Healthcare Engineer

U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs; Harrison (MT); On-site; USD 80,000 - 110,000; Full time

Job summary

The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Ft Harrison VA Healthcare System seeks a Healthcare Engineer to manage planning, design, construction, and maintenance for Minor Construction, NRMs, Station Level Projects and Leases across the medical center and clinic network.

Responsibilities include developing designs, specifications and cost estimates; coordinating with designers and contractors; ensuring compliance with healthcare standards; and providing expert technical guidance to stakeholders.

Qualifications

• Knowledge of mechanical, electrical, structural, civil and other engineering/architectural principles in healthcare environments.
• Ability to plan and execute complex, multi-faceted projects and inspections.
• Experience with design review and coordination with contractors.

Responsibilities

• Determines requirements, reconnaissance, location, and prepares designs, specifications and estimates.
• Applies broad knowledge of conventional methods and standards; provides professional advice to peers and managers.
• Plans scheduling and layout of operations and inspection of materials, methods, and equipment.
• Coordinates with designers and contractors to implement design changes and ensure quality control.
• Administers payments to contractors and supervises field surveys to verify obligations fulfilled.

Skills

Healthcare engineering knowledge

Project planning

Construction administration

Multi-disciplinary leadership

Education

Bachelor's degree in Engineering or Architecture

Job description

Summary

The position serves as a Healthcare Engineer at the Department of Veterans Affairs Healthcare System - Ft Harrison VA 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, including all areas and aspects at an assigned medical center and associated Community Based Outpatient Clinic.

Qualifications

Applicants pending the completion of educational or certification/licensure requirements may be referred and tentatively selected but may not be hired until all requirements are met.

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.
• English Language Proficiency: Healthcare Engineer candidates must be proficient in spoken and written English in accordance with 38 U.S.C. 7403(f).
• 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, 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, District of Columbia, Guam or Puerto Rico.
• 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 for employment - 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.
• 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: Engineering experience strongly preferred.
• Construction project management experience strongly preferred.
• Design review and drawing knowledge strongly 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 12.
• The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is a 12.

Duties

• Total Rewards of an Allied Health Professional Duties and skills needed to be successful in this position include – but are not limited to: Determines requirements, reconnaissance, location, and prepares designs, specifications and estimates.
• Applies a broad knowledge of the conventional methods, precedents, and standards.
• Provides professional advice to peers, subordinates or non-professional administrators or managers.
• Provides professional advisory services to managers and administrators.
• Performs scheduling and layout of operations and inspection and surveillance of materials, methods, and equipment used in construction.
• Uses originality to develop and modify methods, techniques, and procedures – in discerning new patterns of phenomena – and in correlating and substantiating already developed hypotheses.
• Develops competitive bidding cost estimates for a variety of projects of multiple-use nature – or projects in different geographic locations thus presenting different physical or cultural considerations.
• Provides guidance, development and coordination for the planning, design and oversight of maintenance projects.
• Investigates a variety of problems relating to performance of maintenance requiring modification in the original maintenance design.
• Coordinates with the designer and contractor in making design changes.
• Conducts and/or provides professional advisory services pertaining to the observation, examination, measurement, analysis, mapping and description of physical and cultural features and phenomena.
• Conducts investigations to obtain factual information pertaining to the issue.
• Assures quality control and adequacy of contractor's operations and confers with contractor to obtain corrective action.
• Reviews contractor's progress charts and conducts field surveys to verify fulfillment of obligations.
• Administers payments to the contractor.
• Performs other related duties as assigned.
• Work Schedule: Monday-Friday – 07:30-16:00.
• Recruitment Incentive (Sign-on Bonus): Not Authorized.
• Permanent Change of Station (Relocation Assistance): Not Authorized.
• Pay: Competitive salary and regular salary increases when setting pay – a higher step rate of the appropriate grade may be determined after consideration of higher or unique qualifications or special needs of the VA (Above Minimum Rate of the Grade).
• 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: Ad-Hoc Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
• Functional Statement #: 436-54903-A, 436-54904-A, 436-54905-A, 436-54906-A.
• Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized.