Summary This Dietitian (Facility Program Director) position is in the Nutrition and Food Services at the VA Bedford Healthcare Systems, located at the Bedford, MA location. This position is full-time at 40 hours per week. Responsibilities The Dietitian in this assignment serves as a Facility Program Coordinator leading a multidisciplinary team. They are administratively responsible for a specialty program and provide program-specific leadership, guidance and direction, technical advice, and staff development. Major duties include, but are not limited to: Manages all aspects of the program for the facility, assuring local compliance with national policy and direction. Coordinates with the multidisciplinary team to develop local goals. Measures progress toward the goals and reports to the appropriate officials at a local, VISN and national level. Provides direct patient care by developing and implementing comprehensive nutrition therapy, practicing within their scope/clinical privileges. Directs or participates in the design of studies, collects data, conducts statistical analysis, interprets findings, and translates results into written and oral communications. Sets priorities, delegates tasks, meets multiple deadlines, analyzes organizational problems, and develops and implements effective solutions. Serves as a consultant and technical advisor within NFS and with other facility health care staff in evaluating health care delivery to Veterans and employees. Determines the continuing education needs of program staff and appropriate resources to meet those needs. Oversees all aspects for the program, policy, and the procedure development. Plans and administers a program, coordinates associated activities and resources, evaluates program accomplishments, redefines priorities, problem solves, and modifies objectives. Takes an active role in the fiscal management for the program, identifying resource needs that may include staffing, supplies, contracts, etc. Maintains program information through approved social media outlets. May perform other related duties as assigned which are appropriate for this grade and assignment. Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 7:30am - 4:00pm Telework: Not Authorized Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Functional Statement #: PD99400S Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized. Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized. Financial Disclosure Report: Not Required. Notifications: This position is in the Excepted Service. Veterans' preference does not apply for internal or other current permanent Federal agency employees. 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. This position is not a Bargaining Unit position. This position is covered by locality-based comparability pay. Narrative responses to the knowledge, skills and abilities (KSAs) may be required from the selectee in order to proceed with the appointment. Requirements Conditions of Employment You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job. Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959. Must be proficient in written and spoken English. You may be required to serve a probationary period. Subject to background/security investigation. Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP). Participation in the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccination program is a requirement for all Veterans Health Administration Health Care Personnel (HCP) - See "Additional Information" below for details. Qualifications 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. Registered Dietitian Nutritionist (RDN) or Registered Dietitian (RD) - Must be registered with the Commission on Dietetic Registration (CDR) the credentialing branch of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics formerly known as the American Dietetic Association (ADA). Foreign Education. To be creditable, college and/or university degrees earned outside the U.S and its territories must be evaluated by ACEND and meet ACEND's International Dietitian Education standards which are designed to provide graduates with the knowledge and competencies to sit for the CDR credentialing exam. English Language Proficiency. Dietitians must be proficient in spoken and written English as required by 38 U.S.C. 7402(d). Grandfathering Provision. Employees in VHA in this occupation, under a permanent, appropriate and legal placement on the effective date of the qualification standard, are considered to have met all qualification requirements for the grade and/or assignment held, including positive education and registration/certification, where applicable. Employees appointed on a temporary basis prior to the effective date of the qualification standard may not have their temporary appointment extended or be reappointed, either on a temporary or permanent basis until they fully meet the basic requirements of the standard. The following provisions apply to employees who do not meet all the qualification requirements: (1) Employees may be reassigned, promoted up to and including the full performance (journey) level or changed to a lower grade within the occupation, but may not be promoted beyond the journey level or be newly placed in a supervisory or managerial position. (2) Employees must meet the assignment-specific certification/education requirements to be placed in Dietitian (Advanced Level Practice) or Dietitian (Dietetic Internship Director) assignments. (3) Employees initially grandfathered into this occupation who subsequently obtain additional education and/or registration/certification that meet all the qualification standard's basic or assignment-specific requirements must maintain the required credentials as a condition of employment in the occupation/assignment. (4) Employees retained in this occupation under this provision and subsequently leave the occupation lose protected status and must meet the full VA qualification standard requirements in effect at the time of re-entry in the occupation. GS-12 Dietitian (Facility Program Coordinator) Experience Requirement: In addition to meeting the basic requirements listed above, to qualify for the GS-12 you must possess at least 1 year of experience as an RDN/RD equivalent to the next lower grade level (GS-11) which demonstrates the following Knowledge, Skills and Abilities (KSAs): Knowledge of program administration establishes program goals and objectives, coordinates activities, evaluates accomplishments and solves problems. Skill in developing quality improvement or research activities. Skill in developing training and reference materials. Ability to develop policies and procedures. Ability to provide program-specific coordination to include leadership, technical advice and staff development. Assignment. For all assignments above the full performance level, the higher-level duties must consist of significant scope, complexity (difficulty) and variety and be performed by the incumbent at least 25% of the time. Employees in this assignment serve as Facility Dietitian Program Coordinator leading a multi-disciplinary team. Dietitian Program Coordinators may provide direct patient care by developing and implementing comprehensive nutrition therapy, practicing within their scope/clinical privileges. They are administratively responsible for a specialty program and provide program-specific leadership, guidance and direction, technical advice and staff development. Dietitian Program Coordinators oversee responsibilities for program, policy and procedure development, set goals, monitor and redefine priorities and may have an active role in the fiscal management for the program. They direct or participate in the design of research activities or quality improvement studies, including data collection and analysis. Dietitian Program Coordinators have oversight of and are responsible for developing and maintaining training and reference materials. They maintain program information through approved social media outlets. Dietitian Program Coordinators may supervise up to two employees. This assignment must represent substantial additional responsibility over and above that required at the full performance grade level and cannot be used as the full performance level of this occupation. Preferred Experience: Candidate must be a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist (RDN) with at least one year of experience working with patients desiring to lose weight. References: VA Handbook 5005 Part II Appendix G20. Physical Requirements: See VA Directive and Handbook 5019, Employee Occupational Health Service for requirements. 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/. ACEND accredited programs are located on the ACEND website or at ACEND Accredited Programs Directory. Additional Information Receiving Service Credit or 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. Pursuant to VHA Directive 1193.01, VHA health care personnel (HCP) are required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 subject to such accommodations as required by law (i.e., medical, religious or pregnancy). VHA HCPs do not include remote workers who only infrequently enter VHA locations. If selected, you will be required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and submit documentation of proof of vaccination before your start date. The agency will provide additional information regarding what information or documentation will be needed and how you can request a legally required accommodation from this requirement using the reasonable accommodation process. 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.