Physical Therapist (Program Coordinator) Patient Safety Manager (PSM)

Summary The Physical Therapist (Program Coordinator) Patient Safety Manager serves as a advanced practice specialist within the Quality, Safety, and Value (QSV) Service at the Richard L. Roudebush VA Medical Center. Learn more about this agency Duties VA Careers - Physical Therapy: https://youtube.com/embed/Gi2hoFqIoqY The incumbent collaborates with interdisciplinary teams, including physicians, nurses, mental health professionals, researchers, and quality management staff, to identify and mitigate patient safety risks, such as suicide prevention, behavioral health crises, and communication breakdowns. The Psychologist participates in facility-wide safety initiatives, including the Joint Patient Safety Reporting (JPSR) system, Root Cause Analyses (RCA), Healthcare Failure Mode and Effect Analysis (HFMEA), and National Performance Goals (NPGs), with a focus on behavioral health safety, psychological resilience, and system-level learning. The incumbent also supports the National Center for Patient Safety (NCPS) Patient Safety Assessment Tool (PSAT) and NCPS Salesforce Alerts/Advisories/Recalls, contributing to data-driven improvements. DUTIES INCLUDE BUT NOT LIMITED TO: Promotes cultural transformation to ensure all employees are knowledgeable and empowered to identify and report risk and adverse events so process improvement may result. The PSM establishes and promotes a system for recognition of accomplishments of programs, teams, and employees who exemplify patient safety culture and HRO principles including identification of close calls and great catches. Safety Stories are utilized and coordinated to be presented in various meeting settings to highlight success. Responsible for strategic implementation and maintenance of the facility-wide Patient Safety Program throughout RLR VAMC with primary focus on the comprehensive identification, awareness, utilization, analysis, and performance improvement associated with Joint Patient Safety Reporting (JPSR). Requires promotion of HRO principles and psychological safety in reporting, education on proper entry of incident reports, gathering and analysis of reports, development of trends and feedback presentations to facility leaders and Services and implementation of system improvements. All reports are investigated to determine root causes and lessons learned. Ensures the JPSR database is maintained timely and utilizes data to monitor trends and target needs for evaluation and improvement. Provides daily updates to executive leadership on JPSR reports and ensures prompt response by coordinating and communicating with leaders of all Services as appropriate. The incumbent appropriately scores JPSR events based on an established severity and frequency index tool and determines actual and potential resulting harm. Those events scored as major or catastrophic are scrutinized formally with RCA projects. The PSM develops clinical reviews and audits to analyze problems in depth, including identification of risks requiring review, identification of data required to define the problem, establishing data collection methodologies, analyzing the data, recommending corrective actions, and assessing effectiveness of the actions. Maintains facility-wide administrative controls aimed to ensure implementation and sustainment of approved Actions and Outcome Measures resulting from completed RCA projects. This includes tracking and trending of items, provision of status reports to leadership, and collation of data for use in external review processes demonstrating compliance. The PSM ensures all RCA Actions and Outcome Measures are distributed appropriately to responsible Service Chiefs, provides oversight and trending on implantation of items, and ensures closeout in the national SPOT database and tracks sustainment of improvements. Identifies any occurrence of serious Sentinel Event at RLR VAMC and is a leader ensuring appropriate immediate harm reduction and risk mitigation, coordination of responses across Service lines, and procession toward any needed clinical review, RCA, and partners with Risk Management to ensure institutional disclosures. Functions as the program manager and implementer of patient safety policies and activities developed by NCPS and maintains comprehensive knowledge of the range of VHA and facility handbooks, policies, and standard operating procedures, and other regulations and precedents applicable to the administration of the patient safety program. This includes knowledge of VHA NCPS goals and objectives, the Quality and Patient Safety directive, the sequence and timing of key program events and milestones, and methods of evaluating program accomplishments. Provides leadership in the execution of Patient Safety Assessment Tool (PSAT) evaluations required by the NCPS, including but not limited to the Mental Health Environment of Care (MHEOC) Checklist and the Wandering and Missing Patient protocol. Work Schedule: 7:00am -3:30pm Monday -Friday Compressed/Flexible: Not Eligible Telework: Not Eligible Remote: This is not a remote position Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Functional Statement #: 92952-0 Requirements 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. 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). Complete all application requirements detailed in the "Required Documents" section of this announcement. As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1 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 trial period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest. 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 and experience. The individual must meet at least one of the requirements below. (1) Bachelor's degree in Physical Therapy AND five (5) years of progressively independent experience as a physical therapist. (2) Master's degree in Physical Therapy AND two (2) years of progressively independent experience as a physical therapist. (3) Doctorate degree in physical therapy. Licensure. Individuals hold a full, current, and unrestricted license to practice physical therapy in a State, Territory or Commonwealth of the United States, or in the District of Columbia. Physical Therapist (Program Coordinator) GS -13 Experience. In addition to meeting the basic requirements, one year of progressively complex experience equivalent to the GS-12 grade level. In addition, the candidate must demonstrate all the following KSAs. 1. Ability to apply advanced knowledge of contemporary physical therapy within specialty area to provide clinical guidance, training or education for internal and external stakeholders. 2. Ability to serve as a consultant within the assigned program area for intra-agency and interagency planning and to provide service coordination to optimize program continuity, efficiency and effectiveness. 3. Knowledge of and skill in management, administration and/or education methodologies. This includes the ability to monitor and track data, utilize available resources effectively, evaluate program quality, and generate reports for local, and/or VISN and/or VACO leadership. 4. Ability to develop and coordinate treatment and/or educational programs within a concentrated field or specialty area, such as, but not limited to, amputee, spinal cord injury, chronic pain, student clinical education/residency programming, polytrauma/traumatic brain injury. 5. Ability to establish and maintain collaborative relationships within department and with other departments or affiliated programs. 6. Ability to guide the work of a multi-disciplinary team. Preferred Experience: 5 years clinical experience. Prior leadership experience including program management preferred. Experience with quality, patient safety, and process improvement. Demonstrated skills in communication, facilitation and collaboration. 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). Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/. The full performance level of this vacancy is GS 13 Physical Requirements: This position may involve considerable amount of standing, walking, stooping, bending, reaching, lifting, and turning. It requires assisting clients with transfers from wheelchairs/stretchers and transporting them to other departments or facilities. Mechanical devices are available and are required to be used for heavy or difficult to lift clients. The work may involve pushing or lifting up to 35 pounds and going up and down flights of stairs. The position requires visual and auditory acuity at a level to provide safe and effective nursing care. The position may require the ability to physically control or defend against emotionally ill clients. Education Transcripts must be submitted with this application 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 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. Selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual, based on prior work experience or military service experience. 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. 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. 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. VA Healthcare System Serving Ohio, Indiana and Michigan (VISN 10) advocates for a Whole Health System of care in each of the Medical Centers. This is an approach to healthcare that empowers and equips people to take charge of their health and well-being and live their lives to the fullest. As an employee operating in a Whole Health System of care, you will operate in a model with three core elements, seeking to create a personalized health plan for each Veteran. This is done in the context of healing relationships and healing environments and a connection back to the Veteran's community. This aligns with the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) Mission Statement to Honor America's Veterans by providing exceptional health care that improves their health and well-being. Expand Hide  additional information 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 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. Review our benefits Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.