Health System Specialist (Associate Group Practice Manager)

Summary

This position is located at one of the two main campuses and associate Community Based Outpatient Clinics (CBOCs) at the VA Northern Indiana Health Care System (VANIHCS). This position reports to the Ambulatory Care Operations Director (ACOD)/Group Practice Manager (GPM). The primary purpose of the Associate Group Practice Manager (AGPM) is to aid and support the ACOD/GPM and to all ambulatory care services in the facility and related CBOCs as it relates to access to care, as applicable.

Duties

Major Duties include but not limited to: Provides access related consultative services, working in collaboration with facility Service Lines, to review and develop guidance and policies that will facilitate standardized processes within the facility and applicable CBOCs, etc. Review and provide input on regulations and policies for local interpretation, utilizing local group practice management and communication strategies. Works as part of an inhouse team to ensure a wide range of local factors are considered in the application of national policies and procedures. Reviews and evaluates assigned processes and procedures to determine areas of effectiveness, efficiency, and improvement for proposal through local GPM group and supervisor. Reports to supervisor and access leadership in the facility, as assigned. Promotes established system-wide training plans to optimize local use. Supports the local clinic management system based on national requirements. Proposes improvements to supervisor regarding national training curriculum for onboarding and sustainment activities. Maintains knowledge of CPM training materials and supports fulfillment of action plans to meet CPM training requirements. Participates and serves as an active member on the Access, Clinical Use and Excellence Committee; the Scheduling Optimization and Clinical Capacity Committee; the Revenue Enhancement Committee; and other assigned committees. Contributes to initiatives focused on improving patient access, enhancing productivity, and reducing wait times for Veterans. Incumbent utilizes advanced principles and strategies for access improvement to review and provide recommendations to Clinical Leads (CLs), including identifying strategies to reduce backlog. Monitors existing or emerging workflow issues; monitors consult management issues and provide guidance to CLs and Administrative Leads (ALs) when required. Monitors Information Technology (IT) usage and issues and provide information or assistance to CLs as needed. Collects and analyzes/reports trended data sets; makes recommendations to assist in the allocation of resources. Assists clinic managers in identifying causal interrelationships between the various aspects of ambulatory care and its impact on clinical operations to achieve and sustain quality, safe, efficient, and effective ambulatory care. Works independently with personnel at the facility, CBOCs, etc., to implement local, national and VISN standards, and reports or addresses administrative process/system issues and other areas of concern. Works with Veteran Experience Officers within the local facility to evaluate patient and family concerns regarding the access to services needed. Aligns efforts with national and local requirements. Provides administrative program advice for ambulatory care clinical support services. This may include interpreting policies, making recommendations for local policies, assisting managers in defining administrative requirements, and/or providing advice to higher level leadership on related issues. Implements established action plans that will enable clinical grids to accurately reflect supply. Monitors profile indicators to help eliminate issues with backlogs (including Recall Delinquency, Past Due Return To Clinic Orders, and Open Consults), Missed Opportunity Rates, Wait Times or Community Care options. Ensures accuracy of related services FTEE, person class assignments, labor mapping and bookability. Assists clinic managers in forecasting the impact of staff changes and developing countermeasures to mitigate the effect of staff shortages on access to care. Works closely with clinic managers to formulate budget recommendations for all outpatient clinical services to allocate all available resources to achieve optimal outcomes in access to care and the Veteran Experience. Acts as a liaison or point person for communications with persons and/or groups internal or external to the facility, representing Group Practice Management on clinical access issues. Establishes and maintain good relations with various groups and organizations, including other medical centers, medical societies, medical schools, colleges and universities, accrediting agencies, public health officials and organizations, volunteer work groups, and the community at large. Performs other duties as assigned. Work Schedule: 8:00 am - 4:30 pm, Monday - Friday Position Description Title/PD#: Health System Specialist (Associate Group Practice Manager)/PD93123A Physical Requirements: Performance of the incumbent's duties may require extensive walking per day to meet with the facility managers and other clinic personnel. Trips to satellite outpatient clinics are sometimes necessary and will involve transportation via automotive vehicle. The work performed is of a precise nature requiring long periods of concentration that is often interrupted. Incumbent is often faced with changing priorities and with meeting deadlines.

Requirements

You must be a U.S. citizen to apply for this job Subject to a background/suitability investigation Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959 A complete application package; Resume, Transcripts, etc. is required 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. Upon completion of your probationary period (OR INSERT "trial period"), your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest. As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary period (OR INSERT "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 or trial period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.

Qualifications and evaluation

IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE WILL NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. Applicants will be referred in the order in which they were received.

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.

How to apply

All applicants are encouraged to apply online. To apply for this position, you must complete the occupational questionnaire and submit the documentation specified in the Required Documents section. The complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (EST) on 11/10/2026 to receive consideration. To preview the questionnaire click https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/13108112. 1. To begin, click Apply Online to create a USAJOBS account or log in to your existing account. Follow the prompts to select your USAJOBS resume and/or other supporting documents and complete the occupational questionnaire. 2. Click Submit My Answers to submit your application package. Beginning September 27, 2025, Federal agencies will only accept resumes up to two pages in length to comply with the Merit Hiring Plan. Resumes longer than two pages will result in ineligibility for further consideration for the position. USAJOBS will not allow you to upload or build resumes longer than two pages, and you will need to update the resumes in your profile before applying for a job. Resumes should include information relevant to the knowledge, skills, abilities, and competencies of the position to which you are applying. VA is unable to make assumptions about qualifications if not clearly listed. Resumes must be legible so they can be reviewed for eligibility, minimum qualifications and other position requirements listed in the job announcement. Your resume must be 5MB or less. We recommend saving and uploading your resume as a PDF to maintain formatting and number of pages. We also accept GIF, JPG, JPEG, PNG, RTF, TXT, PDF, ODT or Word (DOC or DOCX). We do not accept PDF portfolio files. We recommend using a sans-serif font size like Lato, if available. Other widely available options are Calibri, Helvetica, Arial, Verdana, Open San Source Sans Pro, Roboto or Noro Sans. Make your page margins 0.5 inches. Consider using 14-point size font for titles and 10-point for the main text in your resume. The resume builder can help you create a resume using these recommendations and uses the information in your USAJOBS profile to help you get started. Helpful Hints for Creating a Two-Page Resume: Prioritize most relevant and recent experience Use concise, results focused language Align language from the job announcement Focus on demonstrating skills and competencies Remove outdated or unrelated experience Use the USAJOBS resume builder Additional guidance on this new requirement and resume building tools can be found at: https://help.usajobs.gov/faq/application/documents/resume/page-limit https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/hiring-information/merit-hiring-plan-resources/applicant-guidance-on-the-two-page-resume-limit/

Required documents

Documents Accepted: Cover Letter DD-214/ Statement of Service Disability Letter (Schedule A) Disability Letter (VA) License OF-306 Other (1) Other (2) Other (3) Performance Appraisal Professional Certification Resume Separation Notice (RIF) SF-15 SF-50/ Notification of Personnel Action Transcript Documents Required: Resume Please review the above list(s) to ensure you have included all necessary documents required for your application.Not every applicant will require the same documents, therefore it is the applicants responsibility to ensure that their application package includes all necessary documents to determine qualifications and eligibility for appointment, such as a copy of your SF-50, transcript, ICTAP/CTAP documentation (for displaced Federal employees).You will not be contacted for additional information. Applicants will be deemed ineligible if supporting documentation is not submitted. Veterans' Preference: Since the Direct-Hire Recruitment Authority is being used, traditional Veterans' Preference rules do not apply. Qualified veterans will, however, be given full consideration for this position. Applications are accepted online. Applying online will allow you to review and track the status of your application.

Additional information

Under the Fair Chance to Compete Act, the Department of Veterans Affairs prohibits requesting an applicant's criminal history prior to accepting a tentative job offer. For more information about the Act and the complaint process, visit Human Resources and Administration/Operations, Security, and Preparedness (HRA/OSP) at The Fair Chance Act. Participation in the seasonal influenza program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP). It is a requirement that all HCP to receive annual seasonal influenza vaccination or obtain an exemption for medical or religious reasons. Wearing a face mask is required when an exemption to the influenza vaccination has been granted. HCP in violation of this directive may face disciplinary action up to and including removal from federal service. HCP are individuals who, during the influenza season, work in VHA locations or who come into contact with VA patients or other HCP as part of their duties. VHA locations include, but are not limited to, VA hospitals and associated clinics, community living centers (CLCs), community-based outpatient clinics (CBOCs), domiciliary units, Vet centers and VA-leased medical facilities. HCP include all VA licensed and unlicensed, clinical and administrative, remote and onsite, paid and without compensation, full- and part-time employees, intermittent employees, fee basis employees, VA contractors, researchers, volunteers and health professions trainees (HPTs) who are expected to perform any or all of their work at these facilities. HPTs may be paid or unpaid and include residents, interns, fellows and students. HCP also includes VHA personnel providing home-based care to Veterans and drivers and other personnel whose duties put them in contact with patients outside VA medical facilities. The Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP) and Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) provide eligible displaced VA competitive service employees with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies. To be well-qualified, applicants must possess experience that exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors if applicable, and must be proficient in most of the requirements of the job. Information about ICTAP and CTAP eligibility is on OPM's Career Transition Resources website which can be found at https://www.opm.gov/. Receiving Service Credit for Earning Annual (Vacation) Leave: Federal Employees earn annual leave at a rate (4, 6 or 8 hours per pay period) which is based on the number of years they have served as a Federal employee. VA may offer newly-appointed Federal employee's credit for their job-related non-federal experience or active duty uniformed military service. This credited service can be used in determining the rate at which they earn annual leave. Such credit must be requested and approved prior to the appointment date and is not guaranteed. This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies. If you are unable to apply online or need an alternate method to submit documents, please reach out to the Agency Contact listed in this Job Opportunity Announcement.