OUR MISSION: To fulfill President Lincoln's promise "To care for those who have served in our nation's military and for their families, caregivers, and survivors" - by serving and honoring the men and women who are America's Veterans. How would you like to become a part of a team providing compassionate whole health care to Veterans?

Duties

The incumbent is a member of the Prosthetics and Sensory Aids Service (PSAS) located at VAMC Milwaukee. This medical center has an active outpatient treatment program and includes, but not limited to, Audiology & Speech Pathology, Visual Impairment Service Team, Spinal Cord Injury, Rehabilitation Medicine, Medical Services, Surgical Service, Ophthalmology, and Orthopedic Services. PSAS have coordination of the Amputee Clinic and Major Medical Committee. This facility also includes active Community Based Outpatient clinics throughout Wisconsin and specialized clinical referrals from outside VISN 12. Duties: -Use appropriate codes prior to purchasing items/equipment. -Examine electronic health records and claim files to determine eligibility and entitlement for items. -Enter data to create, note, cancel, complete and consult, and verify workload statistics. -Advise the veteran, family member, or other representatives, of equipment and delivery status. -Advise physicians and other staff as to the availability, selection, and acquisition of prosthetics devices/services and furnish information concerning new developments. -Maintain association with vendors, medical center professionals and staff. -Authorize and prepare complex purchase orders for a wide variety of prosthetic and orthotic devices, medical supplies, and home medical equipment and repairs.. -Reconcile invoices for certification of payment. -Assist with orientation and training of new Purchasing Agents/Clerks in ordering of appropriate prosthetic appliances, purchase card reconciliation, stock and inventory control. Collects data used in preparing and submitting numerous reports. -Completes other duties as assigned. At the GS- 5 and 6 grade level you will perform developmental assignments intended to broaden skill and provide practical experience leading to progressively more complex assignments performed under less supervision. Promotion Potential: The selectee may be promoted to the full performance level without further competition when all regulatory, qualification, and performance requirements are met. Selection at a lower grade level does not guarantee promotion to the full performance level. Work Schedule: Monday-Friday, normal business hours Compressed/Flexible: Not Available Telework: VA supports the use of telework as a way to help attract and retain talented individuals in public service, increase worker productivity, and better prepare the agency to operate during emergencies. This position may be authorized for telework. Telework eligibility will be discussed during the interview process. Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Position Description/PD#: Purchasing Agent/PD99434A Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not Approved 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 closing date of this announcement, 12/15/2023. 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-6 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-5. For a GS-7 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-6. 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 and/or education as described below: GS-5 Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-4 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: Qualifying specialized experience includes performing administrative duties in a healthcare setting; reviewing and working with patients' medical records; completing training or assisting in routine and complex specialized purchases for clinics including medical equipment, prosthetic and orthotic appliances; utilizing computer software programs; and communicating with internal and external customers via various methods.. OR, Education: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have successfully completed four (4) years above the high school level in any field for which high school graduation or the equivalent is the normal prerequisite. (This education must have been obtained in an accredited business, secretarial or technical school, junior college, college, or university.). OR, Combination: Applicants may also combine education and experience to qualify at this level. You must have an combination of specialized experience and education beyond . GS-06 SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE: Do you possess at least one (1) full year of specialized experience at the GS-5 level that equipped you with the knowledge, skills and abilities to perform successfully the duties of the Purchasing Agent position, and that is typically in or related to the duties of this position? To be credible, specialized experience must have been equivalent to at least the GS-5 level in the Federal Service. Qualifying specialized experience includes interpreting prescriptions and requests for medical equipment and services; maintaining regular contact with vendors, contractors, medical center professionals and staff; utilizing a variety of databases and computer systems; purchasing equipment, supplies and services using an agency/organization purchase card; and reconciling charges and preparing and submitting reports. SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE GS- 7: You must have at least one (1) full year of specialized experience at the GS- 6 level that equipped you with the knowledge, skills and abilities to perform successfully the duties of the Purchasing Agent position, and that is typically in or related to the duties of this position? To be credible, specialized experience must have been equivalent to at least the GS- 6 level in the Federal Service. Specialized experience for this position would consist of:Qualifying specialized experience includes Specialized experience includes utilizing electronic contracting databases or systems, submitting plans and procurement packages to contracting offices; interpreting and analyzing prescriptions and requests for medical equipment and services; maintaining regular contact and resolving issues with vendors, contractors, medical center professionals and staff; purchasing equipment, supplies and services using an agency/organization purchase card; and reconciling charges and preparing and submitting reports. You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position: Attention to DetailCustomer Service (Clerical/Technical)Manages ResourcesTechnical Competence 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: Work is primarily sedentary and is carried out in an office setting. There are prolonged periods of working at a computer terminal. The ability to retrieve equipment from a storage room is required. Climbing associated with stocking of equipment and other items in a storage area is necessary. He/she may carry and/or lift items weighting up to fifty pounds. Work is accomplished in a health care office with the possibility of coming into contact with ill and diseased patients. He/she has direct daily contact with patients and will handle equipment returned from veterans. Normal duties are performed in an office setting which has adequate heat, light and ventilation; however, on a daily basis he/she must retrieve prosthetics items from various storage areas. May on occasion, accompany the Manager and/or Prosthetic Representative on visits to patients homes or to a vendor for shop inspections. 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

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 Clement J Zablocki Veterans Administration Medical Center 5000 West National Avenue Milwaukee, WI 53295 US
• Name: Lesley Hynes
• Phone: 414-712-8259
• Email: [email protected]