Position is eligible for the Education Debt Reduction Program (EDRP), a student loan payment reimbursement. You must meet specific individual eligibility requirements in accordance with VHA policy and submit the EDRP application within 4 months of appointment. Approval, award amount (up to $200K) and eligibility period (1-5 yrs) are determined by the VHA Education Loan Repayment Services office after review of the application. EDRP Coordinators can be reached at [email protected].

Duties

The incumbent serves as a qualified and experienced Medical Technologist, will function as the Quality Control Coordinator for all areas in the laboratory including Blood Bank, Chemistry, Urinalysis, Special Chemistry, Coagulation, Hematology, and Microbiology for both Castle Point and Montrose Campuses in the Pathology and Laboratory Medicine Section (PLMS) of the VA Hudson Valley Healthcare Systems (VAHVHCS). Serves as an authority on inspection and accreditation requirements and regulations to both Castle Point and Montrose labs. Develops, recommends, and updates General/Administrative laboratory policy and procedure manuals in compliance with applicable VHA, Joint Commission accreditation requirements. Coordinates service preparation for external reviews which include Joint Commission, OIG, FDA, etc., which may include completing survey questionnaires, scoring Joint Commission Standards in Accreditation, updating and revising appropriate policies, and assuring that departmental records are accurate and maintained appropriately. Performs an annual assessment of the PLMS QI/QA includes any follow-up action taken as a result of QI/QA monitoring and evaluation activities. Presents the results of quality assurance/improvement activities to hospital committees as required. Establishes processes to monitor compliance with policies, to identify patterns and/or trends and to ensure that findings from quality management activities and performance improvement initiatives are used to redesign systems to improve the quality. (e.g. adherence to procedures such as the reporting of critically high or low laboratory results.) Develop new policies and guidelines, formulate plans, and the ability to judge effectiveness of the operation. Analyze organizational, technical, and administrative problems to develop and implement solutions that result in efficient overall laboratory operation. Work Schedule: Varied Compressed/Flexible:Not Available Telework: Not Available Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized EDRP Authorized: Contact [email protected], the EDRP Coordinator for questions/assistance. Learn more 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. Education and/or Experience Combination: A bachelor's degree or higher from an accredited college or university in medical laboratory science, medical technology, clinical laboratory science or in a related science (e.g., laboratory sciences such as chemistry, biochemistry, biology, microbiology, immunology, etc.). AND Completion of a medical technology clinical practice program. Clinical practice programs completed after 1974 must have been accredited by the National Accrediting Agency for Clinical Laboratory Sciences (NAACLS), Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (CAAHEP, formerly CAHEA), or the Accrediting Bureau of Health Education Schools (ABHES). The professional curriculum may have consisted of a post-baccalaureate certificate program or be integrated into a four-year program of study that culminated in a baccalaureate degree. OR, A bachelor's degree from an accredited college/university, including 16 semester hours of biological science (with one course in microbiology), 16 semester hours of chemistry (with one course in organic or biochemistry) and one course in mathematics. AND Two years of post-certification clinical laboratory experience (e.g., blood banking, chemistry, hematology, microbiology, immunology, clinical microscopy, etc.) within the last ten years as a certified Medical Laboratory Technician by the American Society for Clinical Pathology Board of Certification (ASCP-BOC), American Society of Clinical Pathology Board of Registry (ASCP-BOR) or American Medical Technologists (AMT). This experience must include performing moderate and/or high complexity testing in blood banking, chemistry, hematology, microbiology immunology and clinical microscopy (or categorical experience which matches categorical certification) in a clinical laboratory. OR, A bachelor's degree from an accredited college/university, including 16 semester hours of biological science (with one course in microbiology), 16 semester hours of chemistry (with one course in organic or biochemistry) and one course in mathematics. AND Five years of clinical laboratory experience within the last ten years performing moderate and/or high complexity testing in blood banking, chemistry, hematology, microbiology, immunology and clinical microscopy (or categorical experience which matches categorical certification) in a clinical laboratory. Foreign Graduates: Graduates of foreign baccalaureate degree programs meet the educational and/or experience requirements if the degree is found to be equivalent to degree programs recognized by the NAACLS or clinical laboratory experience. This finding may be based on either of the following: (1) A letter from a college or university with a baccalaureate program recognized by the NAACLS stating that the individual's foreign degree has been evaluated and been found to be equivalent to its Bachelor of Medical Technology degree. (2) A letter from ASCP-BOC or AMT stating that the individual is eligible for the certification examination. Certification: Candidates must have either (1) or (2) below:(1) Candidates must currently possess the appropriate certification as a MT, MLS, or CLS given by the ASCP-BOC, ASCP-BOR, or AMT. (2) For positions up to the full performance level, candidates must currently possess the categorical or specialist technologist level certification from the certification agencies listed above, such as, but not limited to, chemistry (C/SC), hematology (H/SH), microbiology (M/SM), molecular biology (MB/SMB) and blood bank (BB/SBB). Technologists with categorical or specialist certifications may only perform duties within the area of the laboratory specific to their categorical certification (e. g., an individual with a chemistry (C) certification can only perform duties in chemistry). Grade Determinations: In addition to the basic requirements above, applicants must meet the following grade requirements. GS-11 Quality Management Technologist Experience: Applicants must have 1 year of creditable experience equivalent to the full performance level (GS-9), which is directly related to the position to be filled. OR, 3 full years of progressively higher-level graduate education or a Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree in medical technology or a directly related field. In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate the following KSAs: Advanced knowledge of the concepts, principles and practices of medical technology sufficient to perform the full range of duties involved in planning, coordinating and evaluating laboratory services. Knowledge of quality management standards. Knowledge of accrediting agencies and regulatory requirements pertaining to laboratory operations. Comprehensive knowledge of statistical evaluation and analysis. Knowledge of laboratory operations and relationships to the organization. Comprehensive knowledge of laboratory quality control/assurance policies, procedures and principles, as well as safety practices and regulations. Assignment. Provides authoritative consultative services to management at all levels of the organization as it applies to quality management in a clinical laboratory setting. Maintains a laboratory quality management program and ensures monitoring of components and customer feedback. Identifies, defines and resolves issues associated with complex aspects of the collected data. Monitors laboratory quality control systems and performance indicators. Interacts with management officials and vendors providing inter-laboratory quality assurance and laboratory proficiency testing. Develops validation plans for equipment and methodology evaluations and evaluates statistical data collected. Responsible for laboratory continuous readiness for regulating agency inspections and accreditation from agencies such as the Joint Commission (JC) and the College of American Pathologists (CAP). References: VA Handbook 5005, Part II, Appendix G-24 The full performance level of this vacancy is 09. Physical Requirements: Work is sedentary but also demands standing, walking, bending, twisting, and carrying light items. Incumbent will be required to travel to 7 CBOC's and Montrose campuses as needed.

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 Franklin Delano Roosevelt Hospital 2094 Albany Post Road Montrose, NY 10548 US
• Name: Sarah Cassidy
• Email: [email protected]