Summary
This position is located in the Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response, National Disaster Medical System headquartered in Washington, District of Columbia.
When activated with , you will be protected by the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA) when you are called to respond to an emergency.
Duties
Your resume must clearly articulate how your skills and experiences align to the criteria defined in the qualifications section of this announcement and it must support your responses to the assessment questionnaire.
This position is located with the National Disaster Medical System (NDMS). NDMS supports state, local, tribal and territorial (SLTT) authorities following disasters and emergencies by supplementing health and medical systems and response capabilities. The HHS Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response (ASPR), in its role as Coordinator of Emergency Support Function 8 (ESF-8), Public Health and Medical Services, of the National Response Framework, employs the NDMS to provide patient care, patient movement, and definitive care, as well as veterinary services, and fatality management support when requested by authorities from states, localities, tribes and territories, or other federal departments. In a disease outbreak, they may provide mass prophylaxis. During a special event, they stand ready to serve in case of an emergency. But no matter what the specific mission is, NDMS teams provide expert patient care that protects individual health and promotes national health security.
Provides specialized forensic services for a full range of cases and the immediate initial recognition, evaluation, care and disposition of patient's remains in an effort to identify victims of a disaster or major emergency.
Assures effective safety and blood borne pathogen procedures are implemented in the field.
Provides support and assists in determining the cause(s) of victim death through examination or by the preservation of evidence for later identification during a Federal declared mission or other assignment.
Collaborates with forensic experts, professional associates, law enforcement officials, and others on issues of forensic pathology medicine and identification issues.
Perform external and internal examinations of human remains as necessary to support investigations, establish identity, and determine cause and manner of death.
Participate in formal debriefing sessions at the conclusion of a response and may assist in the development of after-action reports including critical evaluation of field operations, team performance, individual performance evaluation polices, and forensic techniques.
Requirements
Conditions of Employment
- U.S. Citizenship required
- All qualification requirements must be met by the closing date of the announcement.
- Background Investigation is required: Incumbent must undergo and clear a pre-employment fingerprint check and background investigation.
- Two-year probationary period.
- Immunizations may be required
- Males born after December 31, 1959 must be registered or exempt from Selective Service - http://www.sss.gov
- Documentation that you present for purposes of completing the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Form I-9 will be verified through the DHS "E-Verify" System.
- All Federal employees are required to have Federal salary payments made by direct deposit to a financial institution of their choice.
- Must maintain a current, active, full, and unrestricted license or registration as a Physician, with no restrictions on practice in any state, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, or any U.S. territory.
- Must maintain current board certification in forensic pathology by the American Board of Pathology or American Osteopathic Board of Pathology (AOBP).
- Employees are required to obtain and maintain a Government Travel Card
- Employees must be capable of review and approval by a standardized systematic Credentialing and Privileging process. Failure to do so could result in separation from employment.
Qualifications
During deployments, the work is primarily related to readiness for and deployment for response during the aftermath of a disaster or public health emergency, where work may be field-based, in a tent environment that is remote and austere, caring for sick, injured, dying, or deceased persons. This work requires above average health, physical, and mental conditioning with routine long periods of repetitive walking, bending, lifting, and carrying, such as carrying NDMS equipment or heavy patients on litters. Incumbent must be capable of working in a high-stress, high security, remote, austere, and uncharacterized environment, void of infrastructure and vital services, requiring specific physical demands, such as the ability to lift 50 pounds, and work characteristics that must be met to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. For these reasons, employees are required to complete a physical and health screening process, meet and maintain certain physical standards, as well as mental, behavioral, and cognitive competencies. Work may be performed in an office setting or indoor and outdoor field sites, sometimes in adverse weather. During emergency situations, the work environment may be situated in austere conditions and environment in terms of destroyed infrastructure (e.g., food and water, housing, electricity, communications), the presence of endemic diseases, and limited health and sanitation facilities requiring special safety precautions.
Preferred Criteria: Training and/or experience in disaster response.
BASIC QUALIFICATION REQUIREMENTS
To qualify for this position, you must meet the following basic requirements:
Education Requirement:
Degree of Doctor of Medicine, Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine or equivalent from a school in the United States or Canada. The degree must have been obtained from an institution whose accreditation was in place for the year in which the course of study was completed. Approved schools are:
1. Schools of medicine accredited by the ; ; or for the year in which the degree was granted.
2. Schools of osteopathic medicine approved by the or for the year in which the degree was granted.
3. Degree from Foreign Medical School: A Doctor of Medicine or equivalent degree from a foreign medical school must provide education and medical knowledge equivalent to accredited schools in the United States. Evidence of equivalency to accredited schools in the United States is demonstrated by permanent certification by the , a fifth pathway certificate for Americans who completed premedical education in the United States and graduate education in a foreign country, or successful completion of the U.S. Medical Licensing Examination.
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 .
Note: A copy of your physician transcript MUST be submitted with your application, showing the degree program and conferred date. Note: A diploma will not be accepted.
Licensure Requirement:
Must maintain a current, active, full, and unrestricted license or registration as a Physician, with no restrictions on practice in any state, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, or any U.S. territory.
Note: A copy of your current Physician license MUST be submitted with your application to be considered for this position.
Graduate Training: Subsequent to obtaining a Doctor of Medicine or Doctor of Osteopathy Medicine degree, all candidates must have had at least 1 year of supervised experience providing direct service in a clinical setting, i.e., a 1-year internship or the first year of a residency program in a hospital or an institution accredited for such training. For purposes of this standard, graduate training programs include only those internship, residency, and fellowship programs that are approved by accrediting bodies recognized within the United States or Canada. Descriptions of such programs are described below:
1. An internship program involves broadly based clinical practice in which physicians (Pathologist) acquire experience in treating a variety of medical problems under supervision (e.g., internal medicine, surgery, general practice, obstetrics-gynecology, and pediatrics). Such programs are in hospitals or other institutions accredited for internship training by a recognized body of the (ACGME).
2. A residency program involves training in a specialized field of pathology in a hospital or an institution accredited for training in the specialty by a recognized body of the , (AMA) or (ACGME)
3. A fellowship program involves advanced training (beyond residency training) in pathology in either a clinical or research setting in a hospital, or an institution accredited in the United States for such training.
Note: All applicants MUST submit proof of an accredited graduate training internship, fellowship, or residency program for verification to be considered for this position.
Additional Requirement:
Must possess and maintain Board certification in forensic pathology by the American Board of Pathology or American Osteopathic Board of Pathology (AOBP).
Note: A copy of your current board certification in forensic pathology by the American Board of Pathology or American Osteopathic Board of Pathology (AOBP) MUST be submitted with your application to be considered for this position.
In addition to the above basic requirements, applicants must meet the following specialized experience at the GS-13 Grade Level:
Four (4) years of graduate training in the specialty of pathology or equivalent experience and training:
- Making medical operational decisions during high stress emergency situations; and
- Providing medical direction, advice, and support to medical teams for the delivery of quality medical care; and
- Acting as the Subject Matter Expert to provide medical consultation and technical assistance to healthcare providers and operational teams.
NOTE: The Physician experience described above must be fully demonstrated in your resume/curriculum vitae must clearly articulate how your skills and experiences align to the criteria defined in the qualifications section of this announcement and it must support your responses to the assessment questionnaire.
How You Will Be Evaluated
You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.
IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE WILL NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE.
Your application package (resume, supporting documents, and responses to the questionnaire) will be used to determine your eligibility and qualifications for this position. Please follow all instructions carefully.
In addition to describing duties performed, applicants must provide the exact dates of each period of employment (from MM/YY to MM/YY) and the number of hours worked per week if part time. Do not copy and paste the duties, specialized experience, or occupational assessment questionnaire from this announcement into your resume as that will not be considered a demonstration of your qualifications for this position.
Part-Time or Unpaid Experience: Credit will be given for appropriate unpaid and/or part-time work this may include clinical rotations. You must clearly identify the duties and responsibilities in each position or clinical rotation held and the total number of hours worked per week.
Volunteer Work Experience: Refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service Programs (i.e., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religious; spiritual; community; student and social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge and skills that can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience including volunteer experience.
Substitution of Experience for Residency Training: Experience may not be substituted for residency training that is essential for the performance of specialized duties. For example, specialists such as psychiatrists and surgeons must complete the number of years of accredited residency training required in their respective specialties.
Your responses to the questionnaire may be compared to the documents you submit. The documents you submit must support your responses to the online questionnaire. If your application contradicts or does not support your questionnaire responses, you will receive a rating of "not qualified" or "insufficient information" and you will not receive further consideration for this job.
Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect your consideration for employment. Applicants who disqualify themselves will not be evaluated further.
Qualified candidates will be referred for consideration in accordance with the Office of Personnel Management direct hire guidelines.
Your qualifications will be evaluated on the following competencies (knowledge, skills, abilities and other characteristics):
Basic Requirement
Minimum Qualification
NOTE: This vacancy will be filled through OPM's Direct Hire Authority. Veterans' Preference and traditional rating and ranking of applicants do not apply to positions filled under this announcement. Please click here for more information on OPM's Authorization of Direct Hire authority"
To preview the assessment questionnaire, click the following link:
Required Documents
All required documents must be submitted with your application to be considered for this position.
This Job Opportunity Announcement requires that the following documents must be provided with your application to be considered for this position.
1. Online Application Assessment Questionnaire
2. Resume - You must include beginning and ending month and year for each employment period, for each position you must describe your duties, accomplishments, related skills, and responsibilities. Your resume must clearly articulate how your skills and experiences align to the criteria defined in the qualifications section of this announcement and it must support your responses to the assessment questionnaire. Full-time employment will be assumed unless otherwise stated on your resume. Part-time employment will be prorated in crediting experience. Not providing this information may result in an ineligible rating.
3. Physician Transcript(s) - This position requires a specific degree requirement to meet the basic requirement. You must submit a copy of the appropriate transcript(s) that meets the basic education requirement showing the degree program and conferred date. A diploma will not be accepted.
- Note: DO NOT encrypt the document or upload password protected documents. Instead, scan the document and save it as a PDF. The system cannot open encrypted files or file types other than PDF and MS Word.
5. Graduate Training Verification- You must submit proof of accredited graduate training internship, fellowship, or residency program for verification to be considered for this position.
6. Board certification - You must submit a copy of your current board certification in forensic pathology by the American Board of Pathology or American Osteopathic Board of Pathology (AOBP).
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You are not required to submit official documents at this time; copies are sufficient.
If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements:
Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education in order for it to be credited towards qualifications. Therefore, provide only the attendance and/or degrees from .
Failure to provide all of the required information as stated in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating or may affect the overall rating.