The Lead Medical Technician serves in Pathology & Laboratory Medicine Service, Central Alabama Veterans Healthcare System, Veterans Health Administration, Department Veterans Affairs, Columbus, GA.

Duties

***THIS IS NOT A VIRTUAL POSITION, YOU MUST LIVE WITHIN OR BE WILLING TO RELOCATE WITHIN A COMMUTABLE DISTANCE OF THE DUTY LOCATION*** Lead Duties: Serves as a Lead Medical Technician within the clinical laboratory which supports a large veteran population in the Columbus, GA area. Distributes and balances the workload among employees in accordance with established workflow or job specialization, assures timely accomplishment of the assigned workload, and assures that each employee has enough work to keep busy. Keeps in touch with the status and progress of work and make day- to- day adjustments in accordance with established priorities, obtaining assistance from the supervisor on problems that may arise, such as backlogs which cannot be disposed of promptly. Provides on the job training to new employees in accordance with established procedures and practices. Maintains records of work accomplishments and time expended; prepare production reports as requested. Provides timely phlebotomy services to Veterans, with emphasis on maintaining excellent customer service; will be required to work at the various lab locations in the Columbus, GA area. Phlebotomy and Specimen Collection Duties: Performs phlebotomy procedures following a sequence of steps approved for sample collection. Selects the best venipuncture site, most suitable phlebotomy equipment (needle type, size, and length), most appropriate cleansing agent(s), proper collection vials and assessing the patient's condition before, during and after the procedure. Follows the Laboratory procedures for collecting specimens in the appropriate container, maintains specimen under appropriate conditions, follows guidelines for collecting timed specimens at the appropriate times to insure specimen viability. Performs phlebotomy procedures with various types and sizes of tubes used for collection, and knowledge of how much blood is required for each test, types of tests, what color of tube needs to be drawn and what anticoagulants are necessary to assure accurate test results. Accessioning and Processing Duties: Receives requests for testing and specimens into the laboratory and verifies the accuracy and completeness of the request. Separates and routes the specimens to the specific laboratory section that performs the testing. Assists healthcare personnel who deliver specimens by directing them to place the specimens in the proper location based on the type of testing and the laboratorysection. Reference Laboratory Specimen Processing: Receives all specimens that are sent to commercial reference laboratories for testing. Patient Care Testing Duties: Performs a limited amount of patient testing which includes, but is not limited to urine pregnancy testing, Fecal Occult Blood testing, I-Stat, Troponins, and/or Glucose. (Testing that is approved by CLIA '88 personnel standards for waived testing). Prepares the specimen or patient for testing, prepare reagents (if necessary), perform test procedure, verify the accuracy of the results, and report the results in the Vista computer system. Safety and Laboratory Support Functions: Complies with all Medical Center policies and procedures regarding safety practices. Demonstrates working knowledge of the appropriate safety protocol to include standard precautions, sharps handling, facility safety program, use of personal protective equipment in designated areas and performs proper hand washing techniques. Develops and maintains a system of inventory management to ensure adequate stock levels ofconsumables. Troubleshoots any problems brought up by staff on patient order entry errors or other issues as needed, communicating with wards, clinics and providers in a professional and courteous manner that resolves the issue. Maintains and controls laboratory records. Performs other duties as assigned. DESIGNATED DRUG-TESTING POSITION: 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. Applicants will not be appointed to the position if a verified positive drug test result is received. Work Schedule: Monday - Friday; 7:30am - 4:00pm; subject to change based on needs of the agency. Recruitment & Relocation Incentives: Not authorized. Financial Disclosure Report: Not Required

Requirements

Qualifications

This position includes a Selective Placement Factor (skill, knowledge, ability or other worker characteristic basic to - and essential for - satisfactory performance of the job). Selective Placement Factors are a prerequisite to appointment and represent minimum requirements for a position. Applicants who do not meet it are ineligible for further consideration. The Selective Placement Factor for this position is: "Having experience performing phlebotomy/blood draws on human patients." and ENGLISH LANGUAGE PROFICIENCY: In accordance with 38 U.S.C. 7402(d), No person shall serve in direct patient care positions unless they are proficient in basic written and spoken English. You must be proficient in basic written and spoken English in order to meet the requirements of this position. and SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE: Applicants must have one (1) year of specialized experience that equipped them with the knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSA's) needed to successfully perform the duties of the position and that is typically in or related to the position to be filled. To be creditable, this experience must have been equivalent to at least the GS-5 level in Federal service. Examples of qualifying specialized experience include: a) Technical medical laboratory support work such as performing laboratory tests and examinations (chemical, microbiologic, hematologic, and blood banking) and preparing reports of findings or (b) technical support work in a closely related field, e.g., biological laboratory technician work, that required application of the methods and techniques for the position to be filled. OR SUBSTITUTION OF EDUCATION FOR EXPERIENCE GS-6: Successful completion of six (6) months of graduate level education that is directly related to the work of the position to be filled. This education must have been obtained in an accredited college or university. One (1) year of full-time graduate education is considered to be the number of credit hours that the school attended has determined to represent one (1) year of full-time study. If that information cannot be obtained from the school, eighteen (18) semester hours should be considered as satisfying the one (1) year of full-time requirement. Part-time graduate education is creditable in accordance with its relationship to a year of full-time study at the school attended. (TRANSCRIPT REQUIRED) OR COMBINING EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE GS-6: Combination of successfully completed graduate education and experience may be used to meet total qualification requirements to qualify at the GS-6 level. (TRANSCRIPT REQUIRED) You will be rated on the following Competencies as part of the assessment questionnaire for this position: Customer Service (Clerical/Technical)Interpersonal SkillsPatient CareReading ComprehensionSpecimen Collection IMPORTANT: A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week. All experience listed on your resume must include the month and year start/end dates. 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. 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; religious; 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. Physical Requirements: Physical demands will involve minimal lifting, long periods of standing, walking, bending, or sitting. The Medical Technician must have the digital dexterity and adequate vision to perform safe venipuncture procedures. Lifting will not exceed a weight of thirty (30lbs) pounds. The Medical Technician must fully utilize all safety practices and equipment provided by the medical center, and in compliance with local and accrediting agency requirements. 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

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: 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: http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ous/international/usnei/us/edlite-visitus-forrecog.html.

Contacts

• Address Central Alabama VA Medical Center-Montgomery 215 Perry Hill Road Montgomery, AL 36109 US
• Name: VHA National Recruitment Center
• Phone: (844)456-5208
• Email: [email protected]