Summary
This position is located at the Boston VA Healthcare system Jamaica Plain Campus serving as the Facility Lead Patient Advocate. This position is a key point of contact for patients and staff and to work in collaboration with facility Patient Advocates on complex issues or complaints where use of tact, diplomacy, sound judgment, compassion, flexibility, and a good sense of humor are extremely important.
Duties
Patient Advocacy within VA exists to ensure patient concerns are heard and addressed to improve the overall experience and quality of care for patients. Effective, high-functioning Patient Advocacy is integral to fulfilling the goal of providing Veterans with world-class health care. Major duties and responsibilities include: Team Lead, Data Management and Process Improvement Leads the team and provides the day-to-day work direction, review, and distribution, balance, and adjustment of workload Monitors and reports on the progress of the team's work and provides updates to the supervisor Coaches and develops the team using appropriate tools and techniques to address a variety of issues and situations Oversees general administrative issues regarding subordinates' leave, scheduling, appointments, etc. Provides the team formal and informal training information related to patient advocacy service, customer service, techniques, and resources needed to educate themselves Provides higher-level data management and analysis function for the Patient Advocate team Develops and maintains organizational dashboards and data sets Regularly produces cumulative reports which includes a categorization of patient inquiries to track and trend the patterns to identify opportunities for improvement Complaint Resolution Leads and oversees the facility Veteran Centered Complaint Resolution (VCCR) process, including complaint resolution, data capture, and analysis of issues/complaints to make system improvements Works in collaboration with Patient Advocates, Service-Level Advocates (SLAs), and front-line staff to resolve complex issues that occur at the point of service or due to further investigation of the problem(s) Addresses complaints and proactively explores all avenues to identify the nature and scope of the problems and initiates appropriate action to expedite resolutions Patient Advocate Representation and Relationship Management Serves as the liaison between the facility, patients, staff, and the community, ensuring patients understand their rights, in addition to, their responsibilities Determines causes of patient dissatisfaction, misinformation, or complaints and documents patient encounters and contacts appropriate services to establish resolutions Leads and ensures that rounds throughout the facility are conducted on a routine basis to solicit patient feedback and build strong relationships with SLAs and service leadership. Leads staff in responding to patients' inquiries through multiple VA approved forms of contact (e.g., Inquiry Routing and Information System (IRIS), My HealtheVet, Secure Messaging, E-mail, Phone, Walk-in, Town Halls, etc.), where patients pose questions, complaints, compliments, and suggestions. Work Schedule: Monday-Friday 8:00am-4:30pm Compressed: May be available Adhoc Telework: This position may be authorized for adhoc telework. Telework eligibility will be discussed during the interview process. Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Position Description/PD#: Lead Patient Representative/PD99734S Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not Approved Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized Notifications: The representative may be required to travel to other VA campuses and CBOC's. Current and former Federal employees must submit copies of their most recent SF-50, (Notice of Personnel Action). The SF-50 must identify the position title, series, grade, step, tenure and type of service (Competitive or Excepted). In some cases, more than one SF-50 may be required to show a higher grade previously held.
Requirements
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 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 identification 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.
Education
There is no educational substitution at this grade level. 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/.
How you will be evaluated
Your qualifications will be evaluated based on your application materials (e.g., resume, supporting documents), your responses on the application questionnaire, and your responses to all assessments required for this position. You will be assessed on the following Competencies for this position: Leadership Planning and Evaluating Team Building Customer Service Your experience must be fully documented on your resume and must include job title, duties, month and year start/end dates AND hours worked per week. A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week. Part-time experience will be credited on the basis of time actually spent in appropriate activities. Applicants wishing to receive credit for such experience must indicate clearly the nature of their duties and responsibilities in each position and the number of hours a week spent in such employment. IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE WILL NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. Overstating your qualifications and/or experience in your application materials or application questionnaire may result in your removal from consideration. Cheating on the online assessment may also result in your removal from consideration. Résumé Reminder: Your résumé must include the following information each job listed: 1. Job title 2. Duties (be as detailed as possible) 3. Month & year start/end dates (e.g. June 2007 to April 2008) 4. . Full-time or part-time status (include hours worked per week). 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. 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.