Registered Nurse - Clinical Nurse Educator

Summary

The Clinical Nurse Educator (CNE), Registered Nurse, serves within the Veterans Affairs Washington DC Health Care System. The CNE is responsible for assessing, planning, implementing, and evaluating educational programs and learning needs for clinical staff throughout the organization. The RN applies adult-learning principles, innovative teaching strategies, assessment methods, and outcome evaluation to promote staff development, clinical competency, and safe, high-quality Veteran care.

Duties

Duties of the Clinical Nurse Educator include, but are not limited to: Assesses, plans, implements, and evaluates educational needs and programs designed to promote clinical staff development, competency, and skill acquisition. Provides evidence-based education, instruction, and training to nursing staff assigned to clinical and outpatient units. Applies principles of adult learning and instructional design and uses innovative teaching strategies based on identified learner and organizational needs. Conducts learning-needs assessments and develops educational programs and training to address identified clinical staff needs. Assists with orientation of new employees, evaluates progress throughout the orientation process, and develops and implements individualized learning plans to address identified deficiencies. Serves as a trainer and consultant for the Resuscitation Education Initiative Program, including serving as a Basic Life Support (BLS) instructor. Monitors and tracks organizational compliance with Basic Life Support (BLS) and Advanced Life Support (ALS) requirements. Collaborates with the interdisciplinary healthcare team to support and evaluate responses to emergency events within the facility, including BLS and ALS responses. Organizes, participates in, and evaluates mock-code activities to support emergency preparedness and clinical competency. Supports nurse residency programs, including curriculum development utilizing learning methodologies such as simulation, lectures, case studies, and virtual reality. Provides coaching, mentoring, precepting, and teaching to support the professional development and clinical competency of nursing staff. Collaborates with other Clinical Nurse Educators and interprofessional healthcare teams to conduct ongoing clinical education activities, including in-services, training, competency assessments, and evaluations of current and newly hired nursing staff. Reviews current nursing literature, evidence-based research, and emerging clinical trends and recommends appropriate revisions to nursing practice and documentation based on evaluation of outcomes. Collaborates with leadership and unit managers to identify staff education and training needs and supports activities that promote clinical competence, critical thinking, and effective decision-making. Analyzes, interprets, and evaluates data to determine educational program outcomes and identify opportunities for program improvement. Provides consultation and professional nursing expertise through participation on organizational committees and interdisciplinary initiatives. Leads educational initiatives and supports the professional growth of others through mentoring, precepting, teaching, and knowledge sharing. Integrates evidence-based practice and research with clinical expertise to improve quality of care, resource utilization, and outcomes within the practice setting. Participates in quality improvement activities through monitoring, analyzing, and evaluating outcomes and identifying opportunities to improve clinical practice and care delivery. Promotes effective communication, teamwork, collaboration, patient safety, and a professional learning environment consistent with VA policies, procedures, and standards. Maintains required education and competencies and participates in ongoing orientation, mandatory education, competency assessment, and validation. BLS is required for the position. Supports continued accreditation readiness, including compliance with standards of care, documentation, safety, infection control, privacy, and performance-improvement requirements. Performs other duties as assigned. VA offers a comprehensive total rewards package: VA Nurse Total Rewards Pay: Competitive salary, regular salary increases, potential for performance awards Paid Time Off: 50 days of paid time off per year (26 days of annual leave, 13 days of sick leave, 11 paid Federal holidays per year) 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) Licensure: 1 full and unrestricted license from any US State or territory Work Schedule: To be determined based on the needs of the service. Work schedules may require flexibility, including rotation of tours or non-administrative tours, as established by the immediate supervisor. Telework: AD-HOC as needed by the agency. Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized

Requirements

U.S. Citizenship; non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy. 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. 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 identification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment. Must pass pre-employment physical evaluation/examination. Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP). You may be required to serve a probationary period. Complete all application requirements detailed in the "Required Documents" section of this announcement.

Qualifications and evaluation

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. NOTE: Candidate's education, scope, and length of nursing practice (experience) will be considered in determining the grade and salary of the applicant selected. The recommended salary may be at any point in the range listed for this vacancy. Experience as an RN will be evaluated to determine if the experience is of an acceptable level of quality with regard to the following five dimensions of nursing: Practice, Veteran/Patient Driven Care, Leadership, Professional Development, and Evidence/Based Practice/Research. Each dimension of practice has criteria that demonstrate essential core competencies for VHA Nursing Personnel. 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.

How to apply

All applicants are encouraged to apply online. To apply for this position, you must complete the full questionnaire and submit the documentation specified in the Required Documents section below. The complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (ET) on 09/28/2026 to receive consideration. To preview the questionnaire, click https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/13072792. To begin, click Apply Online to create a USAJOBS account or log in to your existing account. Follow the prompts to select your USA JOBS resume and/or other supporting documents and complete the occupational questionnaire. Click Submit My Answers to submit your application package. NOTE: It is your responsibility to ensure your responses and appropriate documentation are submitted prior to the closing date. During the application process you may have an option to opt-in to make your resume available to hiring managers in the agency who have similar positions. Opting in does not impact your application for this announcement, nor does it guarantee further consideration for additional positions.

Required documents

To apply for this position, you must provide a complete Application Package which includes: Long-form resume/Curriculum vitae (CV) The following documents are accepted and may be required if applicable to your eligibility and/or qualifications for this position. Cover Letter DD-214/ Statement of Service Disability Letter (Schedule A) Disability Letter (VA) License Long-form resume/Curriculum vitae (CV) Other (1) PCS Orders Performance Appraisal Professional Certification Separation Notice (RIF) SF-15 SF-50/ Notification of Personnel Action Transcript Veterans' Preference Note: Preference eligible candidates and other Veterans will be given preference when qualification of candidates are approximately equal for Title 38 positions in VHA. When applying for Federal Jobs, eligible Veterans should claim preference for 5pt (TP), 10pt (CP/CPS/XP), or for Sole Survivor Preference (SSP) in the questionnaire. You must provide a legible copy of your DD214(s) which shows dates and character of service (honorable, general, etc.). If you are currently serving on active duty and expect to be released or discharged within 120 days you must submit documentation related to your active duty service which reflects the dates of service, character of service (honorable, general, etc.), and dates of impending separation. Additionally, disabled veterans and others eligible for 10-point preference (such as widows or mothers of eligible Veterans) must also submit an SF-15 "Application for 10 Point Veteran Preference" with required proof as stated on the form. Documentation is required to award preference. For more information on Veterans' Preference, please visit Feds Hire Vets - Veterans - Job Seekers - Veterans' Preference.

Additional information

This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies. This position is in the Excepted Service and does not confer competitive status. VA encourages persons with disabilities to apply. The health-related positions in VA are covered by Title 38, and are not covered by the Schedule A excepted appointment authority. 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. 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. Whole Health is an approach to health care that empowers and equips people to take charge of their health and well-being and live their life to the fullest. The VA is committed to Whole Health and values Veteran and Employee health and wellbeing. As a VA employee, you will practice Whole Health in an environment that supports personalized and proactive care.