National Firefighter Health Branch Chief

U.S. Department of Agriculture; Deutschland; On-site; EUR 107,000 - 151,000; Full time

Job summary

U.S. Department of Agriculture seeks a National Firefighter Health Branch Chief within the Risk Management Program to guide wildland firefighter health and wellness initiatives.

The role requires coordinating with federal agencies and the Interior's Wildland Fire Service to implement comprehensive health programs. Responsibilities include designing and evaluating medical screening, training coordination, and developing national policies to ensure resilience and safety for wildland firefighters

Qualifications

• Plan and coordinate national firefighter studies and analyses to evaluate health and wellness programs.
• Develop measures of program accomplishments, results, and effectiveness.
• Coordinate training and policy development for firefighter health and safety.

Responsibilities

• Plan and coordinate national firefighter studies and analysis of feedback and trends to determine the effectiveness in the implementation of federal health and wellbeing programs.
• Develop new ways to measure program accomplishments, results, and effectiveness.
• Responsible for the effective design and implementation of the Forest Service’s wildland firefighter medical program, encompassing pre-employment medical screening and Medical Qualifications.
• Evaluate the expansion of firefighter health and wellness efforts across the federal agencies, and partner with non-federal entities for comprehensive approaches across the broader wildland fire system.
• Coordinate and evaluate firefighter health training with clinical experts and peers in training management programs to meet the needs of the federal wildland fire programs.
• Organize and supervise work groups and committees responsible for scoping, developing, revising and implementing programs or policies intended to improve the health and resilience of wildland firefighters.

Skills

Plan and coordinate studies

Program analysis

Policy development

Stakeholder collaboration

Job description

Summary

This position is located within the National Office Fire and Safety, Fire and Aviation Management (FAM) organization. The incumbent serves as the National Firefighter Health Branch Chief within the Risk Management Program with a focus on wildland firefighter health and wellness program coordination and leadership, working closely with the Department of the Interior's Wildland Fire Service in the implementation of programs. USDA Employees: Please refer to the Next Steps section.

Major Duties

• Plan and coordinate national firefighter studies and analysis of feedback and trends to determine the effectiveness in the implementation of federal health and wellbeing programs.


• Develop new ways to measure program accomplishments, results, and effectiveness.


• Responsible for the effective design and implementation of the Forest Service’s wildland firefighter medical program, encompassing pre-employment medical screening and Medical Qualifications.


• Evaluate the expansion of firefighter health and wellness efforts across the federal agencies, and partner with non-federal entities for comprehensive approaches across the broader wildland fire system.


• Coordinate and evaluate firefighter health training with clinical experts and peers in training management programs to meet the needs of the federal wildland fire programs.


• Organize and supervise work groups and committees responsible for scoping, developing, revising and implementing programs or policies intended to improve the health and resilience of wildland firefighters.


• Determine priorities for initiatives, programs or capabilities that would serve to increase wildland firefighter support before, during, and after critical incidents.


• Studies and analyzes the wildland firefighter behavioral health program and develops national policy to provide for consistency across the entire fire management program.


• Recommends the preferred course of action for adoption of new and evolving programs or capabilities to reduce trauma and increase resilience.


• Provide consultation and advice on safety management systems; Agency doctrine, policy, principles; standards; and current and proposed legislation and regulation.


• Actively participates in high level conferences, negotiations and meetings concerning integration of the agency interest in behavioral health programs, which includes cancer prevention, physical wellness, medical surveillance, and suicide prevention.

Education

There is no substitution of education for specialized experience for this position.

Requirements

Conditions of Employment: Must be a U.S. Citizen or National. Males born after 12/31/1959 must be Selective Service registered or exempt. Subject to satisfactory adjudication of background investigation and/or fingerprint check. Per Public Law 104-134 all Federal employees are required to have federal payments made by direct deposit to their financial institution. Successfully pass the E-Verify employment verification check. To learn more about E-Verify, including your rights and responsibilities, visit E-Verify.gov. Must be 18 years of age. The U.S. Government utilizes Trusted Workforce 2.0 to implement Continuous Vetting (CV) as a-whole-of government approach to personnel security. If selected for this position, you will be subject to continuous automated record checks of criminal, financial, and public record databases throughout your period of eligibility or employment, replacing traditional periodic reinvestigations. This is a drug testing designated position. You will be subject to pre-employment and random drug testing. Appointment is based on a negative result. This announcement constitutes 30 days advance notice. Secondary Coverage: Prior wildland firefighting experience is required. There may be additional Conditions of Employment not listed here; however, applicants will be notified of any specific requirements at the time a tentative job offer is made. As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary 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.

Evaluations

You will be evaluated based on how well you meet the qualifications listed in this vacancy announcement. 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 (knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics):

• Attention to Detail


• Customer Service


• Decision Making


• Flexibility


• Influencing/Negotiating


• Integrity/Honesty


• Interpersonal Skills


• Learning


• Reading Comprehension


• Reasoning


• Self-Management


• Stress Tolerance


• Teamwork

Overstating your qualifications and/or experience in your application materials or application questionnaire may result in your removal from consideration. Cheating on an assessment may also result in your removal from consideration. To preview the application questionnaire, https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/13107515 Your application will be reviewed to verify that you meet the eligibility and qualification requirements for the position prior to issuing referral lists to the selecting official. If further evaluation or interviews are required, you will be contacted. Log in to your USAJOBS account to check your application status. You must choose to turn on email notifications in your USAJOBS profile if you want to receive important email notifications that may impact your applicant experience (e.g. If you start an application and do not submit it prior to the closing date, USAJOBS will send an email reminder that the closing date is approaching and your application is in an incomplete status). Reasonable Accommodation (RA) Requests: If you believe you have a disability (i.e., physical or mental), covered by the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended that would interfere with completing the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, you will be granted the opportunity to request a RA in your online application. Requests for RA for the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments and appropriate supporting documentation for RA must be received prior to starting the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments. Decisions on requests for RA are made on a case-by-case basis. If you meet the minimum qualifications of the position, after notification of the adjudication of your request, you will receive an email invitation to complete the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, based on your adjudication decision. You must complete all assessments within 48 hours of receiving the URL to access the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments if you received the link after the close of the announcement. To determine if you need a RA, please review the Procedures for Requesting a Reasonable Accommodation for Online Assessments.

What to Expect Next

Employees of the following USDA agencies who apply