This Health Technician position is located in the Audiology Section of the Audiology & Speech Pathology Service (ASPS) at the VA Boston Healthcare System located at Jamaica Plain. This position is full-time at 40 hours per week.

Duties

The duties and responsibilities are carried out in all clinical and other patient care areas involved with the Audiology service. The health technician supports the function of the clinical programs in Audiology. The incumbent is a staff health technician (Audiology) under the supervision of a GS-12 audiologist or above. Direct patient care duties may include, but are not limited to the following: Greeting and escorting patients Triaging patients to an audiologist based on complexity of the procedures being completed Patient set up for procedures (e.g., vestibular, neurodiagnostic procedures) Patient instruction and counseling on hearing loss, hearing protection, or hearing aids either on an individual basis or in a group setting Conducting hearing pure tone air-conduction testing without interpretation for the purpose of hearing conservation and for established patients in regular VA clinic Non-diagnostic otoscopy Cerumen management Taking earmold impressions Hearing aid troubleshooting and repair Providing basic hearing aid information for patients and caregivers Performing listening checks on hearing aids Electroacoustic analysis of devices Pairing hearing aids and accessories via Bluetooth technology Programming previously stored settings into hearing aids Activating remote controls Training of employees and patients on personal hearing protection devices Administrative duties include, but may not be limited to the following: Managing office supplies Tracking loaner stock hearing aid inventory Electronic ordering, verifying orders upon arrival to ensure components are present and working correctly Scheduling appointments Packaging and mailing hearing aids and accessories Processing ROES transactions (e.g. certifying and issuing hearing aids, entering orders and repairs) Management of hearing protection device inventory Responding to routine inquiries from patients, including determining nature of hearing aid inquiry and responding to administrative questions Assisting patients, visitors, and others requesting information Management of infection control, patient safety, and clinical supplies for the audiology clinic Maintenance of clean, disinfected instrumentation, equipment, and work surfaces in the audiology clinic Reprocessing reusable medical equipment based on facility policy according to Medical Center infection control procedures and reusable medical equipment policies. Work Schedule: Days- 7:00am to 4:30pm (Compressed) Compressed/Flexible: Yes Telework: Not eligible for telework Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Functional Statement #: F03399 Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Not required Notifications: This position is in the Excepted Service. Veterans' preference does not apply for other current permanent Federal agency employees. Current federal employees must submit copies of their most recent non-award SF50 (notice of personnel action). The SF50 must identify the position, title, series, grad, step, tenure and type of service (competitive or excepted). In some cases, more than one SF50 may be required to show a higher grade previously held. This position is a AFGE Bargaining Unit position. This position is covered by a special rate. Incomplete applications will not be considered. May be required to travel to other Boston Locations.

Requirements

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 08/02/2024. BASIC REQUIREMENTS Citizenship. Be a citizen of the United States (U.S.). Non-citizens may be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with38 U.S.C. § 7407(a) Experience and Education. (1)Experience. Six months of experience comparable to the next lower level which demonstrates the knowledge, skills and abilities related to the duties of the position to be filled. OR (2)Education. Successful completion of two academic years above high school leading to an associate degree or a bachelor's degree with at least 12 semester hours in courses related to the position. OR (3)Experience/Education Combination. Equivalent combinations of experience and education are qualifying. An example of a combination of experience/education is three months of experience comparable to the next lower level which demonstrates the knowledge, skills and abilities related to the duties of the position to be filled and one year above high school with a minimum of 6 semester hours related to the health care industry. Certification. Certification by the Council for Accreditation in Occupational Hearing Conservation (CAOHC) as a Certified Occupational Hearing Conservationist (COHC) is required for the HTA, GS-08 assignment only. Loss of Credential. An employee in this occupation who fails to maintain the required certification identified for the HTA, GS-08 position must be removed from the assignment, which may also result in termination of employment. Physical Requirements. See VA Directive and Handbook 5019. English Language Proficiency. HTA, HTSLP or HTASLP candidates must be proficient in spoken and written English to be appointed as authorized by38 U.S.C. § 7403 (f). Grade Determinations: Health Technician Audiology - GS-08 (1)Experience. Completion of one year of progressive experience and/or experience equivalent to the next lower grade level directly related to the position being filled. (2)Certification. CAOHC certification as a COHC is required for this assignment. (3)Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills and Abilities (KSAs). In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate the following KSAs: (a)Ability to conduct employee hearing conservation education and training. (b)Knowledge of the hearing conservation program requirements to manage records and files. (c)Ability to perform pure tone air conduction testing. (d)Ability to provide audiologic technical support to the employee hearing conservation program. (e)Ability to identify a threshold shift and make appropriate referrals for further testing when indicated. (4)Assignment. For all assignments above the full performance level, the higher-level duties must consist of significant scope, administrative independence, complexity and range of variety as described in this standard at the specified grade level and be performed by the incumbent at least 25% of the time. The health technician works under the direction of a licensed audiologist. Assignments associated with this position include, but are not limited to completing adjustments to hearing aid settings as outlined in the audiologist's plan of care, preparing patients for advanced diagnostic procedures such as evoked potentials and collaborating with team to develop training programs for patients and staff. The health technician may perform pure tone air conduction threshold testing for established patients and employees, without interpretation. The health technician may provide employee hearing conservation education and training, basic counselling of employees concerning test results and criteria for employee referral. This health technician collaborates with the Hearing Conservation Program Manager and manages records associated with the hearing conservation program. References: PART II APPENDIX G70 EFFECTIVE DATE: May 13, 2021 The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-8. Physical Requirements: See VA Directive and Handbook 5019.

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: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/.

Contacts

• Address VA Boston Healthcare System 940 Belmont Street Brockton, MA 02301 US
• Name: Steven Laudenbach
• Phone: (603) 624-4366 X5078
• Email: [email protected]