Health System Specialist - Executive Assistant to the Regional Nursing Officer

The Health System Specialist position will serve as the Executive Assistant to the Health Service Area (HSA) Regional Nursing Officer (RNO), providing expert level analysis and program integration, executive decision support, and strategic management across the full scope of the RNO portfolio. This position is a critical extension of the RNO. There are three vacancies, Health Systems Specialist to RNO HSA 3.1, Health Systems Specialist to RNO HSA 3.2, Health Systems Specialist to RNO HSA 3.3.

The Health System Specialist - Executive Assistant to the Regional Nursing Officer position will function as a critical extension of the RNO in executing regional strategic, operational, and programmatic responsibilities and independently manages complex, high-visibility initiatives involving multiple Health Care Systems, Health Service Areas (HSAs), VISN programs, and VHA organizational components/levels.

The duties and responsibilities of this position include but are not limited to:

• Serve as a principal advisor, action officer, and integrator for complex, high-visibility, and sensitive VISN/VHA priorities and region-wide initiatives, operational issues, and cross-facility matters providing coordination and leadership among senior clinical and administrative executives.
• Integrate information and activities across Sterile Processing, Care Coordination, and Utilization management and other assigned RNO priorities.
• Serve as the RNO's principal management/administrative advisor and senior action officer for assigned regional and VISN priorities, independently integrating complex clinical, operational, administrative, and performance matters across the HSA and Health Care Systems.
• Evaluate implementation of VHA policy, enterprise standards, VISN priorities, performance-improvement initiatives, readiness requirements, and executive-directed actions across the assigned portfolio and identifies systemic barriers requiring intervention.
• Design programmatic analytic methodologies and data collection instruments where established methods are inadequate or do not exist, adapting techniques from statistics, operations research, or health services research.
• Represent the facility/HSA/VISN in national workgroups, data governance bodies, or policy development efforts requiring reconciliation of conflicting data sources, program requirements, or stakeholder interests.
• Evaluate the effectiveness of implemented strategies and determine whether additional intervention, modification, escalation, or executive
  action is required.
• Serve as a senior advisor and representative of the RNO in governance forums, executive meetings, workgroups, site visits, portfolio reviews, and other senior-level engagements.
• Represent the RNO, within delegated authority, in interactions with VISN executives, HSA Executives and leadership, Health Care System Directors and executive leaders, VHA Central Office representatives, Operations Center officials, and other internal and external stakeholders.
• Ensure executive governance processes result in clearly defined decisions, accountability, responsible officials, timelines, performance expectations, and escalation of unresolved matters.

Work Schedule: Employees are required to work the regular business hours and applicable core hours of the Health Service Area (HSA) to which they are assigned. Work schedules will be aligned with the time zone(s) served by the assigned HSA and may differ from the employee's local time zone.
Telework: This position may be authorized for ad-hoc telework as determined by agency policy.
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Position Description/PD#: Health System Specialist - Executive Assistant to the Regional Nursing Officer/PD00014VS
Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized
Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 11/03/2026.

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-14 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-13. 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 as described below:

• Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-13 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Qualifying specialized experience is defined as progressively responsible analytical or administrative, or clinical management or supervisory experience in the health care field. This work may have been performed in an operating health care facility or a higher organizational echelon with advisory or directional authority over such facilities. Work must have involved a close working relationship with facility managers and analysis and/or coordination of administrative, clinical, or other service activities, and provided knowledge of the following:

- Missions, organizations, programs, and requirements of health care delivery systems;
- Regulations and standards of various regulatory and credentialing groups; and
- Government-wide, agency, and facility systems and requirements in various administrative areas such as budget, personnel, and procurement.
- Skill in providing authoritative advice on the interpretation and application of state and federal healthcare laws.


Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: manage and prepare written analyses, briefings, and formal reports; independently develop, interpret, and/or significantly modify VISN-level programs, policies, and standardized delivery models; develop and present recommendations to senior executives; develop and review executive correspondence, decision documents, reports, presentations and other products addressing complex clinical, operational, and organizational issues; and provide expert analysis using qualitative and quantitative methods, program evaluation, organizational assessment, process improvement, system redesign, change management, risk assessment.


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/.

There is no educational substitution at this grade level.

• You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job
• To be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process. In addition to the application and questionnaire, this position requires an online assessment. The online assessment measures critical general competencies required to perform the job.
• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959
• Physical Requirements: The work required does not inherently include any physical requirements essential for successful job performance that could not otherwise be performed with accommodation or workplace adjustment. The work is primarily sedentary. Site visits, meetings, briefings, and oversight activities may require walking, standing, bending, and carrying materials for portions of the workday A pre-placement physical examination is not required.
• Subject to background/security investigation
• Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements (https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/form-i-9-acceptable-documents). Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued identification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.
• Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP)

As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary period or 2-year trial period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may consider:

• your performance and conduct;
• the needs and interests of the agency;
• whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and
• whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service.

Upon completion of your probationary period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.