Summary

The Program Analyst position is located within the VA Palo Alto Health Care System, Palo Alto, CA. The primary function of the position is providing administrative support to Chief of Surgical Service through data collection, analysis, reporting, project management, workforce management and quality improvement activities.

Duties

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Work Schedule: 8:00am to 4:30pm, Monday-Friday

Compressed/Flexible: Not Available

Telework: Not Available

Virtual: This is not a virtual position

Position Description/PD#:Program Analyst/PD03085-A

Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not authorized

Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not approved

Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not authorized

Major duties and responsibilities include but are not limited to:

• Reviews materials with regards to compliance with standards of external bodies and accrediting agencies
• Analyzes data, identifies trends and communicates concerns or issues
• Communicates with various groups, services and teams to gather information, discuss recommendations and coordinate improvement activities
• Shares knowledge of data coding and analysis techniques with other staff as needed.
• Participates in ongoing decisions regarding design, data collection, data analysis, and methodology.
• Recommends and establishes possible new contracts based on data analysis gathered and identified needs, ensuring available funding and appropriate use of government resources.
• Creates and implements objective measures to monitor contract quality and/or performance, incorporating data usage as appropriate.
• Provides advice to the Administrator Officer (AO) and Chief of Surgical Service and staff on contracting and procurement policies and issues.
• Meets or interacts by phone with representatives of institutions which may want to receive services from Surgical Service on contract.
• Conducts and coordinates inter- and intra- service studies, audits, and analyses or organization, functional relationships, and internal procedures.
• Serves as point of contact for the many requests for information from within the health care system, patients and patient families, other medical centers, universities, individuals, and organizations.
• Responds to requests for information from other Health Care System and/or private units, community hospitals, committees, or other agencies regarding patients and workload.
• Provides support for compliance, process improvement and training activities; and
• Performs other related duties as assigned.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

Conditions of employment

• 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. 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 dentification 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.

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 07/06/2026.

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-11 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-9. 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 and/or education as described below.

To qualify for this position at the GS-11 level, you must meet one of the following:

Specialized Experience: You must have at least one (1) full year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade level (GS-9) in the Federal Service, that is directly related to the work of the position and has equipped you with the particular knowledge, skills and abilities to successfully perform the duties as a Program Analyst- Clinic Profile Manager. Qualifying specialized experience is: working on multiple systems redesign efforts to streamline various processes in the OR. Organizes and develops an OR utilization modeler to optimize OR block schedule and services assigned time as well as benchmark surgical case times against national averages for case time data. Coordinates and monitors outcome data for process improvements projects, ensuring data-driven results from the projects and providing recommendations for adjustments as needed. Participates in ongoing decisions regarding design, data collection, data analysis, and methodology. Analyzes data with statistical methods, interprets results, and provides written summaries of data analysis .Interprets variables from orginal data and completes statistical analyses as needed. Recommend and establishes possible new contracts based on data analysis gathered and identified needs, ensuring available funding and appropriate us of government resources.

OR

Education: successfully completed a Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree, or 3 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree, or an LL.M. if related that demonstrates the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work of this position. NOTE: Transcripts must be submitted with application. Education cannot be credited without documentation.

OR

Combination: Combination of successfully completed education and specialized experience directly related to the work of the position as outlined above that meets the requirements of the position. Only education in excess of a master's or equivalent graduate education may be used to qualify applicants for the GS-11 level. NOTE: If using education combined with specialized experience to qualify, a copy of your transcript is required.

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/.

Education

A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education.

Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/. If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/.

Additional information

This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies.

Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.

Benefits

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A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.