule: Monday-Friday 8:00 am to 4:30pm Recruitment Incentive (Sign-on Bonus): Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (Relocation Assistance): Not Authorized Pay: Competitive salary and regular salary increases Paid Time Off: 37-50 days of annual paid time offer per year (13-26 days of annual leave - 13 days of sick leave - 11 paid Federal holidays per year) Selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual - based on prior [work experience] or military service experience
• Parental Leave: After 12 months of employment - up to 12 weeks of paid parental leave in connection with the birth - adoption - or foster care placement of a child
• Child Care Subsidy: After 60 days of employment - full time employees with a total family income below $144 -000 may be eligible for a childcare subsidy up to 25% of total eligible childcare costs for eligible children up to the monthly maximum of $416.66
• Retirement: Traditional federal pension (5 years vesting) and federal 401K with up to 5% in contributions by VA Insurance: Federal health/vision/dental/term life/long-term care (many federal insurance programs can be carried into retirement) Telework: Not Authorized Virtual: This is not a virtual position
• Functional Statement #: 000000 Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized