The Advanced Level Medical Support Assistant (AMSA) position serves as a Consult Coordinator and is a foundational role within the continuum of patient care. This position is located offsite on Phelan Avenue in Memphis, TN. This is an open continuous announcement until 9/30/2024. Initial cutoff day for referral of eligible applications will be . Qualified applicants will be considered and referred as vacancies become available.

Duties

The AMSA works collaboratively with other members of expanded health care teams (i.e., PACT, specialty care) including Community Care providers, pharmacists, social workers, dieticians, behavioral health staff, etc. to provide a robust interdisciplinary approach to care. Important interfaces and collaborations also occur with larger health care system providers including VA and non-VA specialists, hospitals, diagnostic and treating facilities, and community-based programs. Major Duties: Assists the clinical providers in coordinating certain administrative details, appointment schedules and clinic consult services Supports patient safety standards using the correct Veterans Affairs identification of all patients Explains the VA's mandate to collect insurance information to Veterans, their families, and other eligible patients Promotes Veteran registration for and utilization of MyHealtheVet (MHV) May be required to train other MSA levels on the Community Care process Tactfully deal with Veterans who have multiple health problems and who may be frustrated with the administrative process associated with diagnosis and treatment Screen/receive phone calls in a courteous and timely manner, determine the nature of requests and provide the information desired using privacy rules and established processes Responsible for generating authorizations for pre-authorized outpatient, unauthorized and emergency care claims, while making eligibility determinations for the various programs in Community Medical Care Acts as a liaison between the Veteran and the vendors regarding Community Medical Care section and VA clinical services and/or primary care services Collaborates with VA clinicians, third party administrator (TPA) and community clinicians to obtain clinical documentation and direction to further coordinate, plan, organize, and direct outpatient/inpatient community care and complex outpatient/inpatient diagnostic procedures Contacts clinicians, hospitals, pharmacies, Veterans and their accredited representatives to obtain supportive information for authorization of care Research problem cases and rejected payments often using ingenuity and foresight in their resolution Retrieves, views, and processes Secondary Authorization Requests (SARs) and send them to the appropriate approving authority for disposition Work Schedule: Full-time; Monday-Friday, 8:00am - 4:30pm Telework: Not Available Virtual: This is not a virtual position Functional Statement #: 000000 Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Not required

Requirements

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the cut-off date of each applicant referral for this announcement. Basic Requirements: United States Citizenship: Non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy. English Language Proficiency: MSAs must be proficient in spoken and written English in accordance with VA Handbook 5005, Part II, Chapter 3, Section A, paragraph 3.j. Experience and Education: (1) Experience. Six months experience of clerical, office, customer service, or other administrative work that indicates the ability to acquire the particular knowledge and skills needed to perform the duties of the position; OR (2) Education. One year above high school; OR (3) Experience/Education Combination. Equivalent combination of experience and education are qualifying for entry level for which both education and experience are acceptable. Certification. None required. English Language Proficiency. MSAs must be proficient in spoken and written English in accordance with VA Handbook 5005, part II, chapter 3, section A, paragraph 3j. Foreign Education. To be creditable, education completed outside the U.S. must have been submitted to a private organization that specializes in the interpretation of foreign educational credentials and such education must have been deemed at least equivalent to that gained in conventional U.S. programs. Grade Determinations: In addition to the basic requirements for employment listed above, the following education and experience criteria must be met when determining the grade of candidates: Medical Support Assistant (Advanced), GS-6: Experience. One year of experience equivalent to the GS-5 grade level. GS-5 grade level experience includes, but is not limited to, independently performing a full range of duties related to the delivery of healthcare services in an inpatient or outpatient setting: advises clinical staff on current administrative processes; responsible for answering phones, greeting patients, relaying messages to appropriate staff inside or outside the unit; scheduling appointments, including interpreting and verifying provider orders; canceling and re-scheduling patient appointments and/or consults; entering no-show information; monitoring appointment requests from multiple electronic sources; verifying and updating demographics and insurance information; and, coordinating administrative functions relating to emergency and non-emergency transfers to other facilities. AND Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. Candidates must demonstrate all of the KSAs below: Ability to collaborate and communicate with a wide range of medical clinicians across multiple disciplines (e.g. medical doctors, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, psychologists, psychiatrists, social workers, clinical pharmacists, and nursing staff) to accomplish team goal setting to ensure medical care to patients is met. Ability to independently set priorities and organize work to meet deadlines, ensuring compliance with established processes, policies, and regulations. Ability to communicate tactfully and effectively, electronically, by phone, in person, and in writing with internal and external customers. This may include preparing reports in various formats and presenting data to various organizational levels, as well as resolving patient concerns. Advanced knowledge of the technical health care process (including, but not limited to, scheduling across interdisciplinary coordinated care delivery and/or care in the community models and patient health care portals) as it relates to access to care. Advanced knowledge of policies and procedures associated with interdisciplinary coordinated care delivery and/or care in the community operational activities that affect patient flow, and patient support care administrative functions to include, but not limited to appointment cycles, outside patient referrals, follow-up care, overbooking, provider availability, etc. Advanced knowledge of medical terminology due to the technical nature of language utilized by clinicians. References: VA Handbook 5005, Part II, Appendix G45 Note: You must provide detailed information of your experience performed. Information such as "I was a Medical Support Assistant" is insufficient to determine your qualifications. Experience must be fully documented on your resume and must include job title, duties, month and year start/end dates AND hour worked per week. Physical Requirements: Typically, the Advanced Medical Support Assistant must be able to operate a computer terminal and be able to manage multiple activities at one time. Work is generally sedentary; however, there may be some walking, standing, bending, and carrying of light items. Work Environment: The work may be stressful due to the accelerated pace for several hours at a time during peak clinic hours or on days that have a large volume of clinic activity.

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 Memphis VA Medical Center 1030 Jefferson Avenue Memphis, TN 38104 US
• Name: Charity Street
• Phone: 615-695-2157
• Email: [email protected]