Summary This position serves as a Program Specialist assigned to the Survivors Assistance and Memorial Support (SAMS) Program and is organizationally aligned under Social Work Service at the Edward Hines Je. VA Hospital, Hines IL (578). SAMS's focus is to provide personalized, supportive services to families, caregivers, and survivors at the end of a Veteran's life and ensure Veterans without identified family receive dignified burials to honor their service. Responsibilities Program Administration Advises Veterans and their NOK of burial benefits. Helps Veterans and NOK prearrange burial, interment, cremation, as desired by Veteran. Advises surviving relatives about burial benefits and other potential benefits provided by VA. Refers surviving relatives with specific benefit inquiries to a VBA point of contact, not the toll-free telephone number. Reviews daily death notifications. Submits completed death certificates to designated Funeral Director and County Registrar's Office. Collaborates with VA offices to locate NOK when not readily known. Views, as required, the deceased Veteran's unclaimed body and/or remains to confirm VA funds are executed as intended in the burial purchase. Requests any clinical staff involved with care prior to death contact the survivor within 24 hours of the pronouncement of death. Identifies, in collaboration with designated facility staff, a responsible funeral home for the unclaimed remains and prepares a purchase order and/or contract to this effect. Completes required VA authorizations to release personal effects and any remaining funds in the patient's account to NOK or designated party. Records and transcribes providers' requests for permission from the legal next of kin or other designee by law to conduct an autopsy. Coordinates with VA physician and NOK/legal designee in obtaining signed consent in the event the family is not present to sign or the death occurred outside of normal business hours. Collaborates with Patient Aligned Care Team (PACT), Pharmacy and Prosthetics to cancel all appointments to include orders. Coordinates with Pathology Services to complete all forms and paperwork required to release the deceased remains to selected funeral home. Prepares and provides military information forms to the funeral home representative.. Coordinate the dispositions of personal funds and effects with the Office of General Council for Veterans that have been adjudicated as incompetent. This may require the position to appear in-person at county court houses. Data & Quality Management Collaborates with palliative care to promote quality end-of-life care by assisting in developing action plans and process improvements related to quantitative and qualitative reporting from the Bereaved Family Survey. Implements information systems to track service activities including visits, referrals, demographics and outcomes. Investigates and analyzes adverse quality trends or conditions and initiates corrective action. Consults with staff and managers to identify opportunities for quality improvement. Facilitates quality management plan development and implementation. Maintains and monitors performance measure requirements established by VHA, Assistant Under Secretary for Health for Operations (AUSHO), VISN and/or facility leadership. Uses agency, department and program knowledge to determine essential data collection and provide program assessment and analysis. Fiscal Management The position collaborates with Fiscal and Supply Chain office to financially support SAMS operations. Assesses past budget requirements, projects future budget needs, submits budget requests and manages program budget. Serves as the fund control point clerk, purchase card official and Contracting Officer Representative for SAMS contracts. Conducts quarterly audits of patient fund accounts to identify any deceased patient fund accounts in accordance with VA policies and local procedures. Initiates disposition of funds when deceased patient fund account balance is identified. Develops and maintains monthly and fiscal year variance reports. Utilizes Integrated Funds Distribution Control Point Activity (IFCAP) and Fund Control Point (FCP) processes with delegated responsibility to resolve funding needs. Personnel Management The position participates in facility initiatives relating to No Veteran Dies Alone (NVDA). Partners with staff and leadership to identify needs and opportunities throughout facility. Provides general education, training and resources about SAMS to staff throughout the hospital, community living centers (CLC) and community who provide support to Veterans at end-of-life and to their family and NOK. Collaborates with the VA Center for Development and Civic Engagement to recruit, train, schedule and oversee volunteers at the facility and CLC. Promotion Potential: The selectee may be promoted to the full performance level without further competition when all regulatory, qualification, and performance requirements are met. Selection at a lower grade level does not guarantee promotion to the full performance level. Work Schedule: Monday-Friday 7:30am-4;00pm Telework: Not Suitable Virtual: This is not a virtual position Position Description/PD#: Program Specialist/PD12131A Financial Disclosure Report: Not required Requirements Conditions of Employment You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job To be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process. In addition to the application and questionnaire, this position requires an online assessment. The online assessment measures critical general competencies required to perform the job. Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959 Physical Requirements: The work is primarily sedentary, although some slight physical effort may be required. Routinely views the body and/or remains of deceased Veterans at funeral homes using an authorized vehicle. 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 (https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/form-i-9-acceptable-documents). 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) 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, 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, 07/27/2026. 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-7 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-5. For a GS-9 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-7. 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. You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below: GS-7 Grade Requirements: Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-5 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Qualifying specialized experience include: Knowledge of a wide range of concepts, principles and practices in the areas of end-of-life, hospice death, burial, funeral and bereavement. Knowledge of a substantial body of administrative and program principles, concepts, policies and objectives in these and related programs. Ability to perform analytical studies and interpretation of results to coordinate the evaluation of medical/scientific programs and policies and to recommend improvements. Ability to communicate, both orally and in writing, to make presentations, explain recommendations, represent the division and assigned program areas, provide guidance and advise program administrators, respond to inquiries and prepare reports. Knowledge and ability to work in a multifaceted, complex and demanding environment; to evaluate and prioritize workload tasks and requirements; and to complete tasks and assignments with minimal supervision. Broad understanding and detailed procedural knowledge of budget, purchasing, personnel, and basic office information and technology functions. Knowledge of standard processes and procedures for evaluating program efficiency to implement processes to improve programs. OR, Education: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have successfully completed 1 full year of graduate level education or superior academic achievement. NOTE: Transcripts must be submitted with application. Education cannot be credited without documentation. OR, Combination: Applicants may also combine education and experience to qualify at this level. You must have a combination of specialized experience and graduate level education as stated above. GS-9 Grade Requirements: Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-7 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Qualifying specialized experience includes: Knowledge of a wide range of concepts, principles and practices in the areas of end-of-life, hospice death, burial, funeral and bereavement. Knowledge of a substantial body of administrative and program principles, concepts, policies and objectives in these and related programs. Ability to perform analytical studies and interpretation of results to coordinate the evaluation of medical/scientific programs and policies and to recommend improvements. Ability to communicate, both orally and in writing, to make presentations, explain recommendations, represent the division and assigned program areas, provide guidance and advise program administrators, respond to inquiries and prepare reports. Knowledge and ability to work in a multifaceted, complex and demanding environment; to evaluate and prioritize workload tasks and requirements; and to complete tasks and assignments with minimal supervision. Broad understanding and detailed procedural knowledge of budget, purchasing, personnel, and basic office information and technology functions. Knowledge of standard processes and procedures for evaluating program efficiency to implement processes to improve programs. OR, Education: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have successfully completed a master's or equivalent graduate degree or 2 full years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to such a degree or LL.B. of J.D., if related that demonstrates the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work of this position. NOTE: Transcripts must be submitted with application. Education cannot be credited without documentation. OR, Combination: Applicants may also combine education and experience to qualify at this level. You must have a combination of specialized experience and higher level graduate education as stated above. Preferred Experience: Program Support experience in Decedent Affairs (SAMS program), technical skills, and customer service skills. For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/. 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/. Additional Information This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies. 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.
