The Medical Support Assistant position is assigned Medical Administrative Services located in Temple Medical Center in Temple, TX. The incumbent is responsible for initiating and performing a variety of clerical and administrative duties associated with patient care and treatment on various tours of duty on any patient care unit of the Central Texas Veterans Health Care System (CTVHCS).

Duties

The MSA provides administrative support for inpatient ward operations; to include: admissions, transfers, and discharges and scheduling of outpatient appointments. The MSA has the knowledge, skills, and ability to perform these functions in all Inpatient Care locations, as this position requires rotation to a variety of inpatient settings to perform these duties. Inpatient units include, but not limited to: Community Living Center (CLC), Medical Unit, Surgical Unit, Intensive Care Unit (ICU), Domiciliary, Mental Health Units (Acute, Geriatric Psych, and Substance Abuse). The MSA provides comprehensive services for all patient transfers (intra-facility, interfacility, and non-VA facility) to all acute care beds at the CTVHCS. This includes determining basic eligibility for medical care, maintaining an electronic Bed Management System (BMS), determining clinical appropriateness of transfer requests, determining appropriate type and level of service required and arranging transportation when necessary. The MSA is responsible for maintaining a smooth and efficient flow and quality of work to ensure timely accomplishment of the assigned workload. The MSA established priority of work assignments and adjusts based on the activities of the unit and the service. The MSA provide administrative support to the Charge Nurse, Nurse Manager and all other specialty staff assigned to support the day-to-day operation of all inpatient units. In the event of computer malfunction, duties will be completed following the established Bar Code Medication Administration (BCMA) contingency plan. The MSA follows established procedures for admissions, discharges, and transfers of patients. For discharges the MSA makes outpatient care appointments with the primary care provider and annotates this in CPRS utilizing the MAS: Inpatient Clerk Discharge Note. The MSA processes physicians' orders by identifying priority of STAT and routine orders and takes appropriate action by notifying personnel or services responsible. The MSA schedules and arranges patient appointments to avoid conflict of treatment. Next notifies professional staff of appointments pending and any special preparation needs. Enters movement appointments for patient transport and follows up to ensure patients arrive at the appointment. MSA has daily contacts, both in person and by phone, with veterans, family members, visitors, caregivers, representatives, professional staff, coworkers, and the general public. MSA must be able to absorb information obtained from and apply existing policies and procedures to promptly and correctly process the patient through the treatment system. MSA must be able to apply interviewing techniques to collect data at times to assure that the patient's information, record, and treatment are accurate and up-to-date. MSA must ensure all required orders are completed correctly, that appropriate decisions are made regarding appointments for care and follow-up on those appointments that in all cases the patient is receiving exceptional care. Work Schedule: Friday-Tuesday 1530-2400 (midnight) Wednesday, Thursday off. Telework: Not Available Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Functional Statement #: 00000 Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Not required

Requirements

Qualifications

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 Education. Experience. Six months experience of clerical, office, customer service, or other administrative work that indicates the ability to acquire the particular knowledge and skills needed to perform the duties of the position OR Education. One year above high school 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 required. Foreign Education. To be creditable, education completed outside the U.S. must have been submitted to a private organization that specializes in the interpretation of foreign educational credentials and such education must have been deemed at least equivalent to that gained in conventional U.S. programs. English Language Proficiency. MSAs must be proficient in spoken and written English in accordance with VA Handbook 5005, Part II, Chapter 3, Section A, paragraph 3.j. 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). Grade Determinations: Medical Support Assistant, GS-3 Experience or Education. None beyond the basic requirements. Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. Candidates must demonstrate all of] the KSAs below: i. Ability to meet, communicate, and interact with individuals in a courteous and helpful manner in order to give instructions and arrange appointments. ii. Ability to utilize computer systems to enter administrative data in patient systems. iii. Ability to learn and utilize basic medical terminology to record patient messages and physician requests pertaining to follow-up medical care. Medical Support Assistant, GS-4 Experience. One year of experience in clerical, office, customer service, or other administrative work that indicates the ability to acquire the particular knowledge and skills needed to perform the duties of the position OR Education. Two years of education above high school. Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. Candidates must demonstrate all of the KSAs below: i. Ability to meet, communicate, and interact with individuals from varying backgrounds and other health care team members in a courteous and helpful manner in order to facilitate medical care for patients. ii. Ability to use, and navigate between, various types of office automation equipment and software (i.e. computer systems, web based scheduling programs; insurance collection system; scanning software, multiple line phone systems; electronic faxing programs) to support patient care. iii. Knowledge of basic medical terminology to assist in the provision of care to patients. iv. Skill in recording patient messages and understanding physician requests pertaining to follow-up medical care in internal or external clinics. Medical Support Assistant, GS-5 Experience. One year of experience equivalent to the GS-4 grade level . Experience equivalent to the GS-04 grade level includes, but is not limited to: scheduling and rescheduling patients for treatment; interviewing patients for appointments; referring patients to other medical specialty clinics; providing information to patients necessary to resolve complaints; interacting with both internal and external customers; reviewing and documenting medical outpatient and inpatient electronic health records, as well as administrative records; verifying third party insurance and updating information in the Insurance Capture Buffer (ICB) system; obtaining medical information from patients; coordinating information and actions related to patient care and services; and scheduling appointments in accordance with VHA national scheduling guidelines. MSAs at this level refer all questions regarding medical attention to the appropriate health care team member. OR Education. Four years of education above high school Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. Candidates must demonstrate all of the KSAs below: i. Ability to operate computerized programs and systems in order to enter, modify, and retrieve sensitive medical and patient identifying information (PII) into or from electronic [health] records, scheduling systems, and/or reports. ii. Advanced knowledge of medical terminology specific to understand medical diagnosis and procedures sufficient to communicate clinical staff instructions to patients. iii. Ability to schedule medical appointments in a clinical setting. iv. Ability to work independently in the accomplishment of a wide variety of duties performing patient support work. v. Ability to communicate effectively and professionally in person, electronically, and/or by telephone, with internal and external customers. vi. Skill in customer service with the ability to identify customer concerns, and refer to the appropriate staff, as necessary, to ensure a satisfactory resolution. Preferred Experience: Customer Service/ Inter-personal Skills 1 year Administrative/Clerical Work Office Automation, Equipment and Software Organization Skills Multitasking Skills Adaptability References: VA Handbook 5005/117 Part II Appendix G45. Medical Support Assistant Qualification Standard GS-0679 Veterans Health Administration August 1, 2019. The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-05. The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is in the range of GS-03 to GS-05. Physical Requirements: The work is sedentary. Some work may require movement between offices, hospitals, warehouses, and similar areas for meetings and to conduct work. Work may also require walking/standing, in conjunctions with travel to and attendance at meetings and/or conferences away from the work site. Incumbent may carry and lift light items weighing less than 15 pounds.

Education

IMPORTANT: A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education.

NOTE: If your school has changed names, or is no longer in existence, you must provide this information in your application.

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 VA Central Texas Health Care System 1901 Veterans Memorial Drive Temple, TX 76504 US
• Name: VISN 17 SSU USAS Group
• Email: [email protected]