Supervisory Emergency Management Specialist

Summary

Serves as technical advisor to facility's executive leadership team for the Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center and satellite facilities. Responsible for preparing and coordinating emergency functions to prevent, protect from, mitigate against, prepare for, respond to, and recover from emergencies and disasters. Serves and assist the various program coordinators relating to Emergency Management (EM), Safety, Pharmacy Cache, Clinical Support, and Law Enforcement.

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Duties

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• Develop, implement, sustain, and maintain policies and guidance within the VHA, local, and community.
• Ensuring emergency response results and conclusions lead to a continual improvement of the emergency management program throughout the healthcare system
• Provides leadership with direction management, professional and technical expertise regarding the development and implementation of CEMP
• Participates in development, coordination and review of directives, white papers, Medical Center Memorandum, service support agreements, standard operation procedures, policy matters and related documents issues by the VHA and Healthcare System
• Coordinates internal and external publicity for the CEMP
• Plans, organizes, implements, oversees and provides technical assistance for projects relating to emergency management programs
• Managing and maintaining automated alert and notification systems, coordinating and monitoring results within Communications Support Team
• Represents healthcare system at the Local Emergency Planning Committee (LEPC) and federal, state, county, and local coalition
• Conducts program analysis, evaluations and reviews ensuring plans are current meeting both internal and external requirements
• Develops and maintains the VA Contingency Plans covering the provisions of continuous patient care and treatment during emergencies
• Provides direct support to Hospital Incident Management Team

Work Schedule: Monday through Friday, 7:30 am - 4:00 pm (subject to change based on facility needs)

Virtual: This is not a virtual position.

Position Description/PD#: Supervisory Emergency Management Specialist / PD04019-0

Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Authorized

Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not Approved

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
• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959
• 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 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)
• Must be able to independently operate Government Vehicle.
• Must provide clean driving record report from the DMV during the pre-employment process.

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 or trial period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 10/06/2026.

Time-In-Grade Requirement : Applicants who are current Federal employees and have held a GS grade any time in the past 52 weeks must also meet time-in-grade requirements by the closing date of this announcement. For a GS-12 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-11. The grade may have been in any occupation, but must have been held in the Federal service. An SF-50 that shows your time-in-grade eligibility must be submitted with your application materials. If the most recent SF-50 has an effective date within the past year, it may not clearly demonstrate you possess one-year time-in-grade, as required by the announcement. In this instance, you must provide an additional SF-50 that clearly demonstrates one-year time-in-grade. Note: Time-In-Grade requirements also apply to former Federal employees applying for reinstatement as well as current employees applying for Veterans Employment Opportunities Act of 1998 (VEOA) appointment.

You may qualify based on your experience as described below:

Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-11 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: .

1. Developed, implemented, and regularly updated a Comprehensive all-hazards Emergency Operations Plan (CEOP) or Comprehensive Emergency Management Program (CEMP) for a multi-building medical campus, ensuring compliance with Joint Commission, FEMA, and HHS requirements.
2. Directed or participated in cross-functional teams in activating the Incident Command System ensuring rapid mobilization of resources, patient safety, and operational continuity.
3. Led or participated in annual Hazard Vulnerability Assessments to identify and prioritize threats specific to a high-acuity medical environment, including biomedical equipment failure, hazardous material spills, and surge capacity challenges.
4. Designed and facilitated tabletop, functional, and full-scale exercises simulating scenarios such as active shooter incidents, cyberattacks on medical systems, and large-scale patient evacuations.
5. Built partnerships with local emergency management agencies, EMS, publichealth departments, and law enforcement to coordinate joint response plans and resource sharing.

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.

Note : 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.

Physical Requirements: This work is sedentary during non-emergency situations. However, participation in field exercises and operational support missions may require strenuous physical activity to include carrying person and equipment, walking long distance, climbing, working long hours, long periods of standing, bending and stooping. May include various housing and living conditions to include non-climate controlled, limited privacy sleeping facilities (for example, cots, tents, "hot-bunking", gymnasiums, or similar), limited shower and laundry facilities, and limited feeding options (such as shelf-stable meals, meals ready-to-eat (MRE's) and filed kitchens).

Must maintain a valid motor vehicle operator's license. During emergency situations, may be required to remain available 24 hours per day, seven days a week for multiple weeks.

For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at

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: 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 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.

This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies.

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.

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.

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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.