Lead Medical Support Assistants(LMSA) manage all front desk duties of the Dental Clinic, to include, but not limited to scheduling, canceling, rescheduling patients' appointments, entering no show information, consult management, and responding to voicemail in a timely and professional manner. Ensures gaps in the doctors' schedules due to late cancellations and failed appointments are filled wherever possible-reschedules cancellations-in accordance with VHA national scheduling guidelines.

Duties

Lead MSAs provide the full range of administrative duties which includes assignment of work and assisting with performance evaluations, selection of staff, and recommendation of awards and/or advancements. The incumbent will collaborate, communicate, and demonstrate customer service and interpersonal skills with all healthcare professionals to ensure quality/continuity of care and ensure compliance with established policies and regulations. He/she provides briefings, orientations, staff development and training. Specifically, the leadership duties of this position require the incumbent to have extensive and thorough knowledge of VHA Dental eligibility guidelines, rules, and regulations, assure adequate coverage in the unit each day; distribute and balance the workload among MSA in accordance with established work flow expectations; assure timely completion of the expected daily call volume; track the status and progress of work, and make day-to-day adjustments in accordance with established priorities, obtaining assistance from the Dental Supervisor on problems that may arise such as backlogs in calls which cannot be disposed of promptly; instruct employees in specific tasks and job techniques and make available written instructions, reference materials, and supplies; provide unit orientation and give on-the- job training to new employees in accordance with established procedures and practices; maintain a current knowledge to advise and answer questions of other employees on procedures, policies, directives, etc.; monitor calls in progress and review completed work to see that Dental Supervisor 's instruction on work sequence, procedures, methods and scheduling requirements have been met; provide immediate feedback to MSAs deviating from established standards; refer to Dental Supervisor questions or matters not covered by standards and problems in meeting performance standards; monitor working conditions such as seating, ventilation, lighting, safety, etc.; inform employees of available services and employee activities; resolve simple, informal complaints of employees and refer others to Dental Supervisor; report to Dental Supervisor on performance, progress, problems and training needs of employees; and provide information to Dental Supervisor as requested concerning reassignment, recognition of outstanding performance, and personnel needs; responds to Patient Advocate Office concerns; determines and provides clinical care coordination when necessary. Designing training materials and spreadsheets necessary for tracking work progress in the unit by using MS Word, Excel, and/or PowerPoint. The Lead MSA continually monitors the Consult Management activity to ensure timely response and processing of each consult. He/she notifies the Dental Supervisor if time or processing exceeds the standard, and when aware of other significant problems. The Lead MSA actively participates in Dental planning, problem identification and problem- resolution through multi-disciplinary program meetings. He/she works with the Dental Supervisor to assure all dental accreditation standards are met. Other duties include, and but not limited to: Maintaining working knowledge and understanding the operation of VISTA, VATAS, and CPRS systems. Work Schedule: Monday to Friday, 8:00 am - 4:30 pm. Telework: Not Available Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Functional Statement #: 000000 Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: AUTHORIZED Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Not required

Requirements

Qualifications

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. Grandfathering Provision. All MSAs employed in VHA in this occupation on the effective date of this qualification standard are considered to have met all qualification requirements for the title, series, and grade held, [which] are [a] part of the basic requirements of the occupation. For employees who do not meet all the basic requirements required in this standard, but who met the qualifications applicable to the position at the time they were appointed to it, the following provisions apply: (1) Such employees may be reassigned, promoted, or changed to a lower grade within the occupation. 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. Grade Determinations: GS-7 Experience. One year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade (GS-06) level. In addition to the one year of specialized experience at the next lowest grade (GS-06) level, candidates must demonstrate the below KSAs: i. Advanced knowledge of medical terminology and a wide range of clinical flow processes relating to access to care across multiple clinics, specialties, and/or community resources. ii. Ability to utilize numerous advanced patient systems in support of multiple clinics in an interdisciplinary setting. iii. Ability to organize work, set priorities, and delegate tasks/responsibilities in order to meet deadlines. iv. Skill in communicating with individuals to obtain the desired effect and coordinating with a variety of interdisciplinary care team staff. v. Ability to provide staff development and training. vi. Ability to manage staffing requirements, manage workflow priorities, and adjust the flow of work to meet team and patient needs. This includes the ability to follow-up on pending issues and demonstrate an understanding of the impact of incomplete work across multiple clinics. Assignment The Lead MSA [is responsible for the coordination of Advanced MSA assignments and workflow found in an interdisciplinary unit. The Lead MSA is responsible for daily workload assessments, assigning work, and assuring proper staffing coverage; evaluating training records; and determining training needs of MSAs to provide support across interdisciplinary settings. The Lead assists the unit with complex and non-standard procedures, including clinical flow processes related to access to care across multiple clinics, specialties, and/or community resources. Assignments at this level include, but are not limited to: ensuring accurate and timely scheduling of appointments; providing guidance to staff members, to include changes in policies and procedures; creating and maintaining employee work schedules; and acting as a liaison among Advanced MSA staff, patients, and other interdisciplinary staff to resolve day-to-day conflicts.] For all assignments above the full performance level, the higher-level duties must consist of significant scope, administrative independence, complexity (difficulty) and range of variety as described in this standard at the specified grade level and be performed by the incumbent at least 25% of the time. References: VA HANDBOOK 5005/117, PART II, APPENDIX G45. MEDICAL SUPPORT ASSISTANT QUALIFICATION STANDARD, GS-0679, Veterans Health Administration, August 1, 2019. The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-7. The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is GS-7. Physical Requirements: Light lifting, under 15 pounds. Light carrying, under 15 pounds. Ability for rapid mental and muscular coordination simultaneously. Hearing (aid may be permitted). Unusual fatigue factors: mental strain / vigilance. Working closely with others. Working alone. Protracted or irregular hours of work. Possible contact with blood or infectious materials.

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 Palo Alto VA Medical Center 3801 Miranda Avenue Palo Alto, CA 94304 US
• Name: Herbert Lum
• Phone: 702-791-9000 X14057
• Email: [email protected]