This position is located within the Nursing, Operations Service at the Montana VA Health Care System, and works with the surgical and endoscopy team members in planning and implementing complex procedures under the general supervision of the Surgical Nurse Manager.

Duties

The Surgical Technician serves as a primary scrub person responsible for handling instruments, supplies, and equipment during all surgical procedures per facility's complexity designation, including but not limited to general, GYN, podiatry, ophthalmology, orthopedic, and urology surgeries. Duties include, but are not limited to: Assists the surgical team with patient positioning, prepping, and setting up the operative field. Provides transportation of patients to and from the surgical/operating room. Recognizes changes in patient condition and takes appropriate actions in response to the situation. Provides guidance and support to staff regarding infection control and patient safety protocol. Provides emotional support to patients before, during and after surgery. Plans and discusses each procedure with surgical professionals to determine proper positioning and assurances of all supplies/equipment are available. Assists the surgeon by performing such procedures as preparing skin grafts, suctioning, holding retractors, applying skin staples, and cutting sutures. Prepares prosthesis and/or surgical devices during procedures. Assists in training staff in the operation of equipment, sterile technique, handling of instruments, and operating room/surgical procedures. Utilizes medical terminology when interpreting requests and provide proper documentation for surgical procedures. Prepares, organizes, and maintains highly complex sterile surgical setups. Utilizes universal precautions to protect patients and staff from exposure to any infectious materials. Follows all infection control policies and procedures when handling specimens, supplies, and equipment. Monitors and maintains sterile practices throughout surgical procedures. Cleans and sterilizes surgical equipment using appropriate methods, germicides and sterilizers. Handles instruments, supplies and equipment during a variety of surgical procedures. Sets up sterile field with all required items (equipment, instruments, supplies and/or devices) for each procedure. Anticipates the needs of the surgeon by maintaining a high level of concentration for extended periods of time. Understands and follows protocols for handling various specimens. Performs sharps, sponge, and instrument counts of surgical items before and after surgical procedures. Assists surgical team members to identify and implement performance improvement measures. Monitors proper functioning of instruments and equipment at the surgical field. Determines the effectiveness of sterilization, packing, storage, and shelf life. Observes and responds promptly to each stage of the surgical procedure. Work Schedule: Monday-Friday, 6:00am-2:30pm Position Description Title/PD#: Surgical Technician/PD13802A Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Physical Requirements: Duties regularly require providing manual assistance in lifting and positioning patients, most of who are at stages of unconsciousness. There are extensive periods of regular and recurring standing, walking, bending, lifting, pushing, reaching, and prolonged stretching to provide easy accessibility of instruments, supplies, and equipment for the surgeon. The Surgical Technician must be dexterous in passing instruments to surgeons without compromising principles of aseptic technique, and must have an acute awareness of his/her personal footprint in relation to sterile field maintenance.

Requirements

• You must be a U.S. citizen to apply for this job
• Subject to a background/suitability investigation
• Designated and/or random drug testing may be required
• May serve a probationary period
• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959
• A complete application package; Resume, Transcripts, etc
• Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process
• Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP)
• Participation in the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccination program is a requirement for all Veterans Health Administration Health Care Personnel (HCP) - See "Additional Information" below for details.
• Per 5 CFR 330.502, general restriction on movement after competitive appointment applies.

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement. Individual Occupational Requirement (IOR): The Health Aid and Technician Series 0640 has a minimum qualification entry requirement: Specialized Experience: Positions in this series range widely in type and include support duties to medical or health personnel such as audiologists, speech pathologists, medical officers, and optometrists. Therefore, technician experience is experience that required application of the knowledge, methods, and techniques of the position to be filled. AND, You may qualify based on your experience and/or education for the GS-6 grade level as described below: Specialized Experience: One year of specialized experience (equivalent to the GS-5 grade level in the federal service); experience that equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills and abilities (KSA's) and other characteristics to perform successfully the duties of the position, and that is typically in or related to the work of the position to be filled, in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Specialized experience includes: assisting with the preparation and protection of sterile fields during surgery; monitoring and maintaining aseptic techniques throughout surgical procedures; handling medical instruments, supplies and equipment during surgical procedures; performing proper cleaning techniques, as well as the proper handling and rotation of sterile supplies; handling contaminated items, quality control, and personal hygiene, using knowledge of universal precautions and implementing infection control policies and procedures. OR, Education: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have completed one-half year of graduate education (9 semester hours) or an internship in course matter that must include courses directly related to the work of the Surgical Technician position such as anatomy and physiology, surgical technology, aseptic techniques, etc. This education must have been obtained in an accredited college or university. OR, Combination: Applicants may also combine education and experience to qualify at this level. You must have an equivalent combination of specialized experience and graduate level education, as described above, which meet the total experience requirements for this grade level. The education portion must include graduate courses directly related to the work of the Surgical Technician position, and must have been obtained in an accredited college or university. Preferred Experience: Surgical Scrub Technician experience. To calculate, first identify the percentage of required education you have earned (when substituting, you cannot use the first 60 semester hours that you earned). Then identify the percentage of required experience you possess. Add the two percentages. The total percentage must equal at least 100 percent to qualify at the GS-6. For example, an applicant who has 9 semester hours of graduate level education (i.e. 50% of graduate education required) and 6 months of creditable specialized experience (i.e. 50% of the required experience) would equal 100% of the required experience for the position A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education. 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.

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.

Contacts

• Address Fort Harrison VA Medical Center 3687 Veterans Drive Fort Harrison, MT 59636 US
• Name: Ruthie Diaz
• Phone: (303) 202-8660
• Email: [email protected]