The incumbent is a member of Prosthetic & Sensory Aids Service (PSAS) within the Prosthetic Service Line under the VISN.

Duties

Major duties at the GS-7 level include but not limited to: Performs technical level purchasing support adhering to the FAR, VAAR, VHA, and Prosthetics Directives and Handbooks, VISN policy and station memorandums to acquire patient specific medical equipment, supplies and services. Verifies Data Universal Numbering System (DUNS) and Bradstreet information and ensures each vendor is in the System for Award Management (SAM) and in good standing to do business with the government. Verifies accountability of all prosthetics expenditures in both the purchase menu and the prosthetics program and associates all obligations to the individual Veteran. Ensures the services provided are documented as the type of service and duration. Verifies adherence to training and other contractual agreements. Follow up action on the status of all these orders is required weekly until purchased and direct patient care is completed. Provides patient care and support services to an adult population and serves as the point of contact for external customer service inventory needs and support. The incumbent must tailor the patient care/support services to meet the specialized need(s) of the individual patient and the clinical service it supports. Monitors, receives, tracks, interprets, and analyzes Prosthetic Consults, and prescriptions (VAF 10-2431) for items, services and home medical equipment from physicians, therapists, medical center personnel, patients or their representatives. Reviews requests for completeness, comparing disability or diagnosis to equipment and/or services normally provided for the condition for which they are requested, and/or proper documentation has been provided to justify the issuance. Ensures consults are competed and appropriately closed within guidelines and follows-up on all pending consults to ensure services are rendered as quickly as possible or as indicated on the prescription/consult. Examines clinical health records and claims folders to determine eligibility and entitlement for items and services based on adopted criteria and advises Veteran of the same. Identifies priorities on pending requests to comply with VA Central Office mandated five (5) calendar day deadline. Ensures pending requests are posted to the suspense log and enters data to verify the workload statistics used to determine facility funding for Prosthetic activities. Identifies, verifies and ensures eligibility of all services and durable medical equipment (DME) requested on Computerized Patient Record System (CPRS) consult request by an authorized requester per the area of responsibility and training is addressed before issuing DME. Obtains and works with requestor to obtain a clear understanding of necessary healthcare plan/outcome. This requires direct verbal and written communication between the clinical provider and PSAS. Purchases specialized equipment or services that have an unstable price or product characteristic, hard to-locate sources, have critical characteristics, or similar complicating factors. The incumbent is responsible for data collection used in preparing and submitting numerous reports: Federal Procurement Data System (FPDS), Cost Distribution Report (CDR), 1465, Delayed Orders, and Patient Satisfaction Survey, Quality Assurance and Needs/Excess. Work Schedule: Monday-Friday, 8:00am-4:30pm 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

Requirements

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 01/26/2024. 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-07 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-06. 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-06 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: Purchase specialized equipment or services that have an unstable price or product characteristic, hard to-locate sources, have critical characteristics, or similar complicating factors and resolves a variety of purchasing problems, such as inadequate or restrictive specifications, lack of multiple suppliers, urgent need, or insufficient price history, or with continual requirement changes and updated products; to include life-threatening or life sustaining supplies and equipment, Veterans requiring hospice care in need of immediate supplies and equipment, emergent services and surgical implants with short suspense, and rehabilitation equipment to allow the Veterans to leave the facility; Track and meet deadlines; and Maintain 6 fund control points. There is no educational substitution at the GS-7 grade level. You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position: ClericalContracting/ProcurementCustomer Service 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 when conducing purchasing functions for PSAS. 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

There is no educational substitution at this grade level.

Contacts

• Address Wilmington VA Medical Center 1601 Kirkwood Highway Wilmington, DE 19805 US
• Name: Rhonda Williams
• Email: [email protected]