This position is located in the Prosthetics & Sensory Aid Service (PSAS) within the Prosthetic Service Line under the VISN or medical center. Performs direct medical supply purchasing and inventory management support for the administrative and clinical services of the VA to initiate the obligation for all related requirements necessary to provide prosthetic and sensory aids services, to include durable medical equipment and supplies directly to Veterans.

Duties

Determine from written prescriptions or oral requests what items or services are needed, selecting the most appropriate cost-effective source to deliver the items/service in the most reliable manner. Manage the collection of data to be used in numerous reports to ensure adequate resource funding and compliance. Research the use of different solicitation methods, ordering or reporting procedures, and purchasing methods to distinguish between different purchasing strategies. Document the services required per the contractual agreement and monitors, tracks, and trends contractor performance. Complete transaction on the patient's medical record to ensure documentation of exactly what was purchased and issued. Conduct face-to-face and telephone conversations with patients, family members, and private medical staff, contractors, vendors, and co-workers. Speak calmly and compassionately to severely disabled patients from all walks of life. Skill in dealing with a large community base, vendors, hospital staff and the public is required to display a positive image of the organization. Provide patient care and support services to an adult population and serve as the point of contact for external customer service inventory needs and support. Resolve conflicts in administering purchase orders, such as protests, claims, duplicate billing & terminations for convenience or default. Examine contracts, purchasing policies, equipment sources, shipping procedures and corresponding terminology to rapidly find the most reasonably priced item to meet requirement. Work independently to complete purchase orders and reconcile charges. Maintain accurate records of transactions and completes all adjustments to computerized system before final payment to vendor is certified. Maintain an inventory of all purchased and consignment equipment with expiration date, imitate exchange and/or replacement of expired stock. Complete written procurement and support notes in medical records to ensure order status is provided to the clinical requester to reduce delivery delays. Perform technical level purchasing support adhering to the Service Directives and Handbooks, policy and memorandums to acquire patient specific medical equipment, supplies and services. Initiate procurement of all outpatient medical requirements. Initiate recall action of identified recall products provided and communicate all findings to the appropriate offices. Verify accountability of all prosthetics expenditures in both the purchase menu and the prosthetics program and associate all obligations to the individual patient. Ensure the services provided are documented as the type of service and duration. Work Schedule: Monday-Friday, 8:00am - 4:30pm Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Position Description/PD#: Purchasing Agent (Prosthetics)/PD00787A 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, 07/29/2024. You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below: GS-5: Experience. I possess one year of specialized experience, equivalent to at least the GS-04 level in the Federal service, that equipped me with the knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs) needed to successfully perform the duties of this position and that is typically in or related to the position being filled. Specialized experience includes but is not limited to: makes purchases involving specialized medical equipment, supplies, and services, etc., OR Education. I possess the successful completion of 4 years of education above high school. This education must have been obtained in an accredited business, secretarial or technical school, junior college, college or university. One year of full-time academic study is defined as 30 semester hours, 45 quarter hours, or the equivalent in a college or university, or at least 20 hours of classroom instruction per week for approximately 36 weeks in a business, secretarial or technical school (TRANSCRIPT REQUIRED), OR Experience/Education Combination. I possess a combination of education and experience as described above. (TRANSCRIPT REQUIRED) Equivalent combinations of successfully completed post-high school education and experience may be used to meet total experience requirement at GS-05. For GS-05 only education in excess of the first 60 semester hours (i.e., beyond the second year) is creditable toward meeting the specialized experience requirement. One full academic year of study (30 semester hours) beyond the second year is equivalent to 6 months of specialized experience related to the work of the position as outlined above. You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position: Attention to Detail Customer Service Technical Competence Manages Resources 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 conducting purchase functions for PSAS, however, while conducting inventory management functions, may work comfortably in a warehouse environment, sitting, standing, walking, bending, lifting, carrying, retrieving, and managing inventory. Prolonged periods of working at a computer terminal is required. Ability to retrieve equipment from a storage room is required. Climbing associated with stocking of equipment and other items in storage areas is necessary. May carry/lift items weighing up to 25 lbs. Normal safety precautions are adequate. The work involves moderate discomfort when visiting sites away from the office. At times the employee may be required to wear protective clothing when visiting Prosthetic and Sensory Aid Fabrication laboratory. Often, walking between the main medical center and other parts of the Prosthetics service to conduct professional duties. 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: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/.

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

Contacts

• Address Audie L Murphy Memorial Veterans Hospital 7400 Merton Minter Boulevard San Antonio, TX 78229 US
• Name: VISN 17 SSU USAS Group
• Email: [email protected]