The Supervisor Med Supply Technician (Sterile Processing) at Ralph H. Johnson VAMC is responsible for the direct supervision of day-to-day operations in SPS, regardless of tour of duty, including reusable medical devices (RMD) reprocessing for all clinical services.

Duties

Duties include, but are not limited to: In conjunction with the Educator, the Supervisor will be responsible for operational deployment of a comprehensive training program for all SPS staff. Communicate daily with customers in order to ensure open communication that results in uninterrupted and consistently accurate flow of necessary RMD supplies for procedures. Plans work to be accomplished by subordinates, sets and adjusts short term priorities, and prepares schedules for completion of work. Adjusts assignments during a workday to alleviate choke points in reprocessing activities. Assigns work to subordinates based on priorities, selective consideration of the difficulty and requirements of assignments, staff designation as competent to complete and task, and the capability of the employee. Participates in Interview Panels and makes recommendations regarding hiring decisions. Provides recommendations regarding promotion and advancement of the Medical Supply Technicians on respective shifts. Resolves complaints from employees, referring group grievances and more serious unresolved complaints to a higher-level supervisor or manager. Finds ways to improve production or increase the quality of work directed and assists in development of performance standards. Establishes guidelines and performance expectations for staff, which are cleary communicated through the formal employee performance management system. Observes workers' performance, demonstrates and conducts work performance critiques. Provides informal feedback and evaluates employee performance. Develops work improvement plans, recommending personnel actions as necessary. Provides advice and counsel to workers related to technical work and administrative matters. Provides training to subordinates to fully comply with provisions of safety regulations. Makes operational decisions based upon findings, observations or problems presented by subordinate technicians and direct observation. Advises the SPS Assistant Chief and Chief of problems in the organization's activities, and provides input to the Assistant Chief that may lead to disciplinary actions, such as counseling and formal disciplinary action, within the framework of progressive discipline. Directly oversees the work of employees under his/her supervision, orients new employees to their duties, validates competencies of employees, identifies equipment requirements, and recommends methods to improve the quality and productivity of the service. Maintains a current, in-depth knowledge of the SPS Quality Assurance (QA) Program. Conducts a variety of projects, studies, and analyses of problem areas related to non­ conformities in the Loaner policy Reviews the OR schedule daily and ensures all needed RMD and/or equipment is readily available to OR staff and provides updates to the respective Service and Section Chiefs. Perform other duties as assigned by management. Work Schedule: Monday - Friday 8:00 am - 4:30 pm. Tour of duty subject to change based on agency needs. Telework: Not Available Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Functional Statement #: 10724F Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Not required

Requirements

Qualifications

Applicants pending the completion of educational or certification/licensure requirements may be referred and tentatively selected but may not be hired until all requirements are met. 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. Experience and/or Education Experience: Six months of experience that demonstrates the applicant's ability to perform the work or provides an understanding of the work; OR Education: One year above high school that included at least 6 semester hours in health care related courses such as sterile processing, nursing assistant, hospital corpsman, and operating room and surgical technician courses or other courses related to the position; OR Experience/Education Combination: Equivalent combination of experience and education are qualifying for entry level for which both education and experience are acceptable. Certification. None English Language Proficiency: MSTs must be proficient in spoken and written English in accordance with chapter 3, section A, paragraph 3j, this part. May qualify based on being covered by the Grandfathering Provision as described in the VA Qualification Standard for this occupation (only applicable to current VHA employees who are in this occupation and meet the criteria). Grandfathering Provision: All MSTs that are 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, that are 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) Employees grandfathered into the GS-0622 occupational series as MSTs may be reassigned, promoted up to and including the full performance (journeyman) level, or changed to lower grade within the occupation. (2) MSTs who are appointed on a temporary basis prior to the effective date of the qualification standard may not have their temporary appointment extended or be reappointed, on a temporary or permanent basis until they fully meet the basic requirements of the standard. (3) MSTs who are converted to title 38 hybrid status under this provision and subsequently leave the occupation lose protected status and must meet the full VA qualification standard requirements in effect at the time of reentry to the occupation Grade Determinations: The following criteria must be met when determining grade of candidates. GS-08 Supervisory Medical supply Technician (Sterile Processing) Experience: One year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade level GS-07. Experience at this level includes, but is not limited to: Assembles highly complex instrument sets including, but not limited to, open heart, major orthopedic total joint, cardiovascular, craniotomy and complex endoscopic instrumentation. Processes all complex endoscopic instrumentation to include those medical devices used in the gastroenterology laboratory, bronchoscopy laboratory, urology and operating room. Reviews manufacturer guidelines to ensure the correct methods and parameters are followed when cleaning, decontaminating and sterilizing RME. Troubleshoots and analyzes mechanical failures and makes necessary adjustments to complex decontamination and sterilization equipment, as well as interprets alarm conditions which may occur while operating the equipment. Informs management and healthcare staff when cleaning and processing standard operating procedures (SOPs) or instruction for use have been changed or updated to assure the changes have been validated to meet all guidelines. In addition to the experience above, you must demonstrate the following Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (KSAs). If the experience is not detailed in your resume, then it is recommended to update your resume and/or include a separate document that speaks to the below list of KSAs. Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate the following KSAs: Ability to manage, interact and deal with individuals of varying backgrounds. Ability to direct staff and manage tasks to be completed. Ability to oversee and supervise all aspects of decontamination, preparation, sterilization, monitoring, and distribution of RME. Ability to perform a full range of supervisory duties, including assigning, planning and evaluating work, recommending awards, approving leave, identifying training needs, and resolving staff issues. Assignment: The Supervisory MST functions as a first-level supervisor responsible for the oversight of a group of MSTs, with administrative responsibility for planning and directing the work. Oversees attendance and leave, including approval of sick and annual leave and vacation schedules. Informs higher level management of anticipated vacancies or increases in workload. Recommends promotions, reassignments, recognition of superior performance, retention or release of probationary employees or other changes of assigned personnel. Holds corrective interviews with employees, referring disciplinary problems to higher levels of management. Resolves informal complaints of employees and deals with union representatives on personnel matters. Provides technical supervision necessary for accomplishing the work of the organizational unit. Preferred Experience: At least three to five years experience as Medical Supply Technician (Sterile Processing) References: VA Handbook 5005, Part II, Appendix G47, Medical Supply Technician (Sterile Processing Qualification Standards) The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-08. Physical Requirements: This work is performed in various settings: decontamination, preparation, clean sterile supply (preparation) and in other services and departments throughout the medical facility/campus. The incumbent may be required to work in areas that are hot, cold, drafty and poorly lighted. The employee is subject to the possibility of falls, scrapes, cuts, bruises, and other injuries from material handling equipment. The work requires standing and walking during the entire workday and frequent bending and lifting of packages (occasionally weighing as much as 50 pounds). The work requires dexterity and visual acuity for manipulating, disassembly and assembly of instrumentation. On a regular and recurring basis, the employee alternates between a contaminated environment and a carefully controlled clean environment. The employee wears special clothing, hair covers, personal protective equipment and shoe covers that can be uncomfortably warm. The employee uses insulated gloves to remove carts from sterilizers. The employee is subject to burns from accidentally touching hot items. The hazards of working around minute quantities of sterilizing gasses are unknown. The employee often works around body fluids, mucous, excretions and bits of tissue, some of which may be foul smelling. Strong, unpleasant odors are encountered while decontaminating bloody or grossly contaminated instrumentation or reusable medical devices. The work area is noisy due to the clatter of metal instruments, rumbling of carts and operation of pre-sterilizing equipment.

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 Ralph H Johnson Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center 109 Bee Street Charleston, SC 29401 US
• Name: Detelshia Baker
• Phone: (281) 928-3768
• Email: [email protected]