This position is located in the Pathology & Laboratory Medicine Service (P&LMS) at the Saginaw Aleda E. Lutz VA Medical Center. The incumbent is a Health Technician (Phlebotomist) performing a variety of clinical and administrative functions.

Duties

The Health Technician processes a wide variety of complex specimens from hospitalized patients and patients from outpatient and community-based clinics. Receives, routes and stores specimens noting labeling, contamination, hemolysis, shortage or other errors in sampling, recognizing common environmental or other considerations that could affect the results. Reconciles and verifies sample types and volumes with electronic orders and hard copy requisitions. Ensures samples have the correct UID (Universal Identification) accession number label as appropriate and that label is placed so bar codes are instrument ready. Ensures correct routing of clinical samples to laboratory sections, informing other staff of sample urgency as necessary. The Technician must be familiar with tests performed throughout the laboratory, i.e. chemistry, hematology, urinalysis, coagulation, microbiology, and cytology. They must be familiar with the multitude of laboratory send-out tests, their respective requirements, and requirements noted by the laboratories where they are performed. Selects the correct method of resolution for problem samples and orders and informs team leader or supervisor of problems that cannot be resolved. May add, delete and cancel tests from existing orders as necessary and according to policy, annotating proper date, time and initials on the sample. Performs manual procedures as required during computer down times. Prepares samples, slides, smears, or other types of specimens (i.e., blood, urine, tissue) common to the laboratory. Follows standard procedures and applies a practical knowledge of the properties of the specimens to ensure effective presentation of the qualities or characteristics critical for accurate testing or examination. The incumbent has the knowledge to perform selected low complexity tests and provide technical support and assistance to the Medical Technologists in the Laboratory. Keeps area clean and hazard free. The incumbent performs blood collection safely using a variety of phlebotomy techniques including vacutainer system and butterfly collection sets with minimal number of failures, patient bruising or required repeat collection, ensuring samples are submitted to the clinical laboratory with least possible delay. The incumbent will be required to correctly label all blood tubes, instructs patients on proper specimen collection procedures and provide service in a friendly, compassionate, Veteran centric manner. The incumbent is appropriately educated in identifying adverse reactions to venipuncture procedures, such as dizziness, nausea and hematomas. Following proper procedures when incidents of fainting and convulsions occur is anticipated to be carried out until further help arrives. Verify and evaluate a variety of physician generated test orders for these specimens in VISTA, generates bar coded patient identification labels with laboratory testing accession numbers, affixes the labels to the correct specimens. Prepares and processes a variety of specimen types, recognizing appropriate test requirements according to laboratory information guidelines for shipping and transport. Accuracy must be exercised during this process to ensure correct identification of the patient specimen and correlation of sample and test orders. Errors may result in serious adverse outcomes for patients and errors are not an acceptable practice. Duties include, but are not limited to: Safely collects blood from patients for requested laboratory tests. This includes special drawing techniques and assuring proper tubes are used and the correct amount of blood is drawn. Verifies patient as the individual denoted on the request and labels all tubes with the patient's name, social security number, date and time to insure proper identification. Performs glucose Tolerance Tests and other specialized blood collections as indicated. Incumbent has direct patient contact and must treat all patients with the utmost courtesy and respect. Performs all types of specimen collection in a courteous manner. Provides for patient comfort. Functions as a resource person and troubleshooter for clinic personnel in executing VISTA order entry and results options. Reviews orders in CPRS to ensure that all necessary orders are drawn. Provides order numbers to technical staff for orders that need to be cancelled for various reasons, i.e. duplicate order, patient no longer on medication, etc. Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 7am - 3:30pm, with rotating weekends and holidays. Compressed/Flexible: Not Available Financial Disclosure Report: Not required Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Position Description/PD#: Health Technician (Phlebotomist)/PD91101A Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized

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

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 01/08/2024. Time-In-Grade Requirement: For non-federal employees, you must prove you have one year of specialized experience at the equivalent GS-4 level on your resume. See examples of specialized experience below. 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-05 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-04. 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: Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-04 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: Phlebotomy work including proper specimen collection by venipuncture or capillary collection techniques, proper patient identification, using 2 approved patient identifiers, understanding specimen handling requirements and specimen viability, understanding and processing laboratory orders, provides patient instruction on specimen collections such as random or 24 hour urine collections, sputum collections or other patient collected specimens. OR, Education: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have: Successful completion of a full 4-year course of study leading to a bachelor's degree, with major study or at least 24 semester hours in subjects directly related to the position. You must provide a copy of your transcript. You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position: 1. Performs blood collection using a variety of phlebotomy techniques, with a minimal number of failures, patient bruising or required repeat collections for the following sections of the Clinical Laboratory: Chemistry, Hematology, Serology, Immunolohematology, Microbiology, and Coagulation. 2. Instructs outpatients how to provide proper specimens for urine and sputum cultures, occult blood screens, semen analysis, and collection of 24- hour urine samples. Processes a wide variety of complex specimens from hospitalized patients and patients from outpatient and community-based clinics. Instructs patients in proper sterile midstream urine collections. 3. Prepares samples, slides, smears, or other types of specimens (i.e., blood, urine, tissue) common to the laboratory. follows standard procedures and applies a practical knowledge of the properties of the specimens to ensure effective presentation of the qualities or characteristics critical for accurate testing or examination. The incumbent has knowledge to perform low complexity tests and provide technical support and assistance to the Medical Technologist in the laboratory. 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: The work requires extensive and recurring physical exertion such as standing for long periods of time, bending, lifting, walking, stooping and stretching. The work requires manual dexterity and a large degree of concentration. 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 Aleda E Lutz Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center 1500 Weiss Street Saginaw, MI 48602 US
• Name: Karen Townley
• Phone: 802-291-3794
• Email: [email protected]