Biomedical Engineer

Summary

Recruitment Incentives: May be Authorized for highly qualified candidates.

The Biomedical Engineer assists with the overall operations of the Biomedical Engineering program at the Northern Arizona VA Health Care System (NAVAHCS). Incumbent provides engineering review, guidance, and development of the Medical Equipment Management Program encompassing professional engineering consulting with medical staff in all areas involving medical instrumentation.

Duties

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VA Careers - Biomedical Engineer:

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The Biomedical Engineer assists with the overall operations of the Biomedical Engineering program at the Northern Arizona VA Health Care System (NAVAHCS).

Major duties included but are not limited to:

• Supporting and conducting a comprehensive medical equipment management program that must ensure the safety, reliability, and diagnostic/therapeutic efficacy of all devices employed in the direct and indirect delivery of patient care.
• Assists in the development of an equipment management program at NAVAHCS. The incumbent is responsible for having knowledge of a medical equipment management program which includes complete life cycle management of medical equipment and systems.
• Have the knowledge of basic project management principles to coordinate and assist in managing NAVAHCS projects that require Biomedical Engineering as the lead or an interface such as those applies in the health care setting for medical equipment and information system implementation.
• Functions as the subject matter expert in the field of biomedical engineering to directly support specialized clinical technology, including service, system administration, training, quality assurance, and life-cycle management. The incumbent is responsible for advising clinical and administrative staff on medical technology including existing and emerging technology, addressing the viability, long-term suitability, compatibility and/or safety.
• Responsible for evaluation and assessment of major failure problems or inadequate performance of medical equipment and systems.
• Incumbent must be able to read, interpret, and apply technical data such as schematic drawings, wiring diagrams, tables, charts, and formulas to effect repairs and assist technical staff.
• Prepares material on current technical topics and trends, quality assurance monitoring reports and presentations, standard operating procedures, and preventive maintenance procedures as required.
• coordinates and assists with medical device hazard investigations to assure compliance with patient safety goals, Safe Medical Device Act (SMDA), and TJC requirements.
• Effectively communicate, both orally and in writing. This skill enables the incumbent to work with VA and vendor personnel to effectively document maintenance and administrative activities, as well as writing effective, clear, and concise technical and user instructions, policy memoranda, reports, project documentation, and position papers.
• Lifecycle management of network equipment including but not limited to network switches, servers, routers and related infrastructure for any and all networked complex medical devices and systems such as imaging, life support, dialysis, and monitoring.
• Manages, troubleshoots and maintains complete systems of computerized networks, databases and servers, including but not limited to biomedical information systems that store or facilitate patient information.
• Implements and plans for new and emerging technologies including but not limited to diagnostic modalities, network management and storage, and virtual data centers.
• Designs, implements and manages network incident response due to infection, loss of service or regional and local policy changes according to VA guidelines.
• Performs other duties as assigned.

Work Schedule : Monday-Friday, 8AM-4:30PM

Recruitment Incentive (Sign-on Bonus): May be Authorized for highly qualified candidates

Permanent Change of Station (Relocation Assistance): May be Authorized for highly qualified candidates

Pay: Competitive salary and regular salary increases When setting pay, a higher step rate of the appropriate grade may be determined after consideration of higher or unique qualifications or special needs of the VA (Above Minimum Rate of the Grade).

Paid Time Off: 37-50 days of annual paid time offer per year (13-26 days of annual leave, 13 days of sick leave, 11 paid Federal holidays per year)

Selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual, based on prior [work experience] or military service experience.

Parental Leave: After 12 months of employment, up to 12 weeks of paid parental leave in connection with the birth, adoption, or foster care placement of a child.

Child Care Subsidy: After 60 days of employment, full time employees with a total family income below $144,000 may be eligible for a childcare subsidy up to 25% of total eligible childcare costs for eligible children up to the monthly maximum of $416.66 .

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)

Telework : Not Available

Virtual: This is not a virtual position.

Functional Statement # : 000000

Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized

Requirements

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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.
• You may be required to serve a trial period.
• 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 (). 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.
• Must pass pre-employment physical examination.
• Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP).

Qualifications

Basic Requirements :

• Citizenship: Citizen of the United States.
• Education: Bachelor's degree or higher in Engineering. To be creditable, the curriculum must be from a school of engineering with at least one curriculum accredited by the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET), as a professional engineering curriculum. (Acceptable engineering degrees include: Biomedical Engineering, Clinical Engineering, Bioengineering, Biomechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, and Biochemical Engineering).; OR
• Certification as a Certified Clinical Engineer (CCE) and a bachelor's degree not listed above.

Preferred Experience: Three plus years of Biomedical Engineer experience.

Grade Determinations :

GS-12 Experience: Completion of at least [one] year of specialized experience equivalent to the next lower level; or completion of a post-doctoral research fellowship in the field of biomedical engineering, and must fully meet the KSAs at that level.

In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate the following KSAs:

1. Ability to conduct a medical equipment management or biomedical research program that is compliant with applicable healthcare standards and regulatory agencies.

2. Ability to develop a curriculum for a continuing education program, that address the safe and effective use of medical technology, and/or research devices.

3. Ability to manage a recall and safety alert program for medical devices, including medical device hazard investigations, to assure compliance with patient safety goals, SMDA, and [TJC] requirements.

4. Ability to conduct capital asset and infrastructure planning for medical equipment spanning initial concept, installation, and effective implementation of complex medical equipment.

5. Ability to function as the subject matter expert in the field of biomedical engineering, directly supporting specialized clinical technology, including service, system administration, training, quality assurance, and life-cycle management.

6. Ability to effectively advise clinical and administrative staff on medical technology, including existing and emerging technology, which addresses viability, long-term suitability, compatibility, and/or safety.

7. Knowledge of concepts related to computer based medical systems, networking protocols, and information security as it applies to medical technology within VHA.

8. Skill in communicating and working collaboratively with key stakeholders, including technical and professional staff at various levels of the organization.

9. Ability to apply project management principles to deployment of medical equipment and health information technologies.

Assignment. At the full performance level, employees work under general supervision, with wide latitude to exercise independent judgment. Drawing upon extended professional and technical experience, employees demonstrate an intimate understanding of complex clinical and biomedical subject matter. They serve as institutional resources, working extensively with clinical stakeholders, supporting clinical services by leading market research, technology assessments, integration planning, and implementation of both current and emerging medical technologies. The employee shares responsibility for managing the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), network security issues for medical systems, and the information communicated across these systems. Biomedical Engineers at the GS-12 grade level further support the clinical mission by contributing to the continuing education program for clinical staff, helping ensure safe and efficient healthcare delivery. Biomedical Engineers at the GS-12 grade level support the institution by assisting with capital asset and infrastructure planning, to help ensure successful strategic planning. They may collaborate frequently with contracting to execute judicious healthcare technology procurements. Within the Biomedical Engineering Department, the employee provides leadership that ensures high quality and responsive customer service is an integral component of biomedical engineering service delivery. They are highly effective communicators, capable of serving as subject matter experts directly supporting the life cycle management of clinical technology, to include ongoing service, system administration, training, and quality assurance. At this level, employees may assist in clinical research projects in the biomedical engineering field.

Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit .

Physical Requirements: VA Directive and Handbook 5019

Education

IMPORTANT: 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: . 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: .

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.

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.

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Benefits

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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.

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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.