The incumbent will serve as a Program Support Assistant (PSA) under the programs of Hospice / Palliative Care & the Pain Clinic within the geriatric and Extended Care Service.. The incumbent will carry out work independently, resolving problems in accordance with VHA policy, new policies & procedures, rules & regulations. The incumbent provides general administrative support services.

Duties

Duties include but are not limited to: The incumbent continually monitors & identifies existing & potential problem areas. Determines nature of the problem & initiates action with the clinical or administrative staff to expedite & correct the problem. Works as a team member with health care providers and other administrative staff in preventing & resolving patient complaints. Consistently responds to requests from patients, families &/ or caregivers, visitors & co-workers for prompt assistance, & in a friendly manner. Supplies the requested information when the questions concerns information, they are familiar with or can easily obtain (e.g., status of reports, suspense dates, procedural requirements.) The incumbent must arrange suitable accommodations & coordinate times with various hospital personnel for meetings, compile agendas, & attend & record proceedings. Incumbent abstracts, edits & codes patient records or other pertinent research & quality assessment data; retrieves patient information from other clinical / management settings & other computer systems; abstracts & analyzes published & unpublished documents, patient records, other pertinent research & clinical databases. Shares any information obtained from the patient or family with the clinical staff to assist in diagnosis, treatment & appropriate referral. The incumbent provides input into the design of data collection instruments & procedures; selection of appropriate measures & techniques; study implementation & interpretation of results. Performs data entry & other data processing tasks. Responsible for completeness, accuracy, & accessibility of data for analytical purposes. Manages database for data entry of demographic data, provider-specific clinical data, historical data, & patient-related data. Maintains program records & all policies/ procedure manuals to meet The Joint Commission & VHA standards. The incumbent will also be responsible for numerous reports within community health including, but not limited to; updating contracts & purchase agreements; balancing spreadsheets for event capture; analyzing DSS reports. Clerical functions are varied depending on the need of the program & include, but not limited to: answering telephone inquiries, contracting staff in the field when appropriate, maintaining files & record keeping systems, assisting with the preparation of reports & marketing materials, & facilitating communication with the Hospice / Palliative Care Team & the Pain Clinic; maintains a files for program support; monitors references & attendance records of annual training. The incumbent will serve as a Program Support Assistant to the Hospice / Palliative Care Teams & the Pain Clinic, including staff such as Palliative Care Medical Director, providers, support staff, & other clinical / non-clinical staff assigned to ECRS as needed. Duties are varied, non-routine, & consist of handling data & coordination for program patients.Incumbent will utilize a variety of software programs & communication tools to input & retrieve data as required. Collect, enter, & manage data, including both patient data & program data as well as provide backup support in completing the minutes of weekly inter-disciplinary meetings. The incumbent processes incoming & outgoing materials such as correspondence, reports, memoranda, & other forms of written communication. Research & assemble background information on the subject of incoming correspondence prior to expediting referrals. Obtain, organize, file & retrieve reports, correspondence, & numerical data for use in preparing status reports, briefings & presentations. Analyze workflow to determine potential problem areas & make recommendations to correct these areas to improve coordination between the various units, offices, or departments. Schedules appointments, coordinates meetings, &/or schedules conferences & teleconference. Listens to all patient feedback & acts to resolve complaints within his or her control, reports feedback to appropriate persons in a timely manner. Provides support that is appropriate to the cognitive, physical, & emotional needs of the patent groups served. The incumbent may interact with people at age levels ranging from adults (aged 18-64) through senior adults (aged 65 & over); & must be aware of & respond appropriately to the physical, social & psychological differences among these age groups. Duty Station: This position is located at the Jefferson Barracks division, but may be changed to any other VASTLHCS location at any time. Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Position Description/PD#: Program Support Asst (OA)/PD078710

Requirements

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 09/15/2023. 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-06 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-05. 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-05 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: preparation of correspondence, compiling information for recurring reports, maintenance of files, suspense follow-up, contacts with supervisors/employees at all levels and general clerical work. You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position: Computer SkillsCustomer Service (Clerical/Technical)Organizational StewardshipTechnical CompetenceWriting 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: The work is basically sedentary, but with a great deal of walking to all parts of the Medical Center is required since the incumbent will be working with a variety of clinical & administrative services. 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

There is no educational substitution at this grade level.

Contacts

• Address VA St Louis Health Care System 1 Jefferson Barracks Drive St. Louis, MO 63125 US
• Name: Harold Gotsch
• Phone: (314) 643-7995
• Email: [email protected]