Registered Nurse - Patient Safety Manager

About the role

Atlanta VA Medical Center is seeking a highly motivated Registered Nurse experienced as a Patient Safety Manager for our Quality Patient Safety Service line to join our Nursing team. Specializing in Patient Safety Management environment.

Functions as a clinical expert and executes position responsibilities that demonstrate leadership, experience, and creative approaches to management of complex patient care.

What you will do

• The PSM functions as the lead manager and implementer of patient safety policies and activities developed by the National Center for Patient Safety (NCPS) and is the facility's key person to help build and implement patient safety systems and promote the culture of safety within Veterans Affairs (VA) facilities and for VA patients in all healthcare settings.
• Direct support is provided to the development, maintenance, and operation of the VHA's patient safety process at the facility level.
• This includes working with all levels of staff within the facility, including top-level management, Root Cause Analysis (RCA) team members, RCA team leaders, and RCA recorders.
• Must have the attitude that building the culture of safety is paramount and the foundation upon which safe operations are based.
• Such a culture takes time to build and requires constant nurturing and reinforcement to maintain.
• The PSM collaborates with, trains, and directs patient safety activities of personnel within the facility, such as infection control professionals, risk managers and quality managers.
• Responsible for translating the policies, theories, and strategies into action within the complex interrelationships that exist related to patient safety.
• General Description of Assigned Duties: Functions as a clinical expert and executes position responsibilities that demonstrate leadership, experience, and creative approaches to management of complex patient care.
• Assesses, plans, implements, and evaluates delivery of care based on age specific components.
• Demonstrates performance and leadership that is broad enough to improve the care for a group of patients.
• Responsible for the documented outcomes at the program or service level.
• Program or service level outcomes must be broad and complex and can be demonstrated at any organizational level within a facility, Veterans Integrated Systems Network (VISN), or Veterans Affairs Central Office (VACO).
• They demonstrate sound decision-making and judgment and possess excellent interpersonal skills.
• They are self-directed and influences care outcomes by collaborating with members of the interdisciplinary team and leading innovative process improvement initiatives.
• Executes position responsibilities that demonstrate leadership, experience, and creative approaches to management of complex client care.
• Duties include but not limited to: Coordinates and implements patient safety policies developed by the National Center for Patient Safety (NCPS) at the facility level.
• Serves as the facility's key patient safety point of contact, helping build and implement patient safety systems for Veteran patients across all healthcare settings.
• Supports the development, maintenance, and operation of the VHA's patient safety process at the facility level.
• Applies foundational patient safety science and enterprise processes to guide program development and improvement.
• Demonstrates leadership and detailed planning in improving patient safety and healthcare program development.
• Organizes priorities and meets deadlines while managing multiple program responsibilities.
• Delivers professional presentations in person, by phone, and electronically to various audiences.
• Works independently and collaborates across all staff levels, including top-level facility management and patient safety analysis teams.
• Utilizes patient safety survey data and analysis to facilitate and promote a culture of safety.
• Partners with leadership to sustain safety practices, modeling High Reliability Organization (HRO) principles such as facilitating patient safety forums.
• Trains and coordinates patient safety activities among facility personnel, including infection control professionals, risk managers, and quality managers.
• Translates patient safety policies, theories, and strategies into action, and maintains communication between the facility and VISN to share patient safety information and promote organizational learning.
• VA offers a comprehensive total rewards package: VA Nurse Total Rewards Pay: Competitive salary, regular salary increases, potential for performance awards Paid Time Off: 50 days of paid time off per year (26 days of annual leave, 13 days of sick leave, 11 paid Federal holidays per year) 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) Licensure: 1 full and unrestricted license from any US State or territory Work Schedule: Full Time, Monday - Friday 7:00 am - 3:30 pm (extended hours as needed, schedule subject to change based on agency needs.) Telework: Ad-hoc available at supervisors discretion.
• Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
• Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized

Requirements

• U.S. Citizenship; non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy.
• 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.
• A drug test is required for this position; and the position is subject to random drug testing.
• 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.
• Must pass pre-employment physical evaluation.
• Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP).
• You may be required to serve a probationary period.
• Complete all application requirements detailed in the "Required Documents" section of this announcement.

Education

Please make sure your Resume/CV includes the School of which you earned your degree to include city and state, type of degree earned, as well as the date your degree was conferred (month, day, and year) so your education can be verified. 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: ***

How you will be evaluated

IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC.

WE MAY NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE.

Your application, resume, C.V., and/or supporting documentation will be verified. Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect consideration for employment.

NOTE: Candidate's education, scope, and length of nursing practice (experience) will be considered in determining the grade and salary of the applicant selected. The recommended salary may be at any point in the range listed for this vacancy.

Experience as an RN will be evaluated to determine if the experience is of an acceptable level of quality with regard to the following five dimensions of nursing: Practice, Veteran/Patient Driven Care, Leadership, Professional Development, and Evidence/Based Practice/Research.

Each dimension of practice has criteria that demonstrate essential core competencies for VHA Nursing Personnel. 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.

The Department of Veterans Affairs performs pre-employment reference checks as an assessment method used in the hiring process to verify information provided by a candidate (e.g., on resume or during interview or hiring process); gain additional knowledge regarding a candidate's abilities; and assist a hiring manager with making a final selection for a position.

It is the policy of the VA to not deny employment to those that have faced financial hardships or periods of unemployment.

Veterans and Transitioning Service Members: Please visit the VA for Vets site for career-search tools for Veterans seeking employment at VA, career development services for our existing Veterans, and coaching and reintegration support for military service members.

Documents you must provide

• You are encouraged to build your resume using the Resume Builder on *** but if you choose to use your own résumé, then you must describe your job-related qualifications that include beginning and ending dates (e.g. June 2007 to April 2009) for paid and non-paid work experience, hours worked per week, month and year of employment for each job title listed.
• If not provided, we cannot assume your work experience is full time, part-time, intermittent, etc. Be sure that your resume clearly supports your work experience in detail.
• We cannot make assumptions regarding your qualifications.
• SF 50, Notification for Personnel Action (APPLICABLE ONLY TO CURRENT PERMANENT FEDERAL EMPLOYEES): You must submit a copy of your most recent Notification of Personnel Action, Standard Form 50 (SF-50).
• SF50 must include (at a minimum) position title, tenure, grade, step and salary.
• SF50 must be dated within the previous 12 months.
• Do not submit PERFORMANCE AWARD SF50s.The following documents are accepted and may be required if applicable to your eligibility and/or qualifications for this position.
• Cover Letter DD-214/ Statement of Service Disability Letter (VA) License Long-form resume/Curriculum vitae (CV) Other (1) Professional Certification Proof of Marriage Status Separation Notice (RIF) SF-15 SF-50/ Notification of Personnel Action Transcript Transcript(s): Official or unofficial transcripts are acceptable.
• Transcript must include, at a minimum, student's name, name and location of college/university, courses/credits hours; date of degree and degree granted, as applicable.
• If selected, you may be required to submit the official transcript.
• Do not submit copies of your degree, as they will not be considered.
• Veterans' Preference Note: Preference eligible candidates and other Veterans will be given preference when qualification of candidates are approximately equal for Title 38 positions in VHA.
• When applying for Federal Jobs, eligible Veterans should claim preference for 5pt (TP), 10pt (CP/CPS/XP), or for Sole Survivor Preference (SSP) in the questionnaire.
• You must provide a legible copy of your DD214(s) which shows dates and character of service (honorable, general, etc.).
• If you are currently serving on active duty and expect to be released or discharged within 120 days you must submit documentation related to your active duty service which reflects the dates of service, character of service (honorable, general, etc.), and dates of impending separation.
• Additionally, disabled veterans and others eligible for 10-point preference (such as widows or mothers of eligible Veterans) must also submit an SF-15 "Application for 10 Point Veteran Preference" with required proof as stated on the form.
• Documentation is required to award preference.
• For more information on Veterans' Preference, please visit Feds Hire Vets - Veterans - Job Seekers - Veterans' Preference.

What to expect next

Once your online application is submitted you will receive a confirmation notification by email. After we receive application packages (including all required documents) and the vacancy announcement closes, we will review applications to ensure qualification and eligibility requirements are met.

After the review is complete, a referral certificate(s) is issued, and applicants will be notified of their status by email. Referred applicants will be notified as such and may be contacted directly by the hiring office for an interview. All referred applicants receive a final notification once a selection decision has been made.

You may check the status of your application at any time by logging into your USA Jobs account and clicking on Applications. Information regarding your application status can be found in the USAJobs Help Center.

Additional information

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.