Program Support Assistant

Summary

This position serves as the Tissue Coordinator for Operative Care division (OCD) for Portland VA Health Care System (VAPORHCS). Primary duty-station is Portland - but area of oversight includes Vancouver and Salem CBOC as well. Is responsible for the overall coordination and oversight of tissue inventory - stocking - ordering - quality assurance - regulatory compliance and overall operation of the OCD tissue implant monitoring program.

Qualifications

To qualify for this position - applicants must meet all requirements within 30 days of the closing date of this announcement - 04/21/2026. You may qualify based on your experience as described below: GS-7 Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-6 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include - but are not limited to: Proficient in oral and written communication. Experienced with policies and procedures related to tissue ordering and tracking - including gathering and documenting information in medical records. Expert in written and oral medical terminology - with the ability to effectively communicate with clinicians and transplant staff on issues affecting patient care. Skilled in responding to providers by phone or in person - regarding policies and procedures related to tissue referral and follow-up. Accurate in spelling - grammar - correspondence arrangement - and formatting. Experienced in applying analytical and evaluative methods to assess the efficiency and effectiveness of program operations. NOTE: 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. Your qualifications will be evaluated based on your application materials (e.g. - resume - supporting documents) - your responses on the application questionnaire - and your responses to all assessments required for this position. You will be assessed on the following Competencies for this position: Accountability Attention to Detail Customer Service Decision Making Flexibility Integrity/Honesty Interpersonal Skills Learning Reading Comprehension Reasoning Self-Management Stress Tolerance Teamwork 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. 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/.

Duties

• Major duties include but are not limited to: Inventory Program Administration The incumbent is recognized as an authority and subject matter expert to the tissue program within OCD
• Acts as a central point of contact for the coordination of commodity support related to tissue
• Develops and maintains Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs)
• The incumbent is also responsible for considerable analysis - database creation - reporting - tracking - monitoring - documentation of monitoring - regulation compliance and training related to tissue
• Analyzes data to include demand history - program requirements - procurement lead-time - current stock levels and other factors which impact tissue management decisions
• Advanced planning requires significant interaction and coordination with service lines and other stakeholders to balance competing priorities - including clinical requirements
• Performs analytical work to manage - regulate - coordinate - or otherwise exercise control over the tissue program
• The incumbent conducts data analysis for acquisition planning associated with tissue
• Quality Improvement Programs The incumbent must possess a thorough working knowledge of the regulations - policies - procedures and guidelines governing the tissue program
• The level of knowledge must be enough to allow the incumbent to analyze inventory usage - control the level and flow of supplies - and provide recommendations
• Incumbent provides quality assurance monitoring for the tissue process ensuring that proper procedures are followed and that items are safe for use - delivered on time at the proper place and in a condition to be properly used for VA patient care
• Performs work related to developing processes and procedures for monitoring tissue expiration and recall - analyzing effectiveness by comparison of goals and results in terms of program compliance
• Incumbent is responsible for recall processing including - identifying location of recalled tissue - identity of patients affected
• Establishes and maintains production statistics - which depict information on progress and/or evaluation of inventories
• He/she maintains quality control and quality assurance activities of the Tissue Program
• Ensures inventory of tissue cited on the custodial balance file are kept current and reflect the actual physical posture of the stock
• Training-Education The incumbent has the responsibility of maintaining a current knowledge to answer questions for employees on procedures - policies and directives and to obtain needed information on decisions from management on major problems and issues that arise
• The incumbent is responsible for reporting to his/her supervisor on performance - progress of work and training needs of employees and on any issues related to the tissue program
• Performs Program Planning Work Performs administrative work - which includes management of an office's schedule or day-to-day plans
• Develops new plans or schedules using standard references
• Identifies objectives based on understanding of program and overall priorities
• Determines specific steps - input required - and/or meetings
• Identifies schedule and milestones
• and estimates resources required
• The incumbent sets administrative and policy direction for tissue through discussion of programs goals with the MSA Supervisor
• The incumbent must have knowledge of analytical processes and deductive reasoning to conduct problem and trend identification and resolution
• Works with Operating Room Management and VISN 20 Contracting to identify items appropriate for consignment
• Prepares and submits documents for consignment consideration
• Computes and analyses material requirements for special
• programs such as procurement - planning and initiating actions to meet the materiel requirements of using activities
• Work Schedule: Monday - Friday
• 5:30am - 3:00pm - tour varies per the needs of the service.(PST) Telework: This is not a Telework position
• Virtual: This is not a virtual position
• Position Description/PD#: Program Support Assistant/PD215250 Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not Approved Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Approved