Clarification from the agency

This announcement is open to all US Citizens. Current permanent Department of Veterans Affairs employees, other current Federal employees of other agencies and Health Professional Trainees please apply on announcement number: CBSU-12700130-25-AS **This is an open continuous announcement. The first set of qualified applicants will be taken on 3/06/2025, then every 2 weeks after the initial date until vacancy has been filled.**

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The incumbent at this level has full supervisory responsibility for a staff of non-supervisory personnel and performs a broad range of highly complex testing and procedures for the pathological diagnosis of various disease conditions from cellular samples of the human body, including rendering independent diagnosis on a subgroup of gynecologic specimens, and assisting in adequacy assessment of fine needle aspiration (FNA) biopsy specimens obtained from procedures performed in Interventional Radiology, Gastroenterology, Pulmonology, Endocrinology and others.The incumbent at this level has full supervisory responsibility for a staff of nonsupervisory personnel of Cytotechnologists, Histopathology Technicians, and Histopathology TechniciansMajor Duties and Responsibilities:

• Understanding of federal and state laws and regulations, laboratory accrediting and regulatory requirements sufficient to develop section plans and procedures consistent with requirements.
• Understanding of quality management principles sufficient to establish and monitor a laboratory quality management program, and/or education and training of laboratory staff.
• Experience in interpersonal relations and conflict resolution to deal with employees, team leaders, and managers.
• Performs the full range of supervisory duties and skill in supervising a group of individuals.
• Planning, organizing, set priorities, work as a team member, and effectively complete assignments.
• Understanding of specimen requirements for tests performed in-house and referred to reference laboratories.
• Setting short and/or long-term goals for the section and conduct studies on technical and administrative problems, including personnel shortages, organizational structure, new technology, etc.
• Plans and schedules on-going work. Adjusts staffing levels or work procedures.
• Writes and maintains Standard Operating Procedures to ensure all aspects of work functions are covered.
• Develops and maintains competency on all staff.
• Performs validations as required on new instrumentation for acceptability.
• Ensures compliance with OSHA and all other safety regulations and requirements.
• Ensures that adequate supplies are available to perform required testing.
• Ensures that maintenance is current and that all instrumentation is in working order or that work orders have been submitted to the appropriate service.
• Develops Statements of Work for all instrumentation and contracts under the Anatomic Pathology Division.
• Chooses methods for achieving work goals, objectives, and management strategies.
• Day-to-day supervision of highly complex test performance.
• Provides supervisory oversight and performs administrative reviews as required.
• Is responsible for monitoring test analyses and specimen examinations to ensure acceptable levels of performance.
• Assures corrective action is initiated when test performance deviates from established performance specifications.
• Assures orientation, training, competency, and appraisal assessment of staff.
• Implements and monitors quality management activities.
• Performs the full range of supervisory duties. Recommends appointment, plans and assigns work, gives advice and counsel, and evaluates work of subordinates.
• Develops and updates technical policy and procedure manuals.
• Ensures all staff are compliant with accrediting and regulating bodies, developing, and implementing the requirements for the Anatomic Pathology Quality Assurance Program
• Adjusts staffing levels or work procedures to accommodate resource allocation decisions made at the executive level
• Other required duties as assigned.

Conditions of employment

• You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job.
• All applicants tentatively selected for VA employment in a testing designated position are subject to urinalysis to screen for illegal drug use prior to appointment. Applicants who refuse to be tested will be denied employment with VA.
• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959.
• Must be proficient in written and spoken English.
• You may be required to serve a probationary period.
• Subject to background/security investigation.
• Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process.
• Must pass pre-employment physical examination / evaluation.
• Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP).

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.
• Education: Individuals must have successfully completed a baccalaureate degree from a regionally accredited college/university and successfully completed a Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs accredited cytotechnology program.
  • Foreign Education: To be creditable, education completed outside the U.S. must have been submitted to a private organization approved by the American Society for Clinical Pathology (ASCP) that specializes in the interpretation of foreign educational credentials and such education must have been deemed at least equivalent to that gained in conventional U.S. programs.
• Certification: Candidates must currently possess the Cytotechnologist (CT) (ASCP) or Specialist in Cytotechnology (SCT) (ASCP) certification given by the ASCP Board of Certification.
  • Loss of Certification. An employee who fails to maintain the required certification must be removed from the occupation, which may also result in termination of employment.
• English Language Proficiency: Cytotechnologists must be proficient in spoken and written English. See 38 U.S.C. § 7403(f).

• Experience: At this level, the candidate must have one year of creditable experience equivalent to the GS-11 grade level that is directly related to the position to be filled.

• Demonstrated leadership and managerial skills, including interpersonal relations and conflict resolution to effectively interact with employees, team leaders, and managers.
• Ability to plan, organize, set short and/or long term goals, and conduct studies on technical and administrative problems, including personnel shortages, organizational structure, and new technology.
• Skill in communicating management goals with individuals to obtain the desired effect, while ensuring compliance with established policies and regulations.
• Ability to perform the full range of supervisory duties, which includes responsibility for assignment of work, performance evaluations, maintenance of staff competencies, selection of staff, recommendation of awards, advancements, and disciplinary actions, as appropriate.
• Knowledge of federal and state laws, regulations, and accrediting/regulatory requirements to develop plans and procedures for the laboratory.
• Knowledge of laboratory quality management procedures and principles sufficient to establish and monitor a laboratory quality management program and/or education and training of laboratory staff, including annual CLIA proficiency testing.
• Ability to rescreen previously screened negative cases, including those designated as "high risk" cases, before the diagnostic interpretation is released from the cytopathology laboratory.

How you will be evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

Area of Consideration - Eligible applications will be reviewed and referred in the following order:
1. Current permanent VA employees of the facility.
2. All other VA employees.
3. Current permanent Federal employees of other agencies

IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE MAY NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. Your application, resume, C.V., and/or supporting documentation will be verified. Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect consideration for employment.

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.

The Department of Veterans Affairs performs pre-employment reference checks as an assessment method used in the hiring process to verify information provided by a candidate (e.g., on resume or during interview or hiring process); gain additional knowledge regarding a candidate's abilities; and assist a hiring manager with making a final selection for a position.

It is the policy of the VA to not deny employment to those that have faced financial hardships or periods of unemployment.

Veterans and Transitioning Service Members: Please visit the VA for Vets site for career-search tools for Veterans seeking employment at VA, career development services for our existing Veterans, and coaching and reintegration support for military service members.